RFC: Federal Plan for Cyber Security and Information Assurance Research and Development

http://www.nitrd.gov/

Public comment on the Plan is welcome during a
two-week comment period. Please send any comments to
csia-plan-comments@nitrd.gov before April 28, 2006.

The National Science and Technology Council (NSTC), a
Cabinet-level Council that coordinates science and
technology policies across the Federal Government,
today released the Federal Plan for Cyber Security and
Information Assurance Research and Development. This
report sets out a framework for multi-agency
coordination of Federal R&D investments in
technologies that can better secure the interconnected
computing systems, networks, and information that
together make up the U.S. information technology (IT)
infrastructure.

“This country’s IT infrastructure – which includes not
only the public Internet but also the networking and
IT systems that control critical infrastructures
ranging from power grids to emergency communications
systems – is vital not only to our national and
homeland security but to our economic security,” said
John H. Marburger III, Science Adviser to the
President and Director of the Office of Science and
Technology Policy. “This report provides a blueprint
for coordination of Federal R&D across agencies that
will maximize the impact of investments in this key
area of the national interest.”

The Federal Plan for Cyber Security and Information
Assurance outlines strategic objectives for
coordinated Federal R&D in cyber security and
information assurance (CSIA). The Plan presents a
broad range of CSIA R&D technical topics and
identifies those topics that are multi-agency
technical and funding priorities. The Plan’s findings
and recommendations address R&D priority-setting,
coordination, fundamental R&D, emerging technologies,
roadmapping, and metrics. Together with commentaries
about the CSIA R&D technical topics that describe
their significance, the current state of the art, and
gaps in current capabilities, these elements provide a
baseline for implementing the Plan’s recommendations.

The Plan was prepared by the Interagency Working Group
(IWG) on Cyber Security and Information Assurance
(CSIA), whose members represent more than 20
government organizations. The CSIA IWG operates under
the auspices of the NSTC’s Subcommittee on
Infrastructure and Subcommittee on Networking and
Information Technology Research and Development
(NITRD). The Federal Plan for Cyber Security and
Information Assurance Research and Development is
available on the NITRD Program Web site: http://www.nitrd.gov/.