The Department of Homeland Security will unveil on Tuesday a new interagency center to help critical-infrastructure firms assess the risk that a ceaseless stream of cyberthreats pose to their networks.
The National Risk Management Center is meant to be a one-stop shop for helping private companies manage their cybersecurity risk – and develop ways to mitigate it. Officials are expected to announce the center at a conference in New York City that will feature Vice President Mike Pence, Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen and other Cabinet officials.
The new initiative follows months of public statements from DHS officials about the need to better understand cyber risk spread across sectors. Effectively assessing risk requires “visibility into an often-opaque supply-chain process and a clear understanding of the threat,” Jeanette Manfra, DHS’s top cybersecurity official, said in April.
With the private sector telling DHS it needs more actionable threat data, the department has long looked to revamp its approach to helping protect banks, power companies, and other critical infrastructure firms from hackers.
The job is complicated by the…
