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The Many Fronts Of Homeland Defense
by Liza Porteus
The war against terrorism has moved to the states, as governments around the country establish homeland security posts and security task forces to combat potential threats to infrastructure, computer systems and more traditional terrorist threats. And some states are reviving their plans that aided them in combating the Y2K computer bug.
The new White House Office of Homeland Security, headed by former Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Ridge, is responsible for coordinating efforts to fight terrorism. Ensuring the safety of the nation's critical infrastructure is part of Ridge's purview, and states are learning from that model. Many of the new state homeland security coordinators already have established contacts in Ridge's office.
The Homeland Defense Team
Delaware Gov. Ruth Ann Minner appointed Dean Mulhern, director of the Delaware Emergency Management Agency (DEMA), as that state's anti-terrorism coordinator. Since 2000, Delaware has received more than $4.3 million in federal grants to enhance its bioterrorism response effort, including $1.8 million in June to develop the nation's first computerized system for reporting communicable diseases.
In Tennessee, Brigadier Gen. Wendell Gilbert, the commissioner of Veterans Affairs, was named as the deputy to Gov. Don Sundquist for homeland security issues. Gilbert will work closely with Ridge's office and chair the state's new Council of Homeland Security.
"We are about really enhancing the security of Tennessee, its people and its infrastructure," Gilbert said in an interview, adding that Tennessee is forging ahead with efforts to protect the state's computers. "We've become so dependent upon computers in many of our major activities that that is something we need to pay attention to."
North Dakota Gov. John Hoeven named Doug Friez to the position of homeland security coordinator. "We need to extend the [state security] program to sort of offer a heightened awareness and coordinated preparation, prevention, response related to homeland security," Friez said. "Certainly ... cyber terrorism is a concern. ... IT is one of those areas that needs to be assessed, evaluated, and potential changes in operation may be implemented."
Illinois Gov. George Ryan expanded the duties of Matt Bettenhausen, the deputy governor for criminal justice and public safety, to include homeland security. And retired Col. Tim Daniel will head the Missouri Security Panel and be that state's gubernatorial adviser on homeland security.
Other states that have formed homeland security task forces or given such duties to current officials include California, Idaho, Indiana, New Jersey, New York, Nevada, Ohio, Oregon and Texas.
Buttoning Down The Cyber-Security Hatch
But states are taking steps beyond appointing officials to homeland security posts.
Utah Gov. Michael Leavitt, for instance, ordered state Chief Information Officer Phillip Windley to enhance the state's computer-security efforts. "We have a plan to increase security that involves kind of standard security things people normally do," Windley said.
He noted that after the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, the state will issue a request for proposals to center around computer detection. "I don't think you're ever as ready as you could be. There's always more you could do," Windley said. "Security is always an area where the job is never done. ... It's a classic tradeoff" between convenience and secure systems. "You just have to keep working on it and not let your guard down."
Michigan's anti-terrorism strategy was recently approved by the Justice Department, with $5 million to $6 million to go toward community preparation. Susan Schafer, a spokeswoman for Gov. John Engler, said the eMichigan office is in charge of enhancing computer-security efforts.
"We all had this Y2K plan in place. It's a perfect opportunity to pull that Y2K plan off the shelf," Schafer said.
She said officials have tried to be more cognizant of placing potentially sensitive information, such as the location of water resources, on state Web sites since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
Share And Share Alike
Meanwhile, the National Association of State Chief Information Officers (NASCIO) is establishing a national clearinghouse for state governments to confidentially report security breaches. Although it is a "vague proposal at this point," said NASCIO spokesman Chris Dixon, the idea is to build an information-sharing center with the help of the National Governors Association (NGA). The center would contain security information, trends in the states, best practices and private security contacts, among other things.
NASCIO hopes to start the program within a year and get at least 40 states to participate. "We're just trying go address the key element of information sharing among the states so they don't have to learn the same lesson 50 times," Dixon said.
NASCIO supports federal bills, S. 1456 and H.R. 2435, that would exclude companies from antitrust law and the Freedom of Information Act requests when they agree to share information about cyber security. State CIOs also hope state information would be protected the same way.
"It's really a heightened awareness among state CIOs," Dixon said. "I think they're sort of putting the pedal to the metal in keeping a lot of these security programs and enhancements prior to Sept. 11. They're just accelerating the rollout while the interest is high."
Thom Rubel, NGA's program director for state information technology, said governors are "extremely focused" on security and public safety but are wary of sharing vulnerabilities. He compared their reticence to similar concerns about sharing information on the Y2K threat.
"You want to share the information confidentially among the states ... [but] another question is, do you share this with the feds or just among states," he said. "I think so far the states have been -- and governors included -- somewhat hesitant to do that."
Rubel has met with representatives from the FBI's National Infrastructure Protection Center (NIPC) who urged states to cooperate with the federal government and to launch their information-sharing systems. States "are concerned with protecting their information," Ruble said. He said NGA and NASCIO will meet again in mid-November to discuss the issue.
All Terrorism Is Local
More states also may be hearing from President Bush's new adviser for cyberspace security, Richard Clarke. At a Republican governors' press conference Wednesday, Virginia Gov. James Gilmore said Clarke already has contacted several governors about their cyber-security efforts.
"I'm confident ... the national government is going to be consulting with all the governors with respect to cyber-terrorism issues," Gilmore said.
On Oct. 16, Bush formed the President's Critical Infrastructure Board to fight cyber terrorism, noting that the nation's information systems are vital to businesses, the government and national defense. Protecting the networks is vital to protecting "the people, economy, essential human and government services, and national security of the United States," Bush said.
Internet Alliance Executive Director Emily Hackett said the board's efforts to coordinate activities with states will be key, and she said her group will monitor state work in that arena. "We're not going to be able to understand cyber terrorism unless policymakers understand" the mechanics of what goes into protecting the system, Hackett said. "We're reaching out to talk to them [states] and share what we know and what we've looked at so far."
Hackett said the Bush panelists have briefed her group on their mission and "encouraged us to be in touch, and we certainly said we would be part -- if not the central point -- of communication with the states."
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