Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Janet Napolitano has opened the new National Cybersecurity and Communications Integration Center (NCCIC), a 24-hour, DHS-led coordinated watch and warning center to address threats and incidents affecting the nation’s critical information technology and cyber infrastructure.
According to DHS, the new unified operations center combines two of DHS’ operational organisations, the US Computer Emergency Readiness Team (US-CERT), which leads a public-private partnership to protect and defend the nation’s cyber infrastructure; and the National Coordinating Center for Telecommunications (NCC), the operational arm of the National Communications System.
The NCCIC will integrate the efforts of the National Cybersecurity Center (NCSC), which coordinates operations among the six largest federal cyber centers; the DHS Office of Intelligence and Analysis and private sector partners.
Reportedly, the NCCIC was created at the recommendation of the National Security Telecommunications Advisory Committee, the Government Accountability Office and a joint industry-government working group, which together emphasised the need for collocation, integration, and interoperability among existing cyber and communications incident response mechanisms.
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Janet Napolitano, secretary of DHS, said: Securing America’s cyber infrastructure requires a coordinated and flexible system to detect threats and communicate protective measures to our federal, state, local, and private sector partners and the public. Consolidating our cyber and communications operations centers within the NCCIC will enhance our ability to effectively mitigate risks and respond to threats.
