By Jessica Dogo


The United States Cyber Director, Mr Chris Inglis, says cyber security needs more investments in order to deliver its expectations in the cyberspace.


Inglis said this in his brief presentation titled: “Overview of Cyber security and its Impact”, during a three-week Foreign Press Center’s (FPC) Virtual Reporting Tour, on Monday.


He called on individuals to actively participate in the defence of these systems, adding that they have to be secured as they do not defend themselves.


Inglis said, ”there was a strong analogy to be heard in the cyberspace, whereby, people care about cyber, because it delivers functions that individuals are interested in.”


The White House Director gave three points about the cyberspace, which include care about cyber, what cyber is all about and its doctrine.


“If we make the investments necessary and create a resilient, defensible system, it will never be a perfectly secure system, meaning that these systems do not defend themselves.


“We must actively participate in their defense, and that defense needs to be a collective defense, one where each of us makes contributions to the defense of all of us.


“We need to make sure that we make the investments required to make sure that it is resilient and robust by design.


“We invest in them to make sure that we can have the confidence in the functions that they perform before the events occur.


“We try to avoid bad experiences as opposed to simply responding to things that happen to us or around us,” he said.


Inglis described cyber as a subordinate to trying to make effective and efficient use of the Internet, adding that it had a lot of technology in it.


“We are all dealing with one another today across this platforms, whether it is a zoom session or another kind of technology, making use of computers, networks, servers and routers,” he said.


In her remarks, the Principal Deputy National Cyber Director, USA, Kemba Walden, said that her office would develop a strategic workforce in regards to the cyberspace.


Walden said that the U.S. Government had worked closely with its National Cybersecurity Council and other relevant offices to develop its cybersecurity strategy.


She added that the government had partnered with more than 50 non-U.S government entities, and approximately 30 departments and agencies within the country to execute the strategic vision and federal cohesion.


Wlden said: “We have been working closely with our National Security Council and other offices and sister agencies to develop our national cybersecurity strategy which will feed in the national security strategy.


“We are trying to execute not only the strategic vision, but that federal cohesion, one of those core principles that we described.


“We are going to redevelop a workforce strategy at some point in the next several months. we want to start thinking strategically about filling those jobs where cyber or IT are in the job title.


“We started thinking about those few professions that enable or impact those jobs, so think of the lawyers, think of the C-suite, think of those that are enablers in that space.


”How do we address cyber security workforce in those spaces?”


According to her, there was a focus on those that were completely outside the cyber security workforce that are impacted by cyber and those that would like to achieve the benefits of the interconnected world overall.