Ex-cyber security czar to head ICANN

The board of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, better known as ICANN, announced late Thursday that it had picked Rod Beckstrom as the non-profit group's chief executive. Beckstrom was until early this year the cyber-security czar at the US Department of Homeland Security and the choice reflects the growing importance of security as a primary concern at ICANN, which is the main Internet governance body. Beckstrom's appointment could rile those critical of ICANN's connection with the US Commerce Department and worried about national security concerns influencing Internet policies. But Beckstrom recently endeared himself to those wary of a larger Internet role by US spy agencies. When he resigned from the Department of Homeland Security, he complained that the National Security Agency, which specializes in electronic eavesdropping, was going to be playing a leading role in the new cyber-security policies then under development at the White House.