Homeland Security seeks to thwart cyberattacks

Cybersecurity researchers in the private sector have lamented for many years that collaborations with government officials on addressing cyberthreats have been few and far between. But at the RSA Conference at San Francisco's Moscone Center, an annual gathering of cyber-security industry professionals, not only have top government representatives stressed their desire to work closely with the private sector in stemming the growing tide of security problems - they want some of them to quit their jobs and join the feds.

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said during a keynote speech Wednesday that her agency has new authority to beef up its team of cyber-warriors and couldn't help making her pitch to the thousands of security experts in the room. Sec Napolitano was the second top federal official to make an appearance at the RSA conference this week. On Tuesday, cyber-security coordinator Howard Schmidt listed his office's priorities in fortifying the country's networks and digital assets. Their visits illustrate the prominence of cyber-security at the federal level as the government seeks to address the risks and opportunities of cloud computing, and the vulnerabilities of the nation's critical infrastructure have become painfully obvious.