The departments of Homeland Security (DHS), Commerce and Treasury hope their reports on possible incentives to encourage the private sector to adopt voluntary cybersecurity standards will be made public by the end of the month, said Jeanette Manfra, DHS deputy director running the task force implementing President Barack Obama’s Cybersecurity Executive Order, during a Wiley Rein program Wednesday on implementation of that order. Among other things, the order tasks DHS with overseeing the private sector’s implementation of the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s (NIST) forthcoming voluntary Cybersecurity Framework, including implementation of incentives (CD Feb 14 p1). DHS, Commerce and Treasury submitted separate reports to the Office of Management and Budget June 12 that examined the feasibility and effectiveness of possible incentives, but they have not yet been made public while they undergo an internal review (CD July 8 p9).
July 1 Practising Law Institute event on cybersecurity risk management, 9 a.m., PLI, 810 7th Ave., New York -- bit.ly/12g1hR1
Former FCC members disagree about how fast the commission should be pushing for action on the incentive auction of broadcast TV spectrum. Former agency heads and ex-commissioners from both parties agreed Wednesday that Wireless Bureau staff have been impeded by the lack of a full commission, and lack of clear direction from the top. The ex-members also disagreed on whether the auction is the most complex task the agency has ever taken on, in a Q-and-A hosted by Communications Daily.
June 24 Alabama 800 MHz Public Safety Regional Planning Committee meets, 10 a.m., Calhoun County Emergency Operations Center, 507 Francis St. W., Jacksonville -- elinsley@mobilecounty.net
NFL Network hires Lorey Zlotnick, ex-Outdoor Channel, as senior vice president-marketing … Telemundo Media hires Efrain Lopez, ex-BBVA, as senior vice president-strategy, new position … Gannett’s Broadcasting Division hires Elliott Wiser, ex-Bright House Networks, as president/general manager, WTSP St. Petersburg, Fla., succeeding Ken Tonning, retiring … Elemental Technologies multiscreen content delivery firm hires Aslam Khader, ex-Ensequence, as chief product officer … Disney hires Naketha Mattocks, ex-independent film and TV producer, as vice president-original movies, Disney channels … Council for Research Excellence audience-measurement methodology group new members include Jeffrey Graham, Twitter, and Robin Thomas, Tribune Studios/WGN America … Lobbying registration: Mercury Radio, Wiley Rein, effective April 16.
*June 11 Privacy event organized by The Washington Post, 8:30 a.m., 1150 15th St. NW -- http://wapo.st/11KnK8x
Last month’s appeals court decision striking down a National Labor Relations Board requirement that employers post a notification of collective bargaining rights shouldn’t help Verizon in its net neutrality challenge, the FCC told the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit in a letter filed Thursday in docket 11-1355. Verizon wrote in late May to bring the case to the D.C. Circuit’s attention. The relevance of the case, say attorneys on both sides of the issue, will depend on whether the court agrees with the FCC’s position that broadband ISPs are more akin to conduits than speakers.
The World Telecommunication/ICT Policy Forum (WTPF) ended last week with a consensus among participants on a set of non-binding documents on Internet-related issues (CD May 17 p3). The consensus at WTPF was in contrast to the rancorous end to the World Conference on International Telecommunications (WCIT) in Dubai in December. Industry insiders and experts told us it’s unclear if future binding talks on Internet governance issues will produce a consensus as easily.
San Francisco Mayor Edwin Lee approved a settlement last week in CTIA v. City and County of San Francisco, said law firm Wiley Rein (http://bit.ly/10QlYDE). It represents CTIA and called the settlement another win in “a series of significant court victories” over the last three years. The case involved San Francisco’s cellphone right-to-know ordinance, designed to inform people of alleged risks of mobile phones. San Francisco officials are ending the ordinance as part of the settlement, the law firm said. A 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals panel, located in San Francisco, sided with CTIA last fall, and the city’s call for a rehearing en banc was denied this February, it said. The Environmental Working Group slammed this then-pending settlement May 6 (http://bit.ly/10gOqBP): “EWG has been a strong supporter of this groundbreaking ordinance from day one and worked with the city on its implementation,” said Research Director Renee Sharp in a statement. “We are disappointed that residents of San Francisco will not have access to important public health information about radiation emissions from wireless devices at the point of sale. We strongly believe consumers have the right to know about the potential health effects of cell phone radiation and how they can reduce their exposures.” Wiley Rein called these fears “unfounded.”
HERSHEY, Pa. -- The “bad guys” are winning the war against U.S. cyber defenses, telecom lawyers were told Friday at the FCBA retreat. If lawmakers don’t step up their game, some experts said they fear the results could be as disastrous as aiming a ballistic missile at America. Some panelists said the February executive order (CD Feb 14 p1) to strengthen defenses was intended to spur cybersecurity legislation.