Cybersecurity in the Digital Age: Understanding the Evolving Cybersecurity Landscape

Note: The below article has been created using a transcript of the video.

For 26 years, AFRICOM has led discussions on ICT and digital connectivity, which is my focus today. As the Director for Federal Cybersecurity in the Office of the National Cyber Director at the White House, our mission is to build coherence across the U.S. government’s approach to cybersecurity.

The Real-World Impact of Cybersecurity

In our office, we say that we don't do cybersecurity for its own sake. We practice cybersecurity to enable defensible, resilient networks that support greater connectivity. This connectivity fosters closeness, development, and the opportunity to reach our highest aspirations.

The Promise of Africa’s Digital Future

In Africa, 500 million people are online, representing 38% of the continent. This presents a great opportunity to build more defensible, resilient networks for the remaining 62% of Africans as they come online.

U.S. Investments in Digital Transformation

The U.S. is committed to ensuring all communities thrive in a digitally enabled future. The Biden-Harris administration has catalyzed generational investments across America, and we are also investing in Africa through the Digital Transformation with Africa Initiative (DTA). DTA expands digital access, literacy, and strengthens digital environments across the continent, alongside investments in digital infrastructure through the G7’s Partnership for Global Investment and Infrastructure Initiative.

Strategic Vision for Cyberspace

President Biden’s vision for cyberspace emphasizes defensibility, resilience, and commitment to values. We aim to create systems that are secure by design and resilient enough to avert catastrophe, even when defences fail.

Rethinking Cybersecurity: Technology

We are rethinking how cybersecurity is constructed. Perimeter defence alone is insufficient, as demonstrated by the SolarWinds and Colonial Pipeline attacks. We’ve embraced zero trust technology, which assumes breaches are inevitable and requires a risk-mitigating approach rooted in "never trust, always verify."

Strategic Shifts in U.S. Cybersecurity Policy

The President’s National Cybersecurity Strategy calls for reevaluating what makes systems defensible and resilient. This strategy includes two major shifts: rebalancing the burden of security from those least able to bear it to those most capable and encouraging long-term security solutions over short-term profit incentives.

Implementation and Global Collaboration

We are committed to implementing this strategy through detailed plans and holding ourselves accountable. Cybersecurity must be approached collaboratively, as cyberspace is globally interconnected.

Investing in People: The Cyber Workforce

A key pillar of our efforts is strengthening education and growing the cyber workforce. Both Africa and the U.S. face significant shortages in cyber professionals. Our office has issued the first National Cyber Workforce and Education Strategy, focusing on digital and computational literacy, digital resilience, and transitioning to skills-based hiring.

In closing, the U.S. envisions an affirmative vision for cyberspace, where economic prosperity is unleashed through digital transformation. Our approach to cybersecurity is collaborative, and we are eager to share our experiences. We are all in this together, and our digital ecosystem should benefit everyone, no matter where they live.

Thank you again for the opportunity to speak today. I look forward to working together to advance a defensible, resilient, and values-aligned digital future. Thank you.