Industry Can, Must Do More to Help FBI Cybersecurity Efforts

Companies that are hacked have valuable information that can help prevent future cyber intrusions, said an FBI cyber expert. Rick McFeely, executive assistant director of the FBI’s Criminal, Cyber, Response and Services Branch, told the audience at the AFCEA Global Intelligence Forum in the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., that the bureau is depending on industry to share vital information on cyber attacks.

“A key part of what the FBI does is victim notification,” McFeely said. “But, by calling out methods used to attack one company, we can see if those methods are being used to attack others. We now do that [a great deal].

“We need you to report it immediately,” he said, addressing industry. “If you share malware, we can tell you how others mitigated the same situation.” He added that the FBI is working to develop a tool that identifies malware’s fingerprints.

One problem the bureau has had with industry is that companies often expect to learn the identity of the intruder. That is not always possible given confidential sources of information, and the FBI discourages firms from seeking that data. “We need to get away from the constant need of private industry to know who’s behind the keyboard,” McFeely states. “We need to worry less about positively identifying [intruders] and focus on their intent and capability. We provide intelligence so you can defend your own networks, not so you can identify where an attack comes from.”