Admission Impossible: NSA, CISA Brass Absent from RSA Conf

The annual RSA Conference kicked off in San Francisco today, but one notable absence stood out among the attendees: top officials from the National Security Agency (NSA) and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Agency (CISA). The NSA's State of the Hack panel, a staple at the conference for years, was canceled and removed from schedules just earlier this month. In its place, Homeland Security boss Kristi Noem will be taking the keynote stage on Tuesday to share her vision for America's cyber defense.

The absence of top government officials has left many attendees feeling disappointed and frustrated. The NSA's State of the Hack panel was always a highly anticipated event, attracting a large following among cybersecurity professionals. Its cancellation marked a significant shift in the conference's programming, with many government agencies and cyber officials noticeably absent from the proceedings.

In previous years, Chris Krebs and Jen Easterly, former bosses of CISA, had delivered keynotes and spoken on panels alongside other government network defenders. This year, however, the absence of top CISA officials has left a significant void in the conference's programming. A CISA spokesperson confirmed that there would be no media roundtables or interviews with agency representatives at the conference.

One reason for the absence, according to retired US Navy Rear Admiral Mark Montgomery, is the recent slashing of federal budgets and employees. "The generous reason is that this administration has removed a lot of senior civil servants who would otherwise have taken early buyouts, or their divisions have been shut down and they decided to retire, and therefore there's less to spend," he said.

Additionally, Montgomery noted that the current climate among active duty military personnel may be contributing to the absence. "There's just less of a desire to go to talk right now, and probably a slight level of fear associated with unprecedented actions that happened recently," he added.

In light of these developments, many attendees are left wondering what other changes may be on the horizon for the agency. The current lack of top officials has raised questions about the future of CISA's Secure by Design effort, which aims to promote secure design practices in tech companies. With two top officials resigning last week, it remains to be seen how this will impact the agency's ability to achieve its goals.

However, some familiar faces are still making an appearance at the conference. Ex-CISA chiefs Easterly and Krebs will be speaking on panels, along with NSA ex-directors Paul Nakasone and Rob Joyce. Additionally, Hollywood's take on cyber conflict will be discussed on a panel featuring the executive producer of Netflix's Zero Day.

The RSA Conference continues through Tuesday, with more speakers and panels lined up for attendees to enjoy. Despite the absence of top government officials, the conference promises to deliver engaging content and insights from industry experts.