The Department of Homeland Security official in charge of preventing cyberattacks on the government and aiding the private sector with cyber issues resigned from his post effective Jan. 7, according to a DHS official.
Andy Ozment, assistant secretary of the Office of Cybersecurity and Communications at DHS, led the team that cleaned up after the Office of Personnel Management was breached, releasing information about more than 20 million government employees.
Although the president-elect can choose to ask current political appointees to continue in their positions, President Barack Obama has requested that all political appointees submit letters of resignation effective no later than Jan. 20, 2017. Ozment has chosen to resign 13 days earlier than required.
Danny Toler, deputy assistant secretary for Cybersecurity and Communications, will take over for Ozment.
Ozment came to DHS after serving in the White House as senior director for cybersecurity. He also oversaw the creation of the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s Cybersecurity Framework. Before joining the White House staff, Ozment served under the chief information security officer at DHS. Ozment also served at the Office of the Secretary of Defense, National Security Agency, Merrill Lynch, and Nortel Networks.
