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Hello world! As of today, we are the @StateDept’s newest bureau, responsible for leading U.S. diplomacy on cyber and digital policy issues. #cyberdiplomacy https://t.co/UYSLJZRHUQ
— Bureau of Cyberspace and Digital Policy (@StateCDP) April 4, 2022
In April, The State Department launched a new cybersecurity bureau, designed to enhance digital diplomacy and online standards around the world.
The Bureau’s website provides the following mission statement:
The Bureau of Cyberspace and Digital Policy (CDP) leads and coordinates the Department’s work on cyberspace and digital diplomacy to encourage responsible state behavior in cyberspace and advance policies that protect the integrity and security of the infrastructure of the Internet, serve U.S. interests, promote competitiveness, and uphold democratic values.
The Bureau addresses the national security challenges, economic opportunities, and values considerations presented by cyberspace, digital technologies, and digital policy and promotes standards and norms that are fair, transparent, and support our values.
The CDP bureau includes three policy units:
Looking forward to welcoming our new boss soon! https://t.co/Ms2wA6FKWg
— Bureau of Cyberspace and Digital Policy (@StateCDP) September 15, 2022
According to the press release from the State Department announcing the launch of the Bureau: “Ultimately, the bureau will be led by a Senate-confirmed Ambassador-at-Large.” Last week, the Senate confirmed Nate Fick as the first person to lead the new Bureau as the first State Department Ambassador-at-Large for Cyberspace and Digital Policy.
Fick is familar to the OODA Loop membership, as OODA CEO Matt Devost had an OODAcast conversation with Fick In March 2021 on Dynamic Leadership and Adapting to Change. Fick, whose career has been eclectic with a throughline of demonstrating superior leadership abilities in a diverse array of successful opportunities. Nate is currently a General Manager at Elastic, having joined the firm with their acquisition of Endgame where he served as CEO. After graduating from Dartmouth, Nate joined the military and served as a USMC officer. His service in the military is chronicled in his New York Times best-selling book, One Bullet Away.
Fick was also the co-chair of the recent Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) Independent Task Force on Cybersecurity, which in May delivered its final report.
Last month, in his confirmation hearing, Fick called cyberspace “‘the next frontier of American diplomacy,’ and said that he would solidify a role for the State Department in addressing cyber threats alongside cyber leaders from other agencies.” (1)
As reported by The Record:
“The U.S. Senate on Thursday confirmed Nathaniel Fick as the country’s first ever cyber ambassador.
Fick will head the State Department’s Bureau of Cyberspace and Digital Policy, an office that opened in April and is intended to address gaps in the government’s global cyber response.
The confirmation comes one day after the Senate Foreign Relations Committee advanced President Joe Biden’s choice for the position.
Sen. Angus King (I-Maine), who introduced Fick, a fellow Mainer, at his nomination hearing last month, praised the confirmation.
‘Today, with the confirmation of Cape Elizabeth’s Nate Fick, the United States has taken a historic, long overdue step to address our rapidly-changing cyber environment,’ King, who co-chaired the Cyberspace Solarium Commission that recommended the creation of the new Foggy Bottom organization, said in a statement.
‘With Ambassador Fick coordinating our global cyberdiplomacy, America will be better positioned to respond to growing threats, inform the development of global rules of engagement, and create desperately needed international rules of the road for cyber.'” (1)
The OODAcast conversation: Nate Fick on Dynamic Leadership and Adapting to Change
Nate Fick on His Early Career, Writing ‘One Bullet Away’, The Stoics and Dynamic Leadership (Part 1 of 2): We continue our effort to underscore certain patterns and themes found throughout the OODAcast library of over 90 conversations with leaders and decision-makers, on topics such as leadership, clear decision-making while operating in a low information environment, future threats, and strategic action. In Part I of this conversation, Matt and Nate discuss lessons learned from leading a non-profit, writing One Bullet Away, Stoicism, and dynamic leadership.
Nate Fick on Company Culture, the Cybersecurity Community, Endgame/Elastic and Emerging Cyber Threats (Part 2 of 2): In Part II of this conversation, Matt and Nate discuss building a company culture, leadership in the cybersecurity community, the business model and value creation/capture play that is the Endgame/Elastic merger and emerging threats in cyber.
Nate Fick’s Foreign Relations Committee Confirmation Hearing (video)
Nate Fick’s Confirmation Hearing – Testimony Statement (pdf)
The New State Department Bureau of Cyberspace and Digital Policy
The Bureau Website: Bureau of Cyberspace and Digital Policy – United States Department of State
The Bureau Twitter Handle: @StateCDP
“The Era of the Global Internet is Over” According to CFR Task Force Report: Nate Fick was also the co-chair (along with Jami Miscik of Global Strategic Insights) of the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) Independent Task Force on Cybersecurity. In May, the CFR Task Force delivered their final report, “Confronting Reality in Cyberspace: Foreign Policy for a Fragmented Internet”, which concluded, “that, —among other things—the era of the global internet is over; Washington will be unable to stop further fragmentation; data is a source of geopolitical competition; the United States has taken itself out of the digital trade sphere (undercutting Washington’s ability to lead abroad); cybercrime is a pressing national security threat; and Washington and its allies have failed to impose sufficient consequences on attackers.”
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About the Author
Daniel Pereira is research director at OODA. He is a foresight strategist, creative technologist, and an information communication technology (ICT) and digital media researcher with 20+ years of experience directing public/private partnerships and strategic innovation initiatives.
Informing your decisions with actionable intelligence
Informing your decisions with actionable intelligence