Office of the National Cyber Director ONCD

Congress created the Office of the National Cyber Director in the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal 2021, enacted on January 1, 2021 over a presidential veto. The idea came from the Cyberspace Solarium Commission, a congressional commission that concluded no single official was responsible for cybersecurity across a government where the responsibility was split among the Defense Department, the Department of Homeland Security, the intelligence agencies, the FBI, and sector regulators. The director is confirmed by the Senate and is the President's principal adviser on cybersecurity.

The office develops the national cybersecurity strategy and the plan to carry it out, reviews agency cybersecurity budgets, and coordinates the federal response to major cyber incidents. It works closely with the National Security Council, the Office of Management and Budget, and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, which handles much of the operational work of defending civilian networks.

The first director, Chris Inglis, took office in 2021, and the office released a national cybersecurity strategy in March 2023 that called for shifting more responsibility for security onto software makers and large companies rather than individual users. It has also led efforts on cyber workforce development and on regulatory harmonization. Its staff is small, and its influence depends on its ability to coordinate agencies with their own budgets and authorities.