The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced the establishment of the Homeland Intelligence Experts Group on Tuesday, comprised of private sector experts who will offer advice on the Federal government’s intelligence enterprise – including on emerging technology and cyber threats.
At an event hosted by the Brookings Institution on Sept. 19, Under Secretary for Intelligence and Analysis Ken Wainstein said the new group is comprised of 17 experts who will provide advice to himself, the Office of Intelligence and Analysis, and the Office of the Counterterrorism Coordinator.
“The Homeland Intelligence Experts Group is being formed at a time of unprecedented challenge, with the U.S. intelligence enterprise facing threats from a range of malign actors, to include foreign nation-state adversaries, domestic violent extremists, cyber criminals, drug-trafficking cartels and other transnational criminal organizations,” Wainstein said in a press release.
Some of the group’s members include Michael Leiter, former director of National Counterterrorism Center; James Clapper, former director of national intelligence; John Brennan, former director of the CIA; and Francis Taylor, former under secretary for intelligence and analysis at DHS.
Another member that Wainstein pointed to is Gregory Nojeim, senior counsel and director of the Security and Surveillance Project, Center for Democracy and Technology.
Wainstein said Nojeim is someone who he disagrees with “on a number of different things, but I always value his opinion. He makes me think differently.”
“[Nojeim] – and others who are very strongly embedded in the civil liberties, human rights community – they’re looking at these issues at the same table with the John Brennans and Jim Clappers, it is beautiful,” Wainstein said during the event. “From all sides you get different views of things, and we then walk out really enlightened about issues that we’re dealing with. That to me is the best way for people to get advice.”
“We had a meeting, it was really invigorating. It was great. That’s why we established this panel,” he added. “It’s like other panels around the government that you see, but I can tell you that given the makeup of this group, it’s really impactful.”
The group will meet four times a year to provide input on challenges including emerging technology, cyber threats, terrorism, fentanyl, and transborder issues.
Wainstein explained that cybersecurity is one of the biggest evolving threats, especially when it comes to critical infrastructure.
“We’re seeing day in and day out, adversaries – both domestic but also, in particular, foreign – who are engaging in disruptive cyber activities against our critical infrastructure,” he said.
“So, we’re working vigorously in that area, and it’s a threat that [shows] domestic terrorism isn’t going anywhere,” he added. “It’s only going to get more unmanageable and more challenging as technology evolves.”
