Robert E. Joyce is an American cybersecurity official who served as special assistant to the President and Cybersecurity Coordinator on the U.S. National Security Council. He also began serving as White House Homeland Security Adviser to President Donald Trump on an acting basis after the resignation of Tom Bossert[1][2][3] from April 10, 2018, to May 31, 2018. He completed his detail to the White House in May 2018 and returned to the National Security Agency,[4][5] where he served as the Senior Advisor to the Director NSA for Cyber Security Strategy, until July 2019 when he went to London and served in the US Embassy as the NSA's senior cryptologic representative to the UK.[1] Joyce previously performed as acting Deputy Homeland Security Advisor since October 13, 2017.[6] On January 15, 2021, the NSA announced that Joyce would replace Anne Neuberger as its Director of Cybersecurity.[7][8][9]
Rob Joyce | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Acting United States Homeland Security Advisor | |
| In office April 10, 2018 – May 31, 2018 | |
| President | Donald Trump |
| Preceded by | Tom Bossert |
| Succeeded by | Doug Fears |
| Personal details | |
| Education | Clarkson University (BS) Johns Hopkins University (MS) |
Joyce announced his retirement in February 2024 after 34 years with the agency. His departure was in late March 2024, where he was succeeded by David Luber as the Director of Cybersecurity.[10][11] After leaving NSA, Joyce established Joyce Cyber LLC in 2024[12] providing cybersecurity consulting services. on May 18, 2024, OpenAI announced he was part of their Safety and Security Committee.[13] Other consulting clients include Microsoft, PwC, Beacon Global Strategies,[14] Sandfly Security[15] and he routinely speaks professionally through Leading Authorities Speaker's Bureau.[16]
Education
editJoyce graduated from Clarkson University in 1989 with a Bachelor of Science in Electrical and Computer Engineering and received a Master of Science in Electrical Engineering from Johns Hopkins University in 1993.[17]
Career
editAt the White House, Joyce was instrumental in the crafting of a cybersecurity executive order, EO13800 Strengthening the Cybersecurity of Federal Networks and Critical Infrastructure[18][19][20] and revamping the nation's Vulnerabilities Equities Process (VEP).[21][22] In his current position he continues to speak publicly about nation state cybersecurity threats, including a 2018 DEF CON keynote.[23][24][25][26] and appearing on 60 Minutes.[27][28] Joyce previously worked in the National Security Agency (NSA), beginning in 1989, in a variety of roles.[29] From 2013 to 2017, he was head of the NSA's Tailored Access Operations (TAO), a cyber-warfare intelligence-gathering unit.[30][31][32] In that role, he gave a rare public talk at the USENIX Enigma Cybersecurity conference about disrupting nation state hackers.[33][34][35][36] Previously, he served as the deputy director of the now-defunct Information Assurance Directorate (IAD) or Directorate I, and the SID Associate Deputy Director for Counterterrorism.[37][38][17] Also within the NSA, Joyce worked as Technical Director for the NSA Commercial Solution Center's Commercial Partnerships Office, and was chief of the Selection Systems Branch and Technical Director in NSA's Special Source Operations.[17]
After John R. Bolton pushed out Tom Bossert as the Homeland Security advisor, Joyce announced he had completed this twelve-month detail to the White House and gave 30 days notice that he was returning to NSA because of the difficulties in getting priority attention for cyber policy in the administration.[39] Bolton subsequently eliminated the White House Cybersecurity Advisor position.[40]
Personal life
editJoyce notes in his biography that he runs an annual Christmas Light show "likely visible from the International Space Station"[41] and gave a talk titled "Building Absurd Christmas Light Shows" at the 2018 Shmoocon cybersecurity conference.[42] Additionally he led a Boy Scout team to the annual World Championship of Pumpkin Chucking, building a contraption to fling pumpkins for distance.[41][43]
References
edit- ^ a b Landler, Mark (April 10, 2018). "Trump's Chief Adviser on Homeland Security Resigns". New York Times. Retrieved April 10, 2018.
- ^ "A cybersecurity power struggle is brewing at the National Security Council - CyberScoop". Cyberscoop. April 19, 2018. Retrieved September 26, 2018.
- ^ "The White House Loses Its Cybersecurity Brain Trust". WIRED. Retrieved September 26, 2018.
- ^ "Trump Scraps Cyber Czar Post After First Appointee Leaves: White House". Reuters. May 15, 2018. Retrieved May 15, 2018.
- ^ McLaughlin, Jenna. "Former Trump cyber adviser tapped for top intelligence role in UK". CNN. Retrieved September 26, 2018.
- ^ "White House Cybersecurity Coordinator Rob Joyce takes on additional role in Trump administration - CyberScoop". Cyberscoop. October 13, 2017. Retrieved April 12, 2018.
- ^ "Rob Joyce named new NSA cybersecurity director - CyberScoop". Cyberscoop. January 15, 2021. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
- ^ "NSA official warns of hackers using AI to perfect their English for phishing schemes". NBC News. January 9, 2024. Retrieved January 15, 2024.
- ^ Newman, Lily Hay. "NSA Cybersecurity Director Says 'Buckle Up' for Generative AI". Wired. ISSN 1059-1028. Retrieved January 15, 2024.
- ^ Reddick, James (February 20, 2024). "NSA Cybersecurity Director Rob Joyce to retire, agency says". The Record. Retrieved February 21, 2024.
- ^ "NSA cyber director to step down after 34 years of service". Nextgov.com. February 20, 2024. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
- ^ "Home". www.joycecyber.com. Retrieved August 29, 2024.
- ^ OpenAI (May 18, 2024). "OpenAI Board Forms Safety and Security Committee". openai.com. Retrieved August 28, 2024.
- ^ "Rob Joyce - Beacon Global Strategies". bgsdc.com. Retrieved August 29, 2024.
- ^ "Rob Joyce, former head of NSA Tailored Access Operations, joins Sandfly's Advisory Board". Sandfly Security - Agentless Linux Security and EDR. July 23, 2024. Retrieved August 29, 2024.
- ^ "Speaker: Robert Joyce, NSA Cybersecurity Director (2021-2024), Former Special Assistant to the President & Acting Homeland Security Advisor | LAI". www.leadingauthorities.com. Retrieved August 29, 2024.
- ^ a b c Aid, Matthew (June 1, 2013). "New Top Leadership at NSA's Cyber Espionage Unit". MatthewAid.com. Retrieved April 10, 2018.
- ^ "Executive Order Outlines White House Cybersecurity Priorities | Institute for Information Security & Privacy | Georgia Tech". iisp.gatech.edu. Archived from the original on September 27, 2018. Retrieved September 26, 2018.
- ^ "Trump's Top Cybersecurity Boss Talks Priorities". The first stop for security news | Threatpost. Retrieved September 26, 2018.
- ^ "Trump's cybersecurity order: Out with 'antiquated systems'". CNET. May 11, 2017. Retrieved September 26, 2018.
- ^ "Trump administration pulls back curtain on secretive cybersecurity process". Washington Post. Retrieved September 26, 2018.
- ^ "Improving and Making the Vulnerability Equities Process Transparent is the Right Thing to Do | The White House". The White House. November 15, 2017. Retrieved September 26, 2018.
- ^ DEFCONConference (August 17, 2018), DEF CON 26 - Rob Joyce - NSA Talks Cybersecurity, retrieved September 26, 2018
- ^ "NSA Speaker Rob Joyce Offers Cybersecurity Insights at DEF CON 26 - InCyberDefense". incyberdefense.com. Archived from the original on September 27, 2018. Retrieved September 26, 2018.
- ^ "NSA leader to hackers: Cybersecurity's a team sport - The Parallax". The Parallax. August 24, 2018. Retrieved September 26, 2018.
- ^ "NSA Brings Nation-State Details to DEF CON". Dark Reading. Retrieved September 26, 2018.
- ^ "Video: 60 Minutes: Rob Joyce Discusses Cyber Hacking | Leading Authorities Speakers". www.leadingauthorities.com. Retrieved August 29, 2024.
- ^ Whitaker, Bill (August 11, 2024). "Cybersecurity investigators worry ransomware attacks may worsen as young, Western hackers work with Russians - CBS News". www.cbsnews.com. Retrieved August 29, 2024.
- ^ Verel, Patrick (July 26, 2016). "NSA's Rob Joyce on Hacking Back 0". Fordham News. Fordham University. Retrieved April 10, 2018.
- ^ Zetter, Kim (January 28, 2016). "NSA Hacker Chief Explains How to Keep Him Out of Your System". Wired. Retrieved April 10, 2018.
- ^ Hackett, Robert (January 30, 2016). "NSA Top Hacker: Here's How to Make My Life Hard". Fortune. Retrieved April 10, 2018.
- ^ Landler, Mark (April 10, 2018). "Thomas Bossert, Trump's Chief Adviser on Homeland Security, Is Forced Out". New York Times. Retrieved April 10, 2018.
- ^ "Disrupting Nation State Hackers | USENIX". www.usenix.org. Retrieved April 12, 2018.
- ^ "NSA Hacker Chief Explains How to Keep Him Out of Your System". WIRED. Retrieved April 12, 2018.
- ^ "NSA Top Hacker: Here's How to Make My Life Hard". Fortune. Retrieved April 12, 2018.
- ^ "NSA's top hacking boss explains how to protect your network from his attack squads". Retrieved April 12, 2018.
- ^ Carberry, Sean (March 15, 2017). "NSA vet Rob Joyce to lead cyber at White House". FCW. Retrieved April 10, 2018.
- ^ "International Conference on Cyber Security 2013 Partnerships". International Conference on Cyber Security. Fordham University. August 8, 2013. Archived from the original on April 8, 2018. Retrieved April 10, 2018.
- ^ Nakashima, Ellen. "White House cybersecurity official to return to the NSA". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved January 20, 2021.
- ^ "John Bolton officially kills the White House Cybersecurity Coordinator position". CyberScoop. May 15, 2018. Retrieved January 20, 2021.
- ^ a b "Rob Joyce". CNBC. August 22, 2017. Retrieved April 12, 2018.
- ^ "Speaker Lineup ShmooCon 2018 – ShmooCon". shmoocon.org. Retrieved April 12, 2018.
- ^ Schultz, Sharon P. "West County: Boys Scouts host their own punkin chunkin". capitalgazette.com. Archived from the original on September 27, 2018. Retrieved September 26, 2018.