Re: [ga] Should the government get its own net?

[Jeff Williams <jwkckid1@ix.netcom.com>]

Joanna and all assembly members,

  Yes.  Although I in part agree with Mr. Clarks assessment, and was well
aware of his thinking some two years ago, it is a shame that the ICANN
BoD and staff in part forced Mr. Clarks hand in this issue due to
the lack of proper security being provided on the Legacy Root
based internet structure which we called for some 4 years ago now.
Also see: http://www.zdnet.com/zdnn/stories/news/0,4586,2662884,00.html
And:  http://www.fts.gsa.gov/govnet/govnet.doc


Joanna Lane wrote:

> FYI
>
> http://cgi.zdnet.com/slink?150607:22450324
>
> Should the government get its own Net?
>
> By Robert Lemos
> ZDNet News
> October 11, 2001 4:31 AM PT
>
> The Bush administration has apparently decided that the Internet isn't
> secure enough for its needs and has proposed a new network be created to
> communicate critical government information.
>
> The new network, dubbed Govnet, is the brainchild of Richard Clarke, the
> newly appointed presidential adviser for cyberspace security, and is
> intended to carry data, voice-over-IP and possibly video.
>
> "Planning for this network has been going on for several months," Clarke
> said in a statement Wednesday, adding that the General Services
> Administration--the agency responsible for providing service and equipment
> to the U.S. government--will play a critical role. "We need the combination
> of skills the GSA has to establish this network quickly."
>
> The agency posted a so-called request for information on its Web site
> Wednesday, calling for the high-tech industry to create potential blueprints
> for the new network.
>
> The proposal outlines a network that uses the current Internet protocols
> that would be limited to communications between government agencies and
> other authorized users. "There will be no interconnections or gateways to
> the Internet or other public or private networks," the RFI said.
>
> In addition, the proposal requires that all data on the network be encrypted
> using the current standard recommended by the National Security Agency and
> that the network be immune to worms, viruses, denial-of-service attacks and
> other Internet hazards.
>
> During the announcement of his new position Tuesday, Clarke explained why a
> secure network for critical government services is needed.
>
> "Our economy, our national defense, increasingly our very way of life
> depends upon the operation--secure and safe operation--of critical
> infrastructures that in turn depend on cyberspace," he said. He made no
> mention of the Govnet at the time.
>
> However, the idea of a separate Internet for critical government services is
> not a new one for Clarke. Last December, at Microsoft's SafeNet Conference,
> Clarke proposed just such a network.
>
> "We need to bifurcate cyberspace: We need to have a secure zone in
> cyberspace and then we can leave the rest of it as it is today," he said at
> the time, when he had been serving as President Clinton's National
> Coordinator for security, counterterrorism and infrastructure protection on
> the National Security Council.
>
> The secure Internet should have the equivalent of armed guards at the doors
> and no one would be anonymous, he added. "In this zone, privacy and security
> could be achieved, as long as there is no anonymity."
>
> The request for information calls for a network release in the contiguous 48
> states, with the possibility of future expansion into Canada, Alaska and
> Hawaii. Industry proposals are due by Nov. 21, and Clarke intends to hold
> information-exchange meetings on the topic.
>
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Regards,

--
Jeffrey A. Williams
Spokesman for INEGroup - (Over 118k members strong!)
CEO/DIR. Internet Network Eng/SR. Java/CORBA Development Eng.
Information Network Eng. Group. INEG. INC.
E-Mail jwkckid1@ix.netcom.com
Contact Number:  972-447-1800 x1894 or 214-244-4827
Address: 5 East Kirkwood Blvd. Grapevine Texas 75208


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