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Writer's pictureKen Larson

Getting To Know The Joint Cyber Defense Collaborative (JCDC)


CYBER SECURITY AND INFRASTRUCTURE SECURITY AGENCY”


“The Joint Cyber Defense Collaborative (JCDC) will lead the development of the Nation’s cyber defense plans, which outline activities to prevent and reduce the impacts of cyber intrusions.


Leveraging new authorities provided by the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) of 2021, the JCDC will bring together public and private sector entities to unify deliberate and crisis action planning while coordinating the integrated execution of these plans.”

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“The plans will promote national resilience by coordinating actions to identify, protect against, detect, and respond to malicious cyber activity targeting U.S. critical infrastructure or national interests.


The JCDC’s office for joint cyber planning will be composed of representatives from across the federal government—including the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Department of Justice (DOJ), United States Cyber Command (USCYBERCOM), the National Security Agency (NSA), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI). Furthermore, the JCDC will consult with voluntary partners, including state, local, tribal, and territorial (SLTT) governments, information sharing and analysis organizations and centers (ISAOs/ISACs), as well as owners and operators of critical information systems, and other private entities, as appropriate.Collapse All Sections

Planning is a critical element in coordinating cyber defense capabilities to ensure a whole-of-nation approach to securing critical infrastructure and defending national interests. The JCDC will bring together Federal, SLTT, and public-private stakeholders that possess relevant equities in cyber defense operations to coordinate cybersecurity planning and readiness and to unify the respective capabilities, authorities, and expertise of its diverse group of representatives. To fulfill this responsibility, the JCDC has defined the following mission and vision:


Mission:

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The JCDC leads the development of the Nation’s cyber defense plans by working across the public and private sectors to unify deliberate and crisis action planning, while coordinating the integrated execution of these plans.


Vision:


The JCDC leads the development of plans for cyber defense operations and coordinates execution across the Federal government and with SLTT governments, critical infrastructure owners and operators, industry, and academia. The JCDC aims to prevent adversarial attacks through the execution of cyber defense operations plans. Such plans will promote national resilience and facilitate the disruption of malicious cyber activity targeting U.S. critical infrastructure or national interests.

  • Comprehensive, whole-of-nation planning to address risk both during steady-state operations and during an incident.

  • Common situational awareness and analysis to equip public and private partners to take risk-informed coordinated action.

  • Integrated cyber defense capabilities to protect the nation’s critical infrastructure.

  • Ensure plans for cyber defense operations are adaptive to defend against adversary activity conducted in response to U.S. offensive cyber operations.

  • Flexibility in planning and collaboration to meet the cyber defense needs of the public and private sectors.

  • Institutionalized exercises and assessments to continuously measure the effectiveness of cyber defense planning and capabilities.

  • Work closely with the Sector Risk Management Agencies (SRMAs) to bring their unique subject matter expertise to tailored plans to address sector risk.

The JCDC will integrate appropriate representatives from the public-private sectors – to include interagency partners, SLTT governments, ISAOs/ISACs, and critical infrastructure owners and operators. Additionally, the JCDC will consult with appropriate information and communication technology (ICT) and cyber threat intelligence (CTI) providers to protect, defend, and respond to significant cyber-attacks.


Interagency Representation:


The NDAA of 2021 identified the following federal departments and agencies that would comprise the JCDC’s office for joint cyber planning: DHS, DOJ, USCYBERCOM, NSA, FBI, and ODNI. Additionally, the JCDC will integrate representatives from other USG entities (e.g., Sector Risk Management Agencies [SRMAs]) in planning efforts, as appropriate, based on their respective authorities and capabilities. The JCDC will serve as the interoperable planning cell in which USG capabilities are integrated and aligned in support of cyber defense operations. Each USG partner brings a unique set of authorities, resources, and capabilities to the national cybersecurity mission.


SLTT Governments:


SLTT stakeholders will be invited to share state and local cyber risk information with the JCDC, including long-term priorities for critical infrastructure risk reduction, to inform the development of national level joint cyber defense operations plans. The JCDC will incorporate SLTT authorities and capabilities into the JCDC planning framework and assist with the coordination of national cyber defense operations plan execution at the state and local levels.


ISAOs/ISACs:


ISAOs and ISACs maintain situational awareness and will be invited to share sector-specific information with the JCDC on cyber risks and vulnerabilities that may impact national critical functions. They will serve as a force multiplier to incorporate sector-specific priorities into the JCDC planning framework. The JCDC will also coordinate sector cyber defense plan execution with ISAOs/ISACs.


Critical Infrastructure Owners and Operators:


Critical infrastructure owners and operators will be invited to share information related to threat activity, vulnerabilities, and incidents affecting critical infrastructure. The JCDC will collaborate with critical infrastructure owners and operators to support the development of long-term plans to manage cyber risk and increase resilience of critical infrastructure, incorporate capabilities into the JCDC planning framework, and support the execution of cyber defense plans.


Industry and Academia Partners:

The JCDC will engage industry and academia partners to leverage unique insights, capabilities, and resources to support JCDC cyber defense planning efforts, including ICT providers and representatives from across the cyber ecosystem.

Additional JCDC-related information.

  • The Joint Cyber Defense Collaborative (JCDC) – Video

  • JCDC Fact Sheet “






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