09.19.11 - Waltham, Mass. - Bit9 Inc., the market leader in adaptive application whitelisting, today announced the appointment of Richard Clarke, former Cybersecurity Czar for President George W. Bush and a noted expert on cyber war and counter-terrorism, to Bit9’s Board of Directors. In this role, Clarke will provide strategic advice and first-hand insight to Bit9 and its board based on his more than 30 years of government service bolstering the nation’s cyber security and anti-terrorism programs.
The recent wave of state-sponsored attacks on government agencies and defense contractors via Advanced Persistent Threats (APT) methods shows that government agencies and enterprises are vulnerable to today’s advanced cyber attack tactics and need to do more or these attacks will only get worse, according to Clarke.
“This year we have seen more complex and targeted cyber attacks than at any time in our recent history,” Clarke said. “Long gone are the days of cyber ‘smash and grab’ operations where hackers sought a quick haul of financial data or card numbers and then got out. Today’s sophisticated APT attacks come from other nation states that target specific people at important agencies or contractors with the full intent of stealing national security and defense data. Faced with these new types of attacks our networks, desktops and servers are more vulnerable. I am excited about joining the board at Bit9 because I believe the company’s approach to endpoint security and preventing APT attacks, which focuses on application whitelisting, is an approach that the government and enterprises need to consider implementing as a part of a layered, defense in depth strategy.”
Through his extensive cyber security knowledge, public sector and international relationships, Clarke will enable Bit9 to expand its reach in the federal market, with the intelligence community, civilian and other government agencies. His expertise will enable Bit9’s current Global 1000 customers to prepare to defend against modern threats.
"We are honored to have Richard Clarke, with the caliber of cyber security and government service background, on our Board of Directors," said Patrick Morley, president and CEO of Bit9. "Clarke is a proven leader with decades of experience in cyber security, national defense and technology innovation. His insights and firsthand experience will bring an important new dimension and focus to Bit9 and its board."
Clarke is the author of Cyber War: The Next Threat to National Security and What to Do About It. Prior to his retirement from government, Clarke was appointed to chair the Counter-Terrorism Security Group and to a seat on the United States National Security Council under President George H.W. Bush. President Bill Clinton retained Clarke and in 1998 promoted him to be the National Coordinator for Security, Infrastructure Protection and Counter-Terrorism, the chief counter-terrorism adviser on the National Security Council. Under President George W. Bush, Clarke initially continued in the same position and later became the Special Advisor to the President on cyber security, before leaving the Bush Administration in 2003.
To view a video of Richard Clarke discussing the current state of cyber security and his role on Bit9’s Board of Directors, please visit: Richard Clarke on Bit9.
About Bit9
Bit9 is the market leader in adaptive application whitelisting. The company's award-winning endpoint protection solutions provide total visibility and control over all software on endpoints, eliminating the risk caused by malicious, illegal and unauthorized software. Bit9 specializes in protecting organizations against Advanced Persistent Threats.
Bit9 leverages the Bit9 Globe Software Registry™ – the world's largest database of software intelligence – to identify and classify software, delivering the highest levels of endpoint security, compliance, and manageability. Bit9's dynamic application whitelisting technology makes it simple to deploy application whitelisting in the largest of organizations. The company's global customers come from a wide variety of industries, such as government, financial services, retail, healthcare, e-commerce and education.
Bit9 is privately held and based in Waltham, Mass. For more information, visit www.bit9.com or call +1 617.393.7400.
Media Contacts
Kate Munro
Bit9
617.393.7400
kmunro@bit9.com
Angela Lestar or David McKee
Schwartz Communications
415.512.0770
bit9@schwartzcomm.com