The Cyberspace Solarium Commission (CSC) was created by the John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019 (Section 1652 of P.L. 115-232). Modeled rhetorically on President Eisenhower's 1953 "Project Solarium," which produced competing Cold War strategies, the CSC was tasked with developing a consensus on a strategic approach to defending U.S. interests in cyberspace.
The Commission was co-chaired by Senator Angus King (I-Maine) and Representative Mike Gallagher (R-Wisconsin). Its membership combined legislators, executive branch officials, and outside experts. In March 2020, the CSC released its final report, recommending a strategy of "layered cyber deterrence" built on three pillars: shaping behavior in cyberspace, denying benefits to adversaries, and imposing costs on attackers.
The report contained more than 80 recommendations, several of which were enacted into law through subsequent National Defense Authorization Acts. Notable outcomes include:
- Establishment of the National Cyber Director within the Executive Office of the President (created by the FY2021 NDAA), first held by Chris Inglis beginning in 2021.
- Strengthening of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA).
- Codification of Sector Risk Management Agencies for critical infrastructure.
- Requirements for cyber incident reporting that informed the Cyber Incident Reporting for Critical Infrastructure Act (CIRCIA) of 2022.
After the original commission concluded, CSC 2.0 was launched in 2021 as a non-governmental successor project, housed at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, to track implementation of the recommendations and produce follow-on analysis.
The acronym "CSC" can also refer to other bodies in different contexts (for example, Civil Service Commissions in various countries, or the Commonwealth Scholarship Commission), so analysts should confirm usage from surrounding text. In U.S. cybersecurity policy discussions, however, CSC typically denotes the Cyberspace Solarium Commission and its influential 2020 report.
Example
In March 2020, the Cyberspace Solarium Commission, co-chaired by Senator Angus King and Representative Mike Gallagher, released its final report recommending "layered cyber deterrence" as U.S. strategy.
Frequently asked questions
It was established by the U.S. Congress in the FY2019 National Defense Authorization Act (Section 1652 of P.L. 115-232), signed into law in August 2018.
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