CISA names Mona Harrington assistant director of National Risk Management Center

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency has named Mona Harrington assistant director of its National Risk Management Center.

She joined CISA in February as deputy assistant director and has been carrying out the role of assistant director on an acting basis since March.

The National Risk Management Center at CISA works as a bridge between the agency and the private sector. Its mission is focused on fostering collaboration with industry to keep privately owned critical infrastructure across the United States safe from attack.

Before joining the agency, Harrington was executive director and chief information and security officer of the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC). In that role, she worked closely with CISA on election security and led EAC’s work to support election officials responding to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Prior to this, she spent 17 years in cybersecurity and IT leadership roles in the U.S. judicial system, including as the assistant circuit executive for IT and security.

Commenting on the appointment, CISA Director Jen Easterly said: “[Mona’s] extensive experience in cybersecurity, election security, and risk management make her the ideal executive to lead the NRMC as it evolves to meet the threats of today and tomorrow.”

“The cyber and physical risks facing our nation’s critical infrastructure are vast and complex; NRMC’s work is essential to ensuring our collective resources are having the greatest impact on security and resilience,” she added.