Cyber Daily Report

Alan Shimel--securityboulevard.com
published date: 2026-01-16 00:00:00 UTC

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RSAC announced a bold move today, appointing Jen Easterly as its new CEO. In an industry that talks endlessly about leadership but too often settles for caretakers, this one lands with weight. Real weight.Let’s start with the résumé, because in this case it actually matters. Easterly’s career arc is the kind you don’t manufacture in a branding workshop. She is a West Point graduate. She served more than two decades in the U.S. Army, including combat deployments and senior leadership roles. She worked at the intersection of intelligence, operations, and policy long before “cyber” became a boardroom buzzword. And she ultimately led the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, arguably the most consequential cybersecurity organization in the country, during a period when the stakes could not have been higher.That combination of operational credibility, strategic thinking, and public service is rare. In cybersecurity, it is rarer still.Easterly is also instantly recognizable in this industry. She is widely respected, often admired, and yes, occasionally controversial. That comes with the territory when you tell hard truths in public. During and after her tenure at CISA, she spoke candidly about the real-world risks posed by underinvestment, politicization, and short-term thinking in national cybersecurity. Those comments, offered in good faith and grounded in experience, did not sit well with everyone, particularly elements of the current U.S. administration.The political fallout was not subtle. Her appointment to a chair position at West Point was later rescinded, reportedly for political reasons. That episode said far more about the moment we are in than about Easterly herself. Through it all, she remained measured, professional, and focused on the mission. No scorched-earth rhetoric. No retreat either.And here is the part that matters most to this community: She never stopped leading.Even after leaving government, Easterly maintained a visible, vigorous presence across the cybersecurity ecosystem. She showed up. On stages. In conversations. Online. Advising. Challenging. Encouraging. Her recent work and public engagement reflect someone who understands that leadership does not end when the title goes away. It evolves.Which brings us to RSAC.For decades, RSAC has been the place where the cybersecurity industry gathers. Not just for the conference in San Francisco, but for the shared moments that shape how this community thinks about itself. Deals get whispered. Narratives get tested. New ideas get their first real exposure. For much of the mainstream media, RSAC remains their closest and most concentrated look at cybersecurity as an industry.At the same time, RSAC has been undergoing a transformation. Since Hugh Thompson and the Crosspoint Capital team spun the organization out as an independent entity, the vision has become clearer and more ambitious. The goal is no longer just to run the biggest conference. It is to build a year-round, global cybersecurity community platform. Expanded international reach. Ongoing engagement. A place where practitioners, leaders, researchers, and policymakers intersect, not just once a year, but continuously.That is not a small ambition. And it requires more than operational excellence. It requires trust. Credibility. Gravitas.This is where Easterly fits, almost uncomfortably well.Her stature immediately elevates the conversation. She brings a level of leadership credibility that signals RSAC’s intent to play at a higher altitude. Not louder. Higher. In an industry often distracted by vendor noise and hype cycles, that distinction matters.Of course, it would be naïve to pretend there are no political considerations here. Appointing a former CISA director who has spoken openly about policy decisions and their consequences is not a neutral act. I do not doubt that Thompson, Linda Gray, Britta Glade, and the rest of the RSAC leadership team considered those dynamics carefully before making this announcement.And then they made it anyway.That, in itself, is a statement. Not a partisan one, but a values-based one. RSAC is signaling that leadership, competence, and integrity matter more than avoiding uncomfortable optics. In cybersecurity, where the consequences of silence are often borne by others, that is a position worth applauding.My own relationship with RSAC goes back roughly 25 years. I have seen the conference evolve, stumble, recalibrate, and reinvent itself more than once. I have also heard the criticisms. That RSAC is too much of an insiders’ event. That it reflects the industry talking to itself. Sometimes those critiques are not entirely wrong.But they miss something essential.RSAC is also where the rest of the world comes to understand cybersecurity. Journalists. Policymakers. Business leaders who do not live and breathe this space. For better or worse, RSAC is the industry’s front porch. What happens there shapes perception far beyond the walls of the Moscone Center.Putting Jen Easterly in the CEO seat strengthens that front porch. It brings someone who understands not only the technical and operational dimensions of cybersecurity, but also the human and societal ones. Someone who can speak fluently to practitioners and policymakers alike. Someone who knows when to listen and when to lead.This year’s <a href="https://www.rsaconference.com/usa/passes-and-rates/group-passes?utm_paid_source=googleads&utm_paid_campaign=EMEA%20-%20Brand%20-%20EMEA&utm_paid_content=brand&utm_paid_term=rsac%202026&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=20707509490&gbraid=0AAAAAD11OnhxlEuvvNmG-oRWoGxaNHsi3&gclid=CjwKCAiA4KfLBhB0EiwAUY7GAe3yLGerINulX7CgfsYvFYiwGnJa5ZvUu0sBzMuTDiqXtf03au_4NxoCI5kQAvD_BwE" target="_blank" rel="noopener">RSAC takes place March 23–26 in San Francisco</a>. Like many of you, I will be there. And like many of you, I am genuinely curious to see how this next chapter begins to take shape. I am also hoping to land a video interview with Easterly on Broadcast Alley, if not before. Conversations with leaders who have actually been in the arena tend to be the most interesting ones.RSAC has made a series of bold moves over the past few years, each pointing toward a clearer sense of purpose. This appointment may be the most consequential yet. Not because it avoids controversy, but because it embraces leadership.Congratulations to the RSAC team for having the conviction to make this call. And congratulations to Jen Easterly on stepping into a role that matters not just to an organization, but to an entire community.If RSAC’s ambition is to truly build and lead the global cybersecurity community, then this is exactly what standing tall looks like.<div class="spu-placeholder" style="display:none"></div><div class="addtoany_share_save_container addtoany_content addtoany_content_bottom"><div class="a2a_kit a2a_kit_size_20 addtoany_list" data-a2a-url="https://securityboulevard.com/2026/01/rsac-stands-tall-appointing-a-true-leader-jen-easterly-as-ceo/" data-a2a-title="RSAC Stands Tall Appointing a True Leader, Jen Easterly as CEO"><a class="a2a_button_twitter" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/twitter?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Fsecurityboulevard.com%2F2026%2F01%2Frsac-stands-tall-appointing-a-true-leader-jen-easterly-as-ceo%2F&linkname=RSAC%20Stands%20Tall%20Appointing%20a%20True%20Leader%2C%20Jen%20Easterly%20as%20CEO" title="Twitter" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_linkedin" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/linkedin?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Fsecurityboulevard.com%2F2026%2F01%2Frsac-stands-tall-appointing-a-true-leader-jen-easterly-as-ceo%2F&linkname=RSAC%20Stands%20Tall%20Appointing%20a%20True%20Leader%2C%20Jen%20Easterly%20as%20CEO" title="LinkedIn" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_facebook" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/facebook?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Fsecurityboulevard.com%2F2026%2F01%2Frsac-stands-tall-appointing-a-true-leader-jen-easterly-as-ceo%2F&linkname=RSAC%20Stands%20Tall%20Appointing%20a%20True%20Leader%2C%20Jen%20Easterly%20as%20CEO" title="Facebook" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_reddit" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/reddit?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Fsecurityboulevard.com%2F2026%2F01%2Frsac-stands-tall-appointing-a-true-leader-jen-easterly-as-ceo%2F&linkname=RSAC%20Stands%20Tall%20Appointing%20a%20True%20Leader%2C%20Jen%20Easterly%20as%20CEO" title="Reddit" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_email" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/email?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Fsecurityboulevard.com%2F2026%2F01%2Frsac-stands-tall-appointing-a-true-leader-jen-easterly-as-ceo%2F&linkname=RSAC%20Stands%20Tall%20Appointing%20a%20True%20Leader%2C%20Jen%20Easterly%20as%20CEO" title="Email" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_dd addtoany_share_save addtoany_share" href="https://www.addtoany.com/share"></a></div></div>