Homeland Security looks to industry to secure nation's infrastructure

Homeland Security Department officials said Monday that the government does not plan to place many security requirements on private industry when it comes to protecting the nation’s critical infrastructure. James Loy, the department’s deputy secretary, said the federal government will back away from issuing new security mandates to industry, and instead let private companies take the lead “in most cases” to protect critical infrastructure, such as power plants and water reservoirs. “We cannot secure the homeland from Washington, D.C.,” Loy told a gathering of industry representatives during a conference sponsored by the department’s information analysis and infrastructure protection directorate. Loy said up to 85 percent of the nation’s critical infrastructure is owned and operated by private firms. Full Story