Designated BSI President Plattner: Advance praise and high standards
Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD) wants to appoint Claudia Plattner as BSI President. The first woman at the head of the BSI has big tasks and high expectations. She is scheduled to take office on July 1. After the information, which was also available online, was confirmed by a report in Der Spiegel in the morning, Faeser, the appointed person herself, politicians from the opposition, the coalition and business representatives are now speaking out.
“Cyber security is a major challenge for governments,” said BSI President-elect Claudia Plattner. “It is an honor for me to serve the Federal Republic in this new role, just as it was an honor for me to work for the ECB.” After Plattner’s previous employer, the European Central Bank, apparently does not want to let the mathematician go earlier, the appointment is now scheduled for July 1st.
According to the press release, Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser, who would like to be elected Prime Minister of Hesse in October, emphasizes Plattner’s professional qualifications. “Together we will continue to consistently implement our cyber security agenda,” says Faeser. “We will continue to strengthen digital civil rights and IT security. Ensuring IT security is a state duty.” However, Faeser’s cyber security agenda is highly controversial. But Faeser is also important: “With her move to the BSI, a woman will be at the head of a security authority in the Federal Ministry of the Interior for the first time.”
Plattner becomes BSI boss: Many predecessors
After the spin-off from the Federal Intelligence Service (BND) in 1991, Otto Leiberich was the first mathematician to lead the then newly founded BSI. Leiberich came from the BND with the BSI. He was followed in 1993 by the mathematician Dirk Henze from the Federal Ministry of the Interior to head the Bonn authority, which at that time was becoming increasingly independent and given more tasks. The physicist Udo Helmbrecht, who headed the BSI from 2003 to 2009 and then switched to the European cyber security authority ENISA, was followed by Michael Hange – who already worked under Henze as Vice President in Bonn – another mathematician with a lot of administrative experience in the BMI. In 2016, Thomas de Maizière (CDU) appointed Arne Schönbohm, who came from the private sector as a business economist, to head the BSI.
With Claudia Plattner, the fourth mathematician, but for the first time a woman, is coming to the head of the federal IT security authority, which will have even more tasks in the future. Politicians formulate high demands on them months before they take office. MPs welcome the specialist and formulate claims. Plattner is “one of the most renowned IT managers in the country,” says Reinhard Brandl, digital policy spokesman for the CDU/CSU parliamentary group. The CSU MP also emphasizes the major tasks Plattner will face: “Nancy Faeser has severely damaged the office of BSI President with the farce about Mr. Schönbohm’s dismissal.”
Faeser’s shards
Nancy Faeser has also done serious damage to the reputation of German cyber security internationally, says Brandl, who refers to the public criticism, including from Schönbohm’s long-standing French counterpart: “Now it’s up to the new BSI President to sweep up this shambles of Ms. Faeser. It will not be an easy task given this political leadership.” Anke Domscheit-Berg (left) welcomes the fact that a woman is now at the top of the BSI.
However, she also asks to what extent Plattner’s previous support for Self Sovereign Identities (SSI) and blockchain would go together with the BSI’s previously rather negative attitude towards these topics. She formulated the expectation that political compromises at the expense of IT security would be fended off with classic security authorities and that the BSI would actually be expanded into a central office. All in all, she is happy about the occupation with a highly qualified woman.
Plattner is a “recognized expert with well-founded prior knowledge for the important office of the BSI President”, stressed the domestic politician Misbah Khan and the deputy parliamentary group leader Konstantin von Notz on behalf of the Greens in the Bundestag: “The personal details also stand for a long overdue one in the coalition agreement new beginning anchored in the digital policy of the traffic light government, which has not materialized so far. We look forward to important impetus for the rule of law and security in the digital world.”
The SPD was also pleased with the personnel decision: “With the appointment of Claudia Plattner, the supreme cyber security authority is not only getting an outstanding personality with proven technical expertise, but also new management that brings with it the necessary high degree of personal independence “, the digital policy spokesman for the SPD parliamentary group and Jens Zimmermann praised the selection of personnel. It is not known whether Nancy Faeser will be enthusiastic about a high degree of personal independence if she is still in office in Berlin when Plattner takes office.
Encouragement also from the economy
Plattner is described as a “good choice” by Alexander Rabe, the managing director of the Association of the Internet Industry Eco. The Bitkom industry association also welcomes the change: “The new BSI boss also has our support in the major challenge of expanding the BSI – as provided for in the coalition agreement – into a central institution for IT security that acts on an equal footing with the world’s leading security authorities and sets standards in Europe”, Bitkom President Achim Berg also formulates the demands on the future BSI President. Combined with a clear dig at the federal states: “We can no longer afford to be small in the fight against internationally coordinated and executed cyber attacks and therefore need a strong BSI that is well staffed and financially well equipped.” One of the many tasks that will come to Claudia Plattner from July.
(mack)
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