The US Senate over the weekend voted to confirm Sean Cairncross as the National Cyber Director, more than five months after he was nominated for the position.
Cairncross previously served as CEO for the Republican National Committee during the 2016 elections and for the Millennium Challenge Corporation from 2019 to 2020, and was a senior advisor for the White House chief of staff during President Trump’s first administration.
He was voted 59 – 35 to become the US president’s advisor on matters related to cybersecurity, replacing CIA/NSA official Harry Coker, who resigned.
“As the cyber strategic environment continues to evolve, we must ensure our policy efforts and capabilities deliver results for our national security and the American people,” Cairncross said.
“The United States must dominate the cyber domain through strong collaboration across departments and agencies, as well as private industry. Under President Trump’s leadership, we will enter a new era of effective cybersecurity policy,” he added.
The National Cyber Director position was created to ensure a more streamlined strategy and coordinated response to cyberattacks. Chris Inglis, a former NSA deputy director, served as the first national cyber director, between 2021 and 2024.
In June, at his hearing with the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, Cairncross said he will focus on advancing cyber policy coordination across the federal government.
Last week, the committee voted to advance President Trump’s nominee Sean Plankey to lead the US cybersecurity agency CISA. During the first Trump administration, he served as director for cyber policy at the National Security Council and as a principal deputy assistant secretary at the Department of Energy.
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