NSA chief envisions 'secure zone' on Internet to guard against attacks

The Pentagon official in charge of the military's cyber unit on Thursday said the government should create a "secure zone" for federal agencies and critical private sector industries to protect them from potential attacks.

General Keith Alexander, who heads the U.S. Cyber Command, told reporters a network sectioned off from the rest of the Internet is probably inevitable for systems crucial to national security. 

"You could come up with what I would call a secure zone, a protected zone, that you want government and critical infrastructure to work in that part," Alexander said. "At some point it's going to be on the table. The question is how are we going to do it."

Alexander said setting up such a network would be technically straightforward, but difficult to sell to the businesses involved. Explaining the measure to the public would also be a challenge, he added.

The U.S. Cyber Command chief testified in front of the House Armed Services Committee on Thursday to detail his command's structure and plans to secure military networks from foreign hackers.

Alexander said the Pentagon would likely have to work with the Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Bureau of Investigations to secure the country's critical infrastructure, 85 percent of which is owned by private companies. He said the agencies may need additional powers to take action during a cyber attack. 

Several pieces of competing cybersecurity legislation pending in Congress would give them that power, but lawmakers have been unable to settle on which agency should regulate civilian cybersecurity. DHS is currently in charge of protecting civilian networks; Alexander said the Pentagon has no role and added that he isn't sure if it should operate domestically unless asked for help.

In his prepared testimony, Alexander defended his dual role as director of the National Security Agency, arguing the agency's resources have been of great value to Cyber Command, as has their co-location at Ft. Meade, Maryland. He emphasized the ability of a single individual to cause outsized harm to an entire nation and described the command as a continuation of previous Pentagon cybersecurity efforts.