Speaking before a conference of hundreds of federal technology personnel and industry officials Wednesday morning, Richard Clarke, President Bush's point man on national cybersecurity, outlined the next phase in the controversial plan to build an impenetrable information network for the federal government, known as Govnet. . . .
Speaking before a conference of hundreds of federal technology personnel and industry officials Wednesday morning, Richard Clarke, President Bush's point man on national cybersecurity, outlined the next phase in the controversial plan to build an impenetrable information network for the federal government, known as Govnet.

Clarke said a team from the General Services Administration had completed a review of more than 167 responses from technology companies on how the network could be built, and that the reviewers had concluded that creating a stand-alone network, one not connected to the vulnerable systems of any other networks, is technologically feasible. Clarke added that some Defense Department and intelligence agencies, as well as some organizations in the Energy Department, already operate these kinds of solo networks today.

The government can't afford to put off major upgrades to information security, Clarke said, noting that terrorists have continued to call upon their followers to attack the nation's critical infrastructure of power grids and information systems, many of which are connected to the Internet.

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