Two senior officials from the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) have resigned. Bob Lord, a senior technical advisor since 2022, announced his decision via LinkedIn on Monday. Shortly after, Lauren Zabierek, a senior advisor at CISA, also shared her resignation announcement on the same platform. Both officials did not disclose their next career steps but expressed the difficulty of leaving the agency.
Their departures are part of a larger trend of staff reductions at CISA.
The Trump administration is considering significant cuts, including the potential elimination of up to 1,300 employees. CISA had previously attempted to reduce its workforce by removing 130 probationary staffers, but this decision was contested in court. The Homeland Security Department has also offered buyouts to encourage voluntary resignations, though it is unclear if Lord and Zabierek participated.
Despite these departures, CISA’s Executive Director, Bridget Bean, reaffirmed the agency’s commitment to cybersecurity.
She emphasized the importance of working with both the public and private sectors to improve cybersecurity. Bean specifically mentioned CISA’s “Secure by Design” initiative, which aims to hold tech companies accountable for the security of their products. She expressed gratitude toward Lord and Zabierek for their contributions to this ongoing effort.
Lord and Zabierek both played key roles in shaping cybersecurity initiatives during their time at CISA. Lord had previously worked to strengthen campaign cybersecurity at the Democratic National Committee after the 2016 breaches. Zabierek, with her background at Harvard Kennedy School’s Belfer Center, was deeply involved in fostering public-private partnerships. Both officials highlighted the importance of making software safer and acknowledged the need for global collaboration to advance cybersecurity practices.
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