Top White House cyber official steps down

A top White House cybersecurity official stepped down on Wednesday, the administration confirmed to The Hill.

Ari Schwartz most recently served as the White House’s senior director for cybersecurity during his two-year tenure. Schwartz had long planned to leave after a couple of years on the job.

{mosads}Inside Cybersecurity first reported his departure.

Schwartz started at the White House in 2013 as the director for cybersecurity privacy, civil liberties and policy. In March 2014, he became the National Security Council’s senior director for cybersecurity policy.

Prior to serving in the government, Schwartz made a name for himself as a leading privacy advocate in Washington, D.C. He was the vice president and chief operating officer of the Center for Democracy and Technology, a digital rights group.

Schwartz then moved to the Commerce Department in 2011, spending time as a senior adviser for technology policy to the Commerce Secretary. He also worked as the Internet policy adviser for the Commerce Department’s standards-setting agency, the National Institute of Standards and Technology.

During his time with Commerce, Schwartz helped develop the government’s cybersecurity framework, a voluntary guideline to help companies bolster their security programs. 

— Updated 12:59 p.m.