Melissa Hathaway has left her post as the country’s top cybersecurity adviser, casting even more doubt on who will take the open job of cybersecurity coordinator created by President Obama in May. Hathaway said she is resigning for personal reasons and has no interest in the coordinator job, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Hathaway had been one of a handful of candidates mentioned for the coordinator job, which will report to both the National Security Council and the National Economic Council. She was responsible for completing a review of the country’s information security posture this spring, which she delivered to Obama. But she won’t be the one acting on the recommendations in the report, the WSJ reports.
Ms. Hathaway said she took her name out of the running for the post two weeks ago. She said she was leaving for personal reasons and that she plans to remain working in the cybersecurity arena. Her resignation will take effect Aug. 24.
Trying to figure out who will eventually get the coordinator’s job has become a popular parlor game in the security community and in Washington. More than a dozen big names have been mentioned in connection with the job, but no one has stepped forward to take the job.
