Top CISA official Eric Goldstein to depart agency next month

A top official at the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, Eric Goldstein, is stepping down from his role at the agency next month.

As executive assistant director for cybersecurity, Goldstein has had his hands in many of CISA’s major undertakings, from its goal of pressuring companies into making their products secure during the design process to issuing emergency directives for agencies to shoring up defenses against vulnerabilities.

“I could not be prouder of the work that Eric Goldstein has done to move CISA forward as an agency,” CISA Director Jen Easterly said in a statement. “He has helped catalyze a shift across the agency to data-driven risk reduction and built an inclusive team that has enabled CISA and our partners to confront the serious cyber threats facing our country.

“Under Eric’s superb leadership, we pioneered new models of operational collaboration, reshaped our ability to detect and address cyber risks, and shifted the balance toward building technology that is secure by design,” she added.

Goldstein has served in the role since nearly the beginning of the Biden administration in 2021. It was his second stint at the agency, having held a variety of positions from 2013 to 2017 at CISA’s precursor, the National Protection and Programs Directorate. Before coming to CISA, he was at Goldman Sachs as the global head of cybersecurity policy, strategy and regulation.

It’s not uncommon for top officials to leave their jobs as the first term of an administration winds down. A CISA spokesperson would not comment on Goldstein’s future plans.

CNN first reported Goldstein’s exit.