The United States Computer Emergency Readiness Team (US-CERT) is an organization within the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA). Specifically, US-CERT is a branch of the Office of Cybersecurity and Communications' (CS&C) National Cybersecurity and Communications Integration Center (NCCIC). US-CERT is responsible for analyzing and reducing cyber threats, vulnerabilities, disseminating cyber threat warning information, and coordinating incident response activities. The division brings advanced network and digital media analysis expertise to bear on malicious activity targeting the networks within the United States and abroad. Background The concept of a national Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT) for the United States was proposed by Marcus Sachs (Auburn University) when he was a staff member for the U.S. National Security Council in 2002 to be a peer organization with other national CERTs such as AusCERT and CERT-UK, and to be located in the forthcoming Department of Homeland Security (DHS). At the time the United States did not have a national CERT. Amit Yoran (Tenable, Inc., CEO), DHS's first Director of the National Cyber Security Division, launched the United States Computer Emergency Readiness Team (US-CERT) in September 2003 to protect the Internet infrastructure of the United States by coordinating defense against and responding to cyber-attacks. The first Director of the US-CERT was Jerry Dixon (CrowdStrike, CISO); with the team initially staffed with cybersecurity experts that included Mike Witt (NASA, CISO), Brent Wrisley (Punch Cyber, CEO), Mike Geide (Punch Cyber, CTO), Lee Rock (Microsoft, SSIRP Crisis Lead), Chris Sutton (Export-Import Bank of the United States, CISO & CPO), Jay Brown (USG, Senior Exec Cyber Operations), Mark Henderson (IRS, Online Cyber Fraud), Josh Goldfarb (Security Consultant), Mike Jacobs (Treasury, Director/Chief of Operations), Rafael Nunez (DHS/CISA), Ron Dow (General Dynamics, Senior Program Mgr), Sean McAllister (Network Defense Protection, Founder), Kevin Winter (Deloitte, CISO-Americas), Todd Helfrich (Attivo, VP), Monica Maher (Goldman Sachs, VP Cyber Threat Intelligence), Reggie McKinney (VA) and several other cybersecurity experts. In January 2007, Mike Witt was selected as the US-CERT Director, who was then followed by Mischel Kwon (Mischel Kwon and Associates) in June 2008. When Mischel Kwon departed in 2009, a major reorganization occurred which created the National Cybersecurity and Communications Integration Center (NCCIC). US-CERT is the 24-hour operational arm of the NCCIC which accepts, triages, and collaboratively responds to incidents, provides technical assistance to information system operators, and disseminates timely notifications regarding current and potential security threats, exploits,