WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House on Thursday named a retired U.S. Air Force brigadier general as the government’s first federal cyber security chief, a position announced eight months ago that is intended to improve defenses against hackers.

Gregory Touhill’s job will be to protect government networks and critical infrastructure from cyber threats as federal chief information security officer, according to a statement.

The administration of President Barack Obama has made bolstering federal cyber security a top priority in his last year in office. The issue has gained more attention because of high-profile breaches in recent years of government and private sector computers.

U.S. intelligence officials suspect Russia was responsible for breaches of Democratic political organizations and state election systems to exert influence on the Nov. 8 presidential election. Russia has dismissed the allegations as absurd.

Obama announced the new position in February alongside a budget proposal to Congress asking for $19 billion for cyber security across the U.S. government. The job is a political appointment, meaning Obama’s successor can choose to replace Touhill after being sworn in next January.

Touhill is currently a deputy assistant secretary for cyber security and communications at the Department of Homeland Security.

He will begin his new role later this month, a source familiar with the matter said. Touhill’s responsibilities will include creating and implementing policy for best security practices across federal agencies and conducting periodic audits to test for weaknesses, according to the announcement.

Grant Schneider, who is the director of cyber security policy at the White House’s National Security Council, will be acting deputy to Touhill, according to the announcement.</s>In February, President Obama announced a Cybersecurity National Action Plan (CNAP) that takes a series of short-term and long-term actions to improve our cybersecurity posture within the Federal Government and across the country. The CNAP builds upon a comprehensive series of actions over the last nearly eight years that have fundamentally shifted the way we approach security in the digital age and raised the level of cybersecurity across the country.

Over the last year alone we’ve made significant progress. For example, we’ve:

established the Commission on Enhancing National Cybersecurity, consisting of top strategic, business, and technical thinkers from outside the government to make critical recommendations on actions that can be taken over the next decade to strengthen cybersecurity in both the public and private sectors while protecting privacy and public safety;

proposed legislation to establish a $3.1 billion Information Technology Modernization Fund (ITMF) to modernize government IT and retire and replace legacy IT that is difficult to secure and expensive to maintain;

directed implementation of a Cybersecurity Strategy and Implementation Plan (CSIP) for the Federal civilian government as well as the first-ever Federal Cybersecurity Workforce Strategy to identify, recruit, develop, retain, and expand the pipeline of the best, brightest, and most diverse cybersecurity talent for Federal service and for our Nation.

While we’ve seen progress, and as the President has made clear on many occasions, there’s much more to do. That’s why today we are proud to announce Brigadier General (retired) Gregory J. Touhill as the first Federal Chief Information Security Officer (CISO).

A key feature of the CNAP is creation of the first CISO to drive cybersecurity policy, planning, and implementation across the Federal Government. General Touhill is currently the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Cybersecurity and Communications in the Office of Cybersecurity and Communications (CS&C) at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), where he focuses on the development and implementation of operational programs designed to protect our government networks and critical infrastructure. In his new role as Federal CISO, Greg will leverage his considerable experience in managing a range of complex and diverse technical solutions at scale with his strong knowledge of both civilian and military best practices, capabilities, and human capital training, development and retention strategies. Greg will lead a strong team within OMB who have been at the forefront of driving policy and implementation of leading cyber practices across federal agencies, and is the team that conducts periodic cyberstat reviews with federal agencies to insure that implementation plans are effective and achieve the desired outcomes.

In addition to the naming the first Federal CISO, we are also proud to announce Grant Schneider as the Acting Deputy CISO. In creating the CISO role, and looking at successful organizational models across government, it became apparent that having a career role partnered with a senior official is not only the norm but also provides needed continuity over time. Grant currently serves as the Director for Cybersecurity Policy on the National Security Council staff at the White House where he focuses on development and oversight of cybersecurity policies to protect government data, networks, and systems, and brings over 20 years of technical skills to the role.

Strong cybersecurity depends on robust policies, secure networks and systems and, importantly, a cadre of highly skilled cybersecurity talent. Building on the Cybersecurity Workforce Strategy to identify, recruit, and retain top talent, the CISO will play a central role in helping to ensure the right set of policies, strategies, and practices are adopted across agencies and keeping the Federal Government at the leading edge of 21st century cybersecurity.

Tony Scott is the U.S. Chief Information Officer.

J. Michael Daniel is Special Assistant to the President and Cybersecurity Coordinator.

Also see:</s>Retired Air Force Brigadier Gen. Gregory Touhill just got a promotion.

The White House has named Touhill as the first ever federal chief information security officer, a role that is focused on bolstering the U.S. government’s digital defenses. The Obama administration first announced the creation of the position in February as part of a $19 billion “cybersecurity national action plan” that included IT investments and new hires.

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Touhill currently serves as the deputy assistant secretary for cybersecurity and communications within the Department of Homeland Security. In the new job, he will report to Tony Scott, the federal chief information officer and former executive at business software company VMware (VMW).

Touhill will lead a team within the White House’s Office of Management and Budget “that conducts periodic cyberstat reviews with federal agencies to insure that implementation plans are effective and achieve the desired outcomes,” said Scott, the U.S. info chief, and Michael Daniel, U.S. cybersecurity coordinator, in a jointly authored blog post announcing the news. Touhill will be responsible for “helping to ensure the right set of policies, strategies, and practices are adopted across agencies,” they said.

Reuters first reported the news of Touhill’s hire moments before the Obama administration published its blog post.

For more on cybersecurity and politics, watch:

Touhill, who joined the military more than three decades ago, has led teams at Scott Air Force Base in Illinois, at the Air Force’s Central Command, and at the U.S. Embassy in Kuwait. You can read more about his bio on the U.S. Air Force website here.

In a post on Twitter, Richard Bejtlich, chief security strategist at the cybersecurity firm FireEye (FEYE), questioned the longevity of Touhill’s tenure in the face of an upcoming presidential election. “First reaction: will he survive election? Is he an appointee or bureaucrat? Latter might increase staying power,” he said.

The appointment is political, a White House spokesperson clarified in an email to Fortune, meaning that Touhill may serve only briefly in the position because of President Obama’s limited time remaining in office.

The Obama administration also appointed Grant Schneider, cybersecurity policy director on the White House’s National Security Council, as Tuohill’s acting deputy information security chief—a career role, in contrast to Touhill’s. Schneider previously spent seven years as the chief information officer at the Defense Intelligence Agency.

The pair will likely start in their new roles later this month, a person familiar with the hirings told Fortune.

This story has been updated with additional information from the White House.</s>WASHINGTON—The White House on Thursday named a retired U.S. Air Force general as the government's first federal cyber security chief, a position announced eight months ago that is intended to improve defenses against hackers.

Gregory Touhill's job will be to protect government networks and critical infrastructure from cyber threats as federal chief information security officer, according to a statement.

The Obama administration has made bolstering federal cyber security a top priority of the president's last year in office. The issue has gained more attention due to high-profile breaches in recent years against the government and private sector.

Most recently U.S. intelligence officials have suspected Russia is responsible for breaches of Democratic political organizations and state election systems. They believe it may be trying to exert influence over the U.S. presidential election, a charge the Kremlin has denied.

President Barack Obama announced the new position in February alongside a budget proposal to Congress asking for $19 billion for cyber security across the U.S. government.

Touhill is currently a deputy assistant secretary for cybersecurity and communications at the Department of Homeland Security.

He will begin his new role later this month, a source familiar with the matter said.

Grant Schneider, who is the director of cyber security policy at the White House's National Security Council, will be acting deputy to Touhill, according to the announcement.
The Obama administration chooses retired United States Air Force Brigadier General Gregory Touhill the first federal CISO chief, who reports to the CIO of the U.S. Tony Scott.