US To Set Up Cyber Threat Intelligence Integration Center

The US is set to announce the setting up of a Cyber Threat Intelligence Integration Center(CTIIC), a new department designed to protect US government and commercial interests from digital attacks.

The CTIIC is said to be the outcome of  President Obama  pledge to bolster America's digital security in his most recent state of the union address, US media outlet, Engadet reported.

Recent cyber-attacks against Sony pictures and some US financial institutions believed to have been originated from North Korea and Russia respectively are said to be the trigger for setting up the CTIIC.

The CTIIC is expected to function as an exchange house of cyber data collected from various US agencies such as the FBI and CIA and alert in advance of an attack.  After 9/11, researchers believed that if the security services' had shared data between them, the attacks could possibly have been prevented.

 According to the Washington Post, that's why the new CTIIC will sit between these agencies, pooling their cyber warfare data in a single place. That way, the next time an attack is mounted, those who need to make decisions will have a full picture in their minds.

The Post reported that in the aftermath of the Sony hack, the FBI, NSA and CIA all drew separate conclusions rather than providing a single, cohesive response. It was, apparently, the final straw which prompted the formation of this new agency to create unified analysis.

The CTIIC will launch with a staff of around 50 and a budget of around $35 million a year, and will not conduct any surveillance work itself.