December 6, 2001

Dr. Arden L. Bement, Jr.,

Director

National Institute of Standards and Technology

100 Bureau Drive, Stop 1000

Gaithersburg, MD 20899

Dear Dr. Bement,

As the Co-Chairs of the Association for Computing Machinery’s (ACM) Advisory Committee on Security and Privacy (ACSP), we are writing to express our sincere congratulations on your recent confirmation as Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).  By accepting this important appointment, you will be challenged to provide strategic leadership and vision as NIST performs its vital mission of conducting research that advances the nation's technology infrastructure. 

NIST has played a historic role in computer security by conducting security research on emerging technologies, promoting security assessment techniques, providing security management guidance, and facilitating a greater awareness of the need for security.  We are particularly pleased with the transparent and thoughtful process NIST followed in working in partnership with industry and the cryptographic community to develop an Advanced Encryption Standard (AES).   The recent approval of AES is good for the government, the information technology industry, and the overall security of the Internet.

The membership of the ACSP includes a dozen individuals with expertise in information security and assurance, privacy, cybercrime, and allied fields. The group will provide non-biased advice on efforts to protect personal privacy and to enhance the security of networked information systems.  Members of the ACSP (affiliations provided for identification purposes only) include Peter Neumann (SRI International), Eugene H. Spafford (Purdue University CERIAS), Steve Bellovin (AT&T Labs Research), Matthew Blaze (AT&T Labs Research), David Clark (MIT), Dorothy Denning (Georgetown University), Ed Felten (Princeton University), David Farber (University of Pennsylvania), Susan Landau (Sun Microsystems), Robert Morris (Dartmouth College), Fred Schneider (Cornell University), and Willis Ware (RAND Corporation). 

Should you wish to discuss any matter with us, please direct your staff to contact Jeff Grove of the ACM Public Policy Office at (202) 659-9711.  We look forward to working with you.

Sincerely,

Peter Neumann, Ph.D.

Eugene H. Spafford, Ph.D.

Co-Chairs

Advisory Committee on Security and Privacy (ACSP)

Association for Computing Machinery