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The new person in charge of convincing Americans to improve their computer security against what the Associated Press calls "hackers, disgruntled employees, commercial rivals and foreign governments" is Amit Yoran, a vice-president of Symantec Corporation.

According to the article,

Yoran cofounded Riptech Inc. of Alexandria, Va., in March 1998, which monitored government and corporate computers around the world with an elaborate sensor network to protect them against attacks. He sold the firm in July 2002 to Symantec for $145 million and stayed on as vice president for managed security services.

Yoran said he hasn't yet talked with government ethics lawyers, but he said Symantec, a leading cybersecurity and antivirus vendor, wouldn't be shown any special treatment by the department.

Comments: We wish Mr. Yoran the best of luck in his new position. Noting last year's sale of his own cybersecurity company for $145 million, we also think we have a good grasp on why Microsoft has so many allies in political and IT circles.