Homeland official asks information security crowd to start building trust with the government

A top Obama administration official says the government and the data security community need to focus on building trust so information about cyber threats can be shared between them for the greater good.

Alejandro Mayorkas, deputy secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, says he recognizes that a trust deficit exists between the government and those who deal with data security, but says that needs to change.

Mayorkas made the comments on Thursday during an address at the annual Black Hat hacker conference in Las Vegas. But several people in the crowd expressed concern that any information about cyber threats shared with the government could be used against them.