computer science

Presidential Policy Directive 20

Presidential Policy Directive 20 is a computer science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Presidential Policy Directive 20 rather than just read about it. In short: Presidential Policy Directive 20 (PPD-20) provides a framework for U.S. cybersecurity by establishing principles and processes. Signed by President Barack Obama in October 2012, this directive supersedes National Security Presidential Directive NSPD-38.

Key takeaways

Presidential Policy Directive 20 belongs to computer science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Presidential Policy Directive 20 to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Presidential Policy Directive 20 from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Presidential Policy Directive 20 (PPD-20) provides a framework for U.S. cybersecurity by establishing principles and processes. Signed by President Barack Obama in October 2012, this directive supersedes National Security Presidential Directive NSPD-38. Integrating cyber tools with those of national security, the directive complements NSPD-54/Homeland Security Presidential Directive HSPD-23. Classified and unreleased by the National Security Agency (NSA), NSPD-54 was authorized by George W. Bush. It gives the U.S. government power to conduct surveillance through monitoring. Its existence was made public in June 2013 by former intelligence NSA infrastructure analyst Edward Snowden.

Background Because of private industry, and issues surrounding international and domestic law, public-private-partnership became the, "cornerstone of America's cybersecurity strategy". Suggestions for the private sector were detailed in the declassified 2003, National Strategy to Secure Cyberspace. Its companion document, National Security Presidential Directive (NSPD-38), was signed in secret by George W. Bush the following year. Although the contents of NSPD 38 are still undisclosed, the U.S. military did not recognize cyberspace as a "theater of operations" until the U.S. National Defense Strategy of 2005. The report declared that the, "ability to operate in and from the global commons-space, international waters and airspace, and cyberspace is important ... to project power anywhere in the world from secure bases of operation." Three years later, George W. Bush formed the classified Comprehensive National Cybersecurity Initiative (CNCI). Citing economic and national security, the Obama administration prioritized cybersecurity upon taking office. After an in-depth review of the, "communications and information infrastructure," the CNCI was partially declassified and expanded under President Obama. It outlines "key elements of a broader, updated national U.S. cybersecurity strategy." By 2011, the Pentagon announced its capability to run cyber attacks.

General After the U.S. Senate failed to pass the Cybersecurity Act of 2012 that August, Presidential Policy Directive 20 (PPD-20) was signed in secret. The Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) filed a Freedom of Information Request to see it, but the NSA would not comply. Some details were reported in November 2012. The Washington Post wrote that PPD-20, "is the most extensive White House effort to date to wrestle with what constitutes an 'offensive' and a 'defensive' action in the rapidly evolving world of cyberwar and cyberterrorism." The following January, the Obama administration released a ten-point factsheet.

Controversy On June 7, 2013, PPD-20 became public. Released by Edward Snowden and posted by The Guardian, it is part of the 2013 Mass Surveillance Disclosures. While the U.S. factsheet claims PPD-20 acts within the law and is, "consistent with the values that we promote domestically and internationally as we have previously articulated in the International Strategy for Cyberspace", it doesn't reveal cyber operations in the directive. Snowden's disclosure called attention to passages noting cyberwarfare policy and its possible consequences. The directive calls both defensive and offensive measures as Defensive Cyber Effects Operations (DCEO) and Offensive Cyber Effects Operations (OCEO), respectively.

Notable points "Loss of life, significant responsive actions against the United States, significant damage to property, serious adverse US foreign policy consequences, or serious economic impact on the United States." "OCEO can offer unique and unconventional capabilities to advance U.S. national objectives around the world with little or no warning to the adversary or target and with potential effects ranging from subtle to severely damaging. The development and sustainment of OCEO capabilities, however, may require considerable time and effort if access and tools for a specific target do not already exist." "The United States Government shall identify potential targets of national importance where OCEO can offer a favorable balance of effectiveness and risk as compared with other instruments of national power, establish and maintain OCEO capabilities integrated as appropriate with other U.S. offensive capabilities, and execute those capabilities in a manner consistent with the provisions of this directive."

See also Cyberwarfare in the United States 2013 Mass Surveillance Disclosures Comprehensive National Cybersecurity Initiative

References

External links

Guardian: Presidential Policy Directive 20 (PPD) FAS: White House PPD-20 Factsheet

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Presidential Policy Directive 20

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Presidential Policy Directive 20 claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In computer science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Presidential Policy Directive 20 before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Presidential Policy Directive 20 ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Presidential Policy Directive 20

In research: Presidential Policy Directive 20 appears in computer science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Presidential Policy Directive 20 in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Presidential Policy Directive 20 is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 2012 documents, 2013 controversies in the United States, Computer security procedures, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Presidential Policy Directive 20 outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Presidential Policy Directive 20 in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Presidential Policy Directive 20 means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Presidential Policy Directive 20 out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Presidential Policy Directive 20 in simple terms?

Why does Presidential Policy Directive 20 matter?

Because it connects several computer science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Presidential Policy Directive 20?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Presidential Policy Directive 20.