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Michigan Picks Former White House Adviser DeRusha for CSO

Chris DeRusha will oversee cybersecurity for the state of Michigan, having had prominent roles with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, the Obama administration and Ford Motor Co.

by / February 12, 2019
The Michigan Capitol. (Shutterstock)

Following cybersecurity roles at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, the White House and Ford Motor Co., Chris DeRusha has taken his next job as the state of Michigan’s chief security officer.

The state's Department of Technology, Management and Budget (DTMB) tweeted out the news on Feb. 11. According to his LinkedIn profile, DeRusha has a bachelor’s degree in international business and a master’s in national security policy studies. After a five-year stint as the associate of a business consulting firm in China, DeRusha was hired in 2011 by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, first as a special assistant to the deputy secretary, then as a cybersecurity strategist and then adviser to the deputy under secretary for cybersecurity.

DeRusha spent almost six years at DHS before being appointed to the Obama administration as senior cybersecurity adviser to the White House from 2015 to 2017. From there he spent a year as manager of application security at Ford, then went to work for DTMB, where he was deputy chief security officer for about a year under CIO David DeVries.

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DeVries stepped down Jan. 1, and newly elected Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has yet to name a replacement.

DeRusha and the Michigan DTMB did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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