VA CISO Lowe retires

Another top IT official is departing the executive ranks at the Department of Veterans Affairs. Stan Lowe, the agency's chief information security officer and third-ranking technology official will retire from federal service Aug. 22. Lowe served at VA for 25 years.

The move comes a day after Deputy CIO Stephen Warren, who led IT at VA on an acting basis for more than two-and-a-half years, announced his move to take on the CIO post at the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency in the Treasury Department.

The shakeup comes as new CIO LaVerne Council, who started work in early July, begins to put her stamp on the $4 billion IT department charged with supporting the technology that serves VA staff and, increasingly, offers direct access for America's veterans to benefits and services. In her first move, she announced the formation of a team to develop a new cybersecurity strategy for the agency to be led by VA program manager Susan McHugh-Polley.

Lowe led IT security at VA during a time when the agency was trying to restore its reputation after several key incidents involving lost or compromised data, failing grades on information security from the VA's inspector general, and attacks from nation-state sponsored hackers. The Einstein 3 network defense system was activated at VA on Lowe's watch, and he presided over efforts to encrypt 100 percent of the desktops and laptops connected to VA networks.

"Our workforce has done an outstanding job in the face of significant adversity. In two and a half years, we have made more strides towards improving VA’s information security posture than ever before. These achievements have been recognized externally by our peers and internally by our customers," Lowe wrote in an email to colleagues obtained by FCW.

There's no word yet on a replacement.