Toward the end of his tenure on Capitol Hill, former House Intelligence Committee Chair Mike Rogers (R-Mich.) faced conflict of interest allegations related to a ten billion dollar government security contract his wife had a stake in.
Now out of office, questions may still linger about Rogers’ policy prescriptions after he made a pitch on Monday for companies to invest in cyber insurance policies.
“There’s a new sector on cyber insurance,” Rogers said during a panel discussion on digital security at North Carolina State University’s Institute for Emerging Issues.
Rogers stressed that cyber insurance alone can’t replace having “a cyber secure network,” but touted its benefits given “the troubles that have happened to these companies and the losses of which they have experienced.”
“Go out and start engaging in this notion of cyber insurance,” he urged once again.
Before Rogers left the public sector at the end of last year, he attempted to beat back allegations that he was using his position on Capitol Hill to benefit his wife, Kristi Clemens Rogers, formerly the CEO of defense contractor Aegis. The firm had nabbed a security contract with the State Department, and, according to allegations by some conservatives, may have played a role in lapses during the 2012 Benghazi attacks.
Kristi Rogers is no longer affiliated with Aegis, which announced in March 2014 that it would be offering new cybersecurity insurance plans to businesses. She is now the CEO of Aspen Healthcare Services.
As for the former House Intelligence Committee Chair, he’s currently a fellow at the Hudson Institute, focusing on cyberwarfare and other national security issues.
But that doesn’t mean the former Congressman is using his stature and experience to advocate for public sector solutions. According to the Center for Media and Democracy’s Sourcewatch, the Hudson Institute leans toward the “Free Market Right,” and is bankrolled by many of the same people who back conservative movements throughout the US. In 2012, the organization received 12% of its funding from unknown corporate donors.
Rogers has previously made pitches for cybersecurity insurance, a booming $2 billion a year industry that experienced upwards of 50% growth annually over the last few years.
In May of last year, he was the keynote speaker at Business Insurance’s inaugural Cyber Risk Summit where he warned of Chinese hackers posing a threat to “economic prosperity in the United States.”
