Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano isn't the federal cybersecurity czar, and has no desire to become the president's top IT security adviser. But if one of the responsibilities of the White House cybersecurity coordinator is to be the cheerleader for federal government cybersecurity initiatives, then Napolitano is filling that bill.

In remarks Thursday at a cybersecurity conference sponsored by the Secret Service, a Homeland Security agency, Napolitano said:

"In terms of cybersecurity, we've been living in a cyber 1.0 world and we need to be cyber 3.0 and beyond. Because the minute we start talking about a particular methodology of cyber the cyber bad guys are already moving ahead. This is a very, very rapidly evolving environment in which real crime and real damage can occur."

In terms of cybersecurity, we've been living in a cyber 1.0 world and we need to be cyber 3.0 and beyond.

The White House has been all but mute in discussing government cybersecurity since late May when President Obama announced a new federal cybersecurity policy, including the creation of senior administration cybersecurity coordinator, a position many outside the White House call the cybersecurity czar. But the only statements on cybersecurity being emitted from the White House in recent weeks was a statement acknowledging the departure of Melissa Hathaway as the acting senior director for cyberspace and that the search for the cybersecurity coordinator continues with President Obama's involvement.

So it's left to the likes of Napolitano to champion the administration's cybersecurity agenda.

Referencing the "60-day" federal cybersecurity assessment conducted by Hathaway, Napolitano spoke of the growing influence her department will have in securing the IT assets of federal government civilian departments and agencies.

"The review concluded that the Department of Defense would obviously be in charge of the protection of the .mil side of the federal government. And then the Department of Homeland Security would be in charge of the ,gov, the civilian side of the government; i.e., everything else and, also, the intersection with the non-government private side's .org, .com."

Later, in her speech, Napolitano addressed Homeland Security's role in creating a federal cybersecurity workforce:

"How do we grow our own cyber experts who will work within a government framework and how do we make sure we will recruit and retain top talent? Our goal at the Department of Homeland Security ... is to be the repository for cybersecurity and to really recruit the best minds in the country."

She also hinted of growing involvement of Homeland Security in cybersecurity research and development efforts:

"Right now, on the military side of things, we have a very impressive military R&D capacity, but we ... don't have that kind of R&D capacity for things like cybersecurity on the civilian side. That's why we have to engage with private sector partners. That's why academia could be very, very important."

How big of a role Homeland Security should play in formulating and executing federal cybersecurity policy is debatable. But, with no cybersecurity adviser with cloud in the White House, Napolitano is filling the silence by vocalizing how she sees DHS leadership role in shaping that policy.