Juniper Networks Participates In Tier One National Preparedness Exercise

Juniper Networks, Inc., the leader in high-performance networking, today announced its participation in Top Officials 4 (TOPOFF 4) National Full Scale Exercise, a Congressionally-mandated tier one national preparedness exercise sponsored by the United States Department of Homeland Security (U.S. DHS). Taking place this past week, the TOPOFF 4 exercise involved top officials at every level of the U. S. federal government, state and local governments, and participation from the international community.

TOPOFF 4 simulated terrorist attacks in the U. S. territory of Guam, as well as Phoenix, Ariz., and Portland, Ore., within hours of each other. The exercise was designed to test the Nation’s ability to respond to a major incident of national significance and the collaboration between various government top officials and the private sector.

“During any incident of national significance, whether man-made or the result of a natural disaster, it is imperative that the United States execute a coordinated response that includes government and industry working together to protect national and economic security, public health and public safety, ” said Robert B. Dix, Jr., vice president, Government Affairs, for Juniper Networks. “Telecommunications and information technology both play critical roles in ensuring an effective response and recovery capability. Juniper Networks is proud to bring its expertise and leadership to the table, and actively participate in this important national preparedness exercise.”

Juniper Networks has been an active participant in the TOPOFF 4 National Private Sector Working Group, serving as lead for the private sector critical infrastructure community. In addition, Juniper Networks participated in the “Looking Glass” component of TOPOFF 4, where the company tested and evaluated its own response to a simulated attack including the impact on its employees, facilities, operations, and customers. The exercise required Juniper management to make decisions quickly and under stress in the execution of its own response plan, to protect employees, carry out essential functions, and maintain a common operating framework during an incident of national significance.

Juniper Networks is a recognized and proven networking and security solutions provider to the U.S. federal government, as well as state and local governments, and institutions of higher education across the United States. As the leader in high-performance networking, Juniper Networks plays an important role in the Nation’s critical infrastructure community. Through active participation in national preparedness exercises such as TOPOFF 4 and Cyber Storm II, Juniper Networks demonstrates its technical capability and subject matter expertise in support of the important government – industry collaboration that is necessary to prevent, protect, mitigate, respond, and recover from any intentional act of terrorism or other incident of national significance.