James Gosler Receives 2022 Eugene G. Fubini Award

James Gosler, a senior fellow at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, Maryland, was presented with the 2022 Eugene G. Fubini Award on Nov. 8 by the Honorable Heidi Shyu, Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering. This award was given by Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin in recognition of Gosler’s significant contributions and sustained outstanding service as an adviser to the Department of Defense (DoD). Gosler received the award at the Pentagon during a meeting of the Defense Science Board (DSB), on which he served from 2010 to 2021.

The Fubini Award is the highest honor conferred by the Secretary of Defense to a civilian who has significantly contributed to the mission of the DoD through national-level defense studies and task forces. Throughout his long career of national service, Gosler has been a critical resource for key defense studies and has played a significant role in studies defining cybersecurity and advanced intelligence operations. Gosler joined APL in 2013 and today serves as a senior fellow at the Laboratory, delivering strategic insights and advice to the Laboratory’s senior leadership, and advising national leaders on an array of security issues.

“Jim Gosler has long been one of the nation’s foremost experts on cybersecurity, and he is one of the pioneers who created the framework upon which our country has built our formidable cyber defenses,” said APL Director Ralph Semmel. “His vast experience, technical acumen and clarity of vision have proven invaluable to the Laboratory as we seek to create game-changing innovations for our sponsors. We congratulate him on his many significant accomplishments and this well-deserved honor.”

“The collective impact on our nation’s security by the previous recipients of this award is phenomenal. It is an honor for me to be in their company and to have added my contributions to these critical issues,” said Gosler. “Any success I’ve had has been enabled by the guidance and support of hundreds of friends and colleagues, and many of these people have had significant roles in shaping my path. It has been a tremendous privilege to have had the opportunity to work on the direction and strategy of the nation’s cyber domain. I’m grateful to the DSB and senior DoD leadership for their nomination and endorsement of me for the Fubini Award, and receiving the Secretary of Defense’s approval is a great honor.”

Gosler has led or participated in more than 15 National Security Agency (NSA) Advisory Board panels and 20 DSB studies. Prior to joining APL, he served for more than three decades in cyber and nuclear weapon positions at Sandia National Laboratories, where he created and led the Vulnerability Assessments Program. In 1989, Gosler was invited by the NSA to serve as Sandia’s first visiting scientist, and was later appointed as a Sandia fellow.

He also served as the first director of the Clandestine Information Technology Office (CITO) at the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). Through integrated targeting, analysis, technology development, technical operations and human operations, CITO established information operations as a core CIA discipline and became what is today the Directorate of Digital Innovation. Gosler served as a naval officer from 1975 to 2003, with assignments including instructor at the Naval Nuclear Power School and commanding officer assignments at the Naval Shipyard Long Beach, the Naval Research Laboratory and the Naval Combat Documentation Reserve detachments. He retired with the rank of Captain.

Currently, Gosler serves on the Defense Science Board Permanent Subcommittee on Threat Reduction and the Navy Science and Technology Board. His previous committee service includes membership on multiple Intelligence Community and DoD boards, including the Defense Science Board, the National Security Agency Advisory Board and the Naval Studies Board. In addition to the Fubini Award, he has been recognized with the National Intelligence Medal of Achievement, the CIA’s William J. Donovan Award, the Intelligence Medal of Merit, the Navy Legion of Merit and the CIA Director’s Award. In 1995, Lockheed Martin presented Gosler with the NOVA award for his leadership in establishing the Vulnerability Assessments Program as a Cybersecurity Center of Excellence. He is a co-author of two edited books, Transforming U.S. Intelligence and Vaults, Mirrors, and Masks: Rediscovering U.S. Counterintelligence.