Former Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency (DCSA) Director David M. Cattler has joined the Atlantic Council’s Transatlantic Security Initiative as a Nonresident Senior Fellow, where he will focus on strengthening allied security through intelligence cooperation, defense-industrial collaboration, and public-private partnerships.
Cattler announced the move on LinkedIn, noting his enthusiasm for contributing to the Atlantic Council’s mission of fostering strong transatlantic ties between policymakers, industry leaders, and strategists. His work will center on the critical intersection of policy, industry, and innovation – areas that increasingly define modern defense and resilience efforts.
Cattler brings more than three decades of national security experience to his new role. From 2019 to 2023, he served as Assistant Secretary General for Intelligence and Security at NATO, where he led the Alliance’s civilian and military intelligence enterprise and advanced efforts to enhance NATO’s situational awareness and decision-making capabilities.
Before that, he was Director of DCSA, overseeing the federal government’s largest security agency, responsible for personnel vetting, industrial security, and insider threat programs that protect both national defense and the industrial base.
Earlier in his career, Cattler held senior positions on the National Security Council staff, in the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, and at the Department of Defense, with responsibilities spanning counterterrorism, strategic analysis, and defense policy.
He is also the founder and managing principal of Ironhelm Works, a consulting firm focused on security, risk, and strategy, and serves as a nonresident distinguished fellow at the International Centre for Defence and Security in Tallinn, Estonia.
A U.S. Naval Academy graduate with a master’s degree in policy management from Georgetown University, Cattler has received multiple U.S. and allied awards, including Estonia’s Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana and Ukraine’s Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise, recognizing his contributions to transatlantic security and partnership.
(AI was used in part to facilitate this article.)