Obituaries

Stewart Baker, a former senior Department of Homeland Security official, national security attorney, and widely recognized voice on cybersecurity and technology policy, died unexpectedly on April 30 while jogging. He was 78.

Baker’s career spanned government service, private practice, and advisory roles, with a consistent focus on how law and policy intersect with rapidly evolving technology.

At DHS, Baker served as the department’s first Assistant Secretary for Policy from 2005 to 2009, where he built and led the 250-person Policy Directorate. In that role, he oversaw policy analysis across the department and managed responsibilities tied to international affairs, strategic planning, and coordination with law enforcement and advisory bodies. His portfolio covered a wide range of issues, including immigration, customs enforcement, identity management, maritime security, travel regulation, and the department’s role in the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS).

During his tenure, Baker led negotiations with European and Middle Eastern governments on travel data sharing, privacy protections, and visa policies. He developed a new framework for visa-free travel and helped secure interagency and congressional alignment behind it. He also played a key role in the passage and implementation of the SAFE Ports Act and led policy efforts tied to immigration reform. His work contributed to the first major update of CFIUS law and regulations in a generation.

Before his time at DHS, Baker served as General Counsel of the National Security Agency from 1992 to 1994, focusing on encryption, intelligence law, and electronic surveillance. He later led the drafting team for the Robb-Silberman Commission report examining intelligence failures related to Iraq’s weapons of mass destruction.

Baker spent much of his career in private practice at Steptoe LLP, where he led one of the country’s prominent technology and national security law practices. His work covered electronic commerce, telecommunications, export controls, cybersecurity, and government regulation of emerging technologies. He also advised companies on CFIUS requirements and helped lead industry-government efforts to implement lawful intercept capabilities under the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act (CALEA).

His legal career included extensive appellate work, including appearances before the U.S. Supreme Court. He founded the State and Local Legal Center, which represents state and local governments in Supreme Court cases, and contributed to cases that shaped modern constitutional federalism doctrine.

Baker was also an author and commentator on cybersecurity and national security policy. His 1998 book, The Limits of Trust: Cryptography, Governments, and Electronic Commerce, examined the tension between encryption, privacy, and government access at a time when digital commerce was still emerging. He later published Skating on Stilts: Why We Aren’t Stopping Tomorrow’s Terrorism in 2010, drawing on his DHS experience to explore how technologies such as aviation, networks, and biotechnology could reshape future threats if policy and security approaches did not adapt.

In addition to his writing, Baker remained active in the national security community through advisory roles. He served on the boards of the National Security Institute at George Mason University’s Antonin Scalia Law School, Corsha, and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem’s International Cyber Security Research Center. He also chaired the Association of Former Intelligence Officers and participated in the Homeland Security Experts Group.

Baker continued practicing law at Steptoe until 2024 and later founded Stewart Baker Consulting PLLC, advising on cybersecurity, intelligence, and technology policy. He also hosted the long-running Cyberlaw Podcast, where he discussed developments in surveillance law, cyber risk, and national security.

Born in Poughkeepsie, New York, Baker earned his undergraduate degree from Brown University and his law degree from UCLA. Early in his career, he clerked for Justice John Paul Stevens on the U.S. Supreme Court, as well as for federal appellate judges.

Across government and industry, Baker’s work focused on how national security policy adapts to technological change. His contributions helped shape debates on encryption, surveillance, and the role of government in the digital age.