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OMB Finalizes Zero Trust Strategy; Here Come the Deadlines
Today, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) published the final version of its strategy that directs Federal agencies to migrate to zero trust security architectures.
  • OMB Zero Trust Policy Gets Positive Reviews; Funding is Wild Card
    Ross Nodurft, executive director of the Alliance for Digital Innovation and former chief of the Office of Management and Budget’s (OMB) cybersecurity team, gave positive reviews to the final version of OMB’s zero trust security directive to Federal agencies, but also noted agencies’ ability to find funding to implement the strategy in the near term remains somewhat cloudy.
  • House Debuts Semiconductor, Competition Companion to Senate’s USICA Bill
    The House of Representatives has crafted a new semiconductor and innovation legislative measure that features $52 billion in funding for semiconductor production, $45 billion for supply chain issues, and the establishment of a new Science and Engineering Solutions Directorate at the National Science Foundation (NSF). The bill, called the America Creating Opportunities for Manufacturing, Pre-Eminence […]
  • telework Fed CIOs Counsel Continuing Remote Work Integration, Innovation
    Edging into what everyone hopes will be a post-pandemic environment, Federal agencies have learned a lot about remote work. But as employees continue to work from remote environments, agency tech leaders will need to continue to rethink policies, IT modernization, security, and training practices to ensure an integrated workplace environment, several Federal CIOs chief said during ATARC’s CIO Virtual Summit Jan. 25.
Recent News
  1. NIST NIST Issues Final Guidance on Security and Privacy Controls
    The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) issued the final copy of its security and privacy control assessment procedures on Jan. 25.
  2. Cybersecurity Five Reasons to Move From EDR to XDR to Meet Federal Cyber Mandates
    Organizations and agencies across industries and government have been rocked in recent years as cyberattacks are getting more sophisticated, costly, and disruptive. With the Federal government in the crosshairs of bad actors trying to steal sensitive data – or worse – President Biden has made cybersecurity a critical focus of his administration. His Executive Order on Improving the Nation’s Cybersecurity (EO 14028) gives Federal technology teams clear directives designed to quickly secure Federal networks. One of those directives instructs agencies to adopt a zero trust architecture.
  3. innovation Federal CIO Office Adds Two Fed IT Veterans to Staff
    The Office of the Federal Chief Information Officer (OFCIO) added two Federal IT veterans to its staff last week, hiring Drew Myklegard as associate Deputy Federal CIO and former Air Force Chief Data Officer (CDO) Eileen Vidrine as a senior strategic advisor for Data to the Federal CIO, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) confirmed to MeriTalk.
  1. Fed CIOs Advise Agencies to Meet Cyber EO Reporting Deadlines, Even if Not Ready
    The Biden administration’s cybersecurity executive order (EO) issued in May 2021, brought along an ambitious deadline schedule for reporting requirements, which Federal chief information officers (CIOs) advise agencies to meet – even if their answer is that they’re “not ready yet.”
  2. NOAA Should Reassess Launch Plans for GOES-T, IG Says
    According to a recent audit by the Department of Commerce Inspector General (IG), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) current program launch plans may be increasing risk in the development of its environmental satellites.
  3. cybersecurity MeriTalk Survey: Most Feds Adopting Zero Trust, But Seeing Obstacles
    Amid the blizzard of mounting security threats posed by sophisticated adversaries and increased attack surfaces spawned by large-scale telework, most Federal agencies are getting the message and moving strongly toward developing zero trust security architectures.
  4. FedRAMP StackArmor Teams With Red Hat to Accelerate ROSA FedRAMP ATO
    stackArmor announced today that the company is working with Red Hat to accelerate the FedRAMP Authority to Operate (ATO) project for Red Hat OpenShift Service on AWS (ROSA). 
  1. DISA Awards $6.8M Contract for Thunderdome Prototype
    The Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) announced that it has awarded Booz Allen Hamilton a $6.8 million contract to implement a Thunderdome Prototype—which will be DISA’s zero trust security and network architecture.
  2. Fed CIOs Discuss IT Modernization, Cyber Compliance
    Government agencies have had to adapt to the “new normal” brought on by COVID-19 – new ways of working, new consumer behaviors, and new business reorganization. But the key to success is updated modernization, according to several chief information officers (CIO).
  3. White House Puts High Tech on Sanctions Deck if Russia Invades Ukraine
    With tensions rising over a possible further Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Biden Administration is laying out potential sanctions it could impose against Russia, up to and including export controls on American-made technologies including AI-enabling and other software products, according to a senior administration official.
  4. House Oversight Leaders Debut FISMA Update Legislation
    Bipartisan leaders of the House Oversight and Reform Committee today introduced their version of legislation that would update the Federal Information Security Modernization Act (FISMA), which sets cybersecurity requirements for Federal civilian agencies.
  5. Air Force CDO on Data Priorities Moving Forward
    Data and data information has become crucial for operational and warfighting needs in the 21st century. Therefore, in his new position as the Chief Data Officer (CDO) for the U.S. Air Force, Brigadier General John M. Olson, plans to leverage edge computing and advanced technologies to understand and drive data for mission needs.
  6. White House Instructs Agencies to Pause Enforcement of Vaccine Mandate
    The White House’s Safer Federal Workforce Task Force released new guidance on Jan. 24 instructing agencies to pause enforcement of the COVID-19 vaccine mandate for Federal employees amid a preliminary court injunction that blocks the mandate nationwide.
  7. Citizen Satisfaction With Federal Services Hits All-Time Low
    Citizen satisfaction with Federal government services has never been worse, according to the American Customer Satisfaction Index’s (ACSI) Federal Government Report 2021.
  8. NSA Issues Recommendations to Prevent Cyberattacks via PDFs
    The National Security Agency (NSA) has issued a technical report for systems administrators to prevent cyber actors from using malicious PDFs to target networks in a Windows environment.
  9. Harrington Joins CISA’s Election Security Team
    The Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has hired Mona Harrington as deputy assistant director of the National Risk Management Center (NRMC), which houses CISA’s election security team.
  10. DHS Secretary Mayorkas Speaks With Mayors on Cyber
    Over the past several months, the United States has experienced many cyberattacks to large cities and small towns. These attacks, Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Alejandro Mayorkas told mayors across the country indicate that cities across the United States need to identify a cyber leader regardless of the size and sophistication of the infrastructure to remain vigilant about cybersecurity.