Longtime Navy veteran Tracy L. Hines was promoted from captain to Rear Adm. (lower half) and assigned to be the Navy Cyber Security Division Director in Navy’s Washington, D.C., Office of Naval Operations, DoD announced April 6. […]

When implementing zero trust security architectures, an official from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) said today that the real change is not a technology change, but instead a “cultural change” within the organization. […]

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), along with the FBI, Department of Energy (DoE), and National Security Agency (NSA), is warning that advanced persistent threat (APT) actors are seeking to gain full access to industrial control systems (ICS) and Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) systems, CISA warned in a cybersecurity advisory April 13. […]

The long road to implementing zero trust security architectures may be driven by top-down policy directives and prioritizing technology pillars, but the art and science of communication and collaboration are showing up as vital inputs into organizing Federal agency technologists and network users to move toward the government’s zero trust goals. […]

Protecting healthcare data is essential, but cybersecurity experts say it is one of the hardest industries to protect due to its larger attack surface – and the fact that lives are at risk. […]

Microsoft Corp. said it has disrupted cyberattacks from a group linked to the GRU – Russia’s foreign military unit – that were targeting Ukrainian entities and media organizations, as well as government institutions and foreign policy think tanks in the United States, according to an April 7 company blog. […]

Senior Federal and industry cybersecurity leaders agreed that the Office of Management and Budget’s (OMB) August 2021 memorandum M-21-31 to implement new event logging and share threat information has proven to be a significant step in bolstering cybersecurity across Federal civilian agencies. […]

The Senate has confirmed Laurie Locascio, President Biden’s nominee to be the next undersecretary of Standards and Technology at the Department of Commerce, through an April 7 voice vote. The title typically comes with the dual role of Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology. […]

Do you know someone who works hard to drive innovation and ensure our nation’s cybersecurity? MeriTalk wants you to submit nominations for our Cyber Defenders Awards, to honor those individuals who have made significant contributions across cyber programs in Federal IT. […]

The Department of Justice (DoJ) and FBI said this week they worked together to disrupt a botnet comprised of thousands of infected network hardware devices and controlled by the Main Intelligence Directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation (the GRU). […]

With at least a half-million cybersecurity positions unfilled in the United States, Federal experts and educators said closing the gap on the shortage of cybersecurity professionals begins with cyber education efforts, particularly at the K-12 level. […]

As the Russian government explores its options for potential cyberattacks on United States critical infrastructure, witnesses today urged members of the House Committee on Homeland Security to increase collaboration and information sharing efforts with industry stakeholders. […]

The General Services Administration’s five-year strategic plan published on March 31 weaves the developing issues of telework, cybersecurity, IT-driven citizen service improvements, and adoption of further acquisition technologies throughout much of the agency’s wide-ranging work plans for fiscal years 2022 through 2026. […]

Rep. August Pfluger, R-Texas., has introduced a bill that aims to protect critical U.S. infrastructure – including the energy sector – from cyberattacks from foreign nation-states. […]

Today every Federal agency is working to implement zero trust. Each will begin in a unique place that is dictated by its current cybersecurity posture, cybersecurity investments, and agency missions. Still, many questions must be answered as agencies plot their zero-trust journey. Which pillar in the Zero Trust Maturity Model is most urgent? Which data is more vulnerable to attacks? How do you find and classify the most sensitive information? […]

While the zero trust security model has been widely recognized as an effective approach to preventing and mitigating data breaches, an official with the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) said this week there are several misconceptions Federal agencies have which make them skeptical about adopting the framework. […]

The House of Representatives passed the Better Cybercrime Metrics Act March 29, which aims to give the Federal government increased visibility into cybercrime data, sending the bill to the President’s desk for his signature. […]

Reps. Frank Mrvan, D-Ind., Nancy Mace, R-S.C., Susie Lee, D-Nev., and Andrew Garbarino, R-N.Y., have introduced legislation that aims to strengthen cybersecurity at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and better protect information technology systems and devices used at the agency. […]

The White House released President Biden’s fiscal year (FY) 2023 budget request today, with a top-line number of $5.8 trillion and featuring proposals to spend $10.9 billion for civilian cybersecurity measures – marking an 11 percent increase in civilian agency cyber spending from reported FY2022 levels. […]

Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Gary Peters, D-Mich., said today he has found the lack of Russian cyberattacks thus far “surprising,” and warned the United States and other countries “to expect more to happen.” […]

The late-day warning on Monday from President Biden and White House national security officials that the Russian government is exploring options for potential cyberattacks against U.S. critical infrastructure targets appeared to turn many heads in the Federal cybersecurity community that is by now long-used to receiving and generating cybersecurity advisories. […]

We sat down in recent days with Amy Gilliland, who has run General Dynamics Information Technology as president for going on five years, to talk mostly about how the company is helping Federal agencies cybersecurity and zero trust policy mandates, but in the course of a wide-ranging conversation came away with a whole lot more. […]

The White House issued a call to action today to critical infrastructure (CI) companies to strengthen their cyber defenses, based on evolving threat intelligence that the Russian government is exploring options for potential cyberattacks on U.S. critical infrastructure. […]

Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) Director Jen Easterly has set what she called an “ambitious goal” to fill talent gaps in the cybersecurity industry by targeting a 50 percent share of that workforce for women by 2030. […]

Puesh Kumar, director of the Energy Department’s Office of Cybersecurity Energy Security and Emergency Response (CESER), detailed several steps that the agency is taking to implement executive branch and DoE supply chain security policies during a virtual event hosted by FCW on March 16. […]

Federal chief information security officers (CISOs) today recommended that as Federal agencies implement zero trust security architectures they also put in place continuous training programs for their workforce to keep employees up to date on the technology and best practices. […]

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) said its strategic plan for 2022-2027 features significant emphasis on cybersecurity issues including the government’s capabilities to boost cyber defenses against foreign government influence campaigns, and the Defense Department’s ability to meet cyber threats across multiple domains. […]

A bipartisan group of 22 senators is asking the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and other Federal cybersecurity agencies for an update on what steps the government is taking to safeguard the United States and its critical infrastructure sectors against Russia-backed cyber and disinformation threats. […]

While Russia’s war in Ukraine continues, the cyberattacks coming from the invading country have, surprisingly, been rather mild and contained, Senator Mark Warner, D-Va., said today. […]

President Biden was poised late Friday to sign a full-year appropriations bill for fiscal year (FY) 2022 ending Sept. 30, after the Senate passed the spending bill late March 10. […]