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Cyber coordinator Michael Daniel released updated goals for TIC, HSPD-12 and continuous monitoring on Performance.gov. He said by adding new goals to the portal, performance improvement officers will pay more attention and influence how agencies meet the targets.
A look at the events shaping cybersecurity policy in the federal government over the past six years.
Six years after the Veterans Affairs data breach, civilian agency networks and computers are more secure. Current and former federal officials and cyber experts say from secretaries on down, the threat of a cyber attack and the impact on mission is well understood.
A group of experts released a white paper recommending changes to OMB Circular A-130. The suggestions center on continuous monitoring, the role of DHS in overseeing FISMA and the definitions of a major IT system and a national security system.
The draft solicitation asks for 15 toolsets and 11 service areas to help agencies implement continuous monitoring as-a-service and to buy sensors. DHS has asked vendors on GSA Schedule 70 to comment on the requirements.
White House senior director for cybersecurity Andy Ozment said budget folks are getting a better understanding of why cybersecurity is important thanks to the administration's high- priority governmentwide goals. NIST also is helping push the cross-agency goals forward from a technical perspective.
The annual reporting memo gives agencies 57 questions and answers as they prepare their 2012 cybersecurity report.
The agency plans to release solicitations to help agencies implement sensors to detect threats, followed by industry-provided services to analyze them. Congress approved $183 million to begin in 2013 to help get continuous monitoring off the ground more quickly.
Matt Coose left government after more than 20 years. In his final position as director of the Federal Network Service at DHS, he said the agency's cyber capabilities matured. And agency focus on securing federal networks has never been better.
The agency turns to teams of experts to review how departments are meeting the Trusted Internet Connections (TIC) initiative. DHS plans to expand the use of Blue Teams to the implementation of continuous monitoring and two-factor authentication under Homeland Security Presidential Directive-12.
Homeland Security releases policy and guidance on how departments and vendors will implement continuous monitoring and get away from static reports on the cyber health of their systems. DHS is hoping Congress approves a $200 million funding request to buy five different commercial cyber tools, a dashboard and a security data warehouse in 2013.
Deputy secretaries now get quarterly scorecards on how their agency is meeting four IT security priorities, including continuous monitoring of agency networks and secure identity cards. Howard Schmidt, the White House cyber coordinator, said the goal is to increase accountability and make sure agencies are putting enough focus on these areas. Schmidt said he is also developing priorities for 2012, which includes getting cybersecurity legislation passed.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement received a score of 95 on its FISMA report card in 2011. Jeff Eisensmith, the ICE CISO, said the agency is implementing continuous monitoring and increasing the training of its employees.
Despite a 2006 mandate to secure mobile devices and implement two-factor authentication, only just over half of federal agencies have managed to do so. OMB submits its annual FISMA report to Congress detailing the steps the government has taken to improve cybersecurity, including spending $12 billion on cybersecurity last year.