Close to 16 years ago, Matt Devost, Brian Houghton, and Neal Pollard warned you not to trust your toaster. The title referred literally to computer-connected toasters and more broadly at the problem of security vulnerabilities in a networked world. Since then, the cybersecurity world has focused more narrowly on corporate and government network security andRead… Read more »
Here is today’s federal cybersecurity and information technology news: Howard Schmidt, the White House cybersecurity coordinator, will be stepping down at the end of this month. More here. Bruce McConnell, cyber-security counselor for the Department of Homeland Security, warned that if the private sector doesn’t make serious investments in cybersecurity, it risks losing “long term-competitiveness.”Read… Read more »
Yesterday I attended a discussion put on by the Atlantic Council’s Cyber Statecraft Initiative. The event, “Lessons from our Cyber Past: The First Cyber Cops,” featured a panel that included: Steven Chabinsky, Deputy Assistant Director, Cyber Division, FBI; Shawn Henry, former Executive Assistant Director, Criminal, Cyber, Response, and Services Branch, FBI; Christopher Painter, Coordinator forRead… Read more »
Today’s federal cybersecurity and information technology news round-up: The proposed Social Networking Online Protection Act (SNOPA) would make it illegal for employers to demand access rto social media accounts. More here. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency has requested proposals for automated tracking and identification solutions for satellites More here. The full report on theRead… Read more »
Researchers at Kapersky Lab recently concluded that Apple is an entire decade behind Microsoft at malware protection, pointing to the spate of Flashback attacks and Apple’s slow response. Kapersky predicting a coming wave of malware as OSX viruses, once rare, grow to be as common as those aimed at Windows. Microsoft, by contrast, has beenRead… Read more »
Editor’s note: This guest post from JeffStutzman of the Red Sky Alliance provides context on a topic of tremendous interest in the community, collaborative cyber security information sharing. – bg Government sponsored hackers, advanced cyber criminals, and even unskilled hactivists operate with relative ease against our information systems because of the sophistication of new toolsRead… Read more »
Today’s federal cybersecurity and IT news: The Promoting and Enhancing Cybersecurity and Information Sharing Effectiveness Act of 2011 (The PRECISE Act) passed the House Homeland Security Committee though members had concerns over whether it was sufficient. More here. The Department of Homeland Security and Department of Justice discussed information sharing through N-DEx, the FBI’s nationalRead… Read more »
I am at the Chicago Federal Executive Board today where I spoke on “The State of Social Media in Government” (I’ll post my slides later). The other speaker was Special Agent Peter Traven from the FBI who spoke under the title “Cyber Threats for the Federal Community.” Specifically, he focused on the issue of trustRead… Read more »
Authored by Doug Kruger and originally posted to Blue Coat’s Federal Blue Print blog. There has been a lot of conversation around the new cybersecurity legislation and several bills have been circulating in Congress as lawmakers are faced with the growing reality of cyber attacks that should cripple critical infrastructure such as water, electricity orRead… Read more »
The Office of Management and Budget and the Department of the Treasury launched the Do Not Pay site, an online portal to stop payments for individuals or organizations that have defrauded the government or are ineligible to receive government money. More here. The proposed Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA) has been attacked byRead… Read more »