Page 12 - FCW, September/October 2019

Cybersecurity and Modernization
Agencies are speeding up efforts to modernize and become more resilient and innovative at the same time
CYBERSECURITY AND MODERNIZATION have a complex relationship in government.
The two priorities must work together
for agencies to move forward, but at the same time, they complicate each other’s progress. For instance, government agencies must upgrade their IT systems
to operate efficiently and meet customer demands, but those changes can introduce new vulnerabilities. And even as the transformation is happening, agencies must continue protecting mission-critical legacy systems.
That balancing act is challenging but not impossible. Success hinges on adopting robust tools and strategies that can support both goals.
Today’s cybersecurity landscape is nearly unrecognizable from 10 or even five years ago, when agency officials worried mainly about networks and desktop computers. Today, they contend with cloud, mobility, the internet of things and emerging
technologies that are finding footholds in government, such as artificial intelligence and automation.
As a result, the focus has shifted from protecting the perimeter to protecting
data wherever it resides. Furthermore, ransomware has evolved to attack frontline systems and backup drives, malware kits are readily available on the darkweb,
and cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin are complicating law enforcement, according to the Department of Homeland Security’s 2018 Cybersecurity Strategy.
Attempted intrusions into government networks happen on a daily basis, and the number of cyber incidents that federal agencies reported to DHS increased more than tenfold from 2006 to 2015.
The Cloud Smart Strategy issued last year offers this straightforward advice: “Agencies might consider moving or adding security and privacy controls to the data layer itself, rather than just where they have historically resided at the network perimeter.”
A vision for modernization
The White House and Congress have
taken steps to ease agencies’ transition
to modern infrastructures and modern cyber environments. In November 2018, President Donald Trump signed into law the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Act, which established CISA at DHS to centralize the country’s efforts to defend against cyberattacks.
Just months earlier, the White House had released the National Cyber Strategy, which seeks to protect national security, promote U.S. prosperity, preserve peaceful cyber behavior and advance America’s global influence.
Around the same time, the Government Accountability Office released a report
on high-risk cybersecurity challenges that require urgent action. Those challenges include securing federal systems and information, protecting critical cyber infrastructure, and protecting privacy
and sensitive data. GAO first designated
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