Page 11 - FCW, September/October 2020

Learn more at Carah.io/
things, security risks, unmet mission needs, staffing issues and increased costs,” the report states.
In particular, the security risks associated with outdated strategies have been clearly demonstrated. The breach of 22 million personal records at the Office of Personnel Management in 2015 could have been avoided in part by fully functioning multifactor authentication. Cost estimates related to that incident range from $133 million to $1 billion.
Furthermore, security strategies need to be fluid enough to respond to new threats while not overlooking basic cyber hygiene. The National Institute of Standards and Technology and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency have issued
alerts about cyberattackers increasing their malware-related phishing attempts during the pandemic and have encouraged agencies to minimize the risks from known vulnerabilities.
In response to such concerns, one of the Trump administration’s cross-agency priority goals seeks to “mitigate the impact of risks to federal agencies’ data, systems and networks by implementing cutting-edge cybersecurity capabilities.” A July update on progress in that area states that 18 of the 23 civilian agencies covered by the CFO Act have automated access management, and 22 have instituted mobile device management, including the ability to remotely wipe a device if it is lost or compromised.
In a recent survey of FCW readers, 84%
of respondents said IT modernization is having a positive impact on cybersecurity at their agencies. Furthermore, 68% rated their agencies’ progress on their IT modernization plans as a 3 or higher on a scale of 1 to 5. However, 12% said their agencies had not even begun, which is a reminder that much work remains to be done.
The coronavirus pandemic has underscored the need for government agencies to move swiftly on modernization and highlighted where agencies should focus their attention and resources. The challenges are not new, but the level of urgency is, which is why agencies need to capitalize on the gains they have made and continue pushing forward on modernization.
IT modernization BY THE NUMBERS
53%
Increase in the use of virtual private networks in the U.S. in the first half of March
64%
Local government CIOs who said they received strong management support in tackling pandemic-related technology challenges
$28.9B
Projected value of the government cloud market by 2022
48%
FCW survey respondents who said workforce challenges are one of the biggest obstacles to modernization
Sources: Computing Technology Industry Association, Congressional Research Service, FCW, MarketsandMarkets
SPONSORED CONTENT S-11