Page 17 - GCN, October/November 2018

CYBERSECURITY & MODERNIZATION
Rather than one central location, agencies now have multiple “data islands” they must protect. But they need only one security posture.
exists. Rather than one central location, agencies now have multiple “data islands” they must protect. But they need only one security posture.
That posture should, of course, begin with basic cyber hygiene, such as strong passwords and timely software patching. Beyond that, the idea of zero trust is gaining traction. The goal is to restrict users’ access to the resources they need to do their jobs.
The technology has been available for some time, and now the latest firewalls can play
a role in ensuring that users only access the applications they have been authenticated to use. And those rules are written in plain English.
We do ourselves no favors by insisting that cybersecurity is a frightening, insurmount- able problem. It’s just another challenge we have to address. And agencies do not have to
add more security tools every time they adopt a new technology, such as the cloud. Government IT leaders could make their jobs a lot easier by using the same systems to protect all their data islands and by conveying risks — and solutions — to agency executives in a way they can understand.
Rick Howard is chief security officer at Palo Alto Networks.
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