Cybersecurity

Trump to nominate former RNC official to be national cyber director

It’s not clear how Sean Cairncross would address ongoing ONCD efforts, as the Trump administration has sought to refocus certain cyber priorities in the federal government.

Cybersecurity

Coast Guard workforce lacks maritime cyber expertise, watchdog says

The maritime service says it will develop “competency requirements” for relevant personnel by the end of December. It’s also planning new procedures to document maritime cyber incidents.

Cybersecurity

Space companies say cyber threat intelligence is often overclassified, unactionable

Space and aerospace industry feedback from a series of government-run workshops noted that such threat intelligence is difficult to translate into actionable cyber efforts.

Cybersecurity

Biden signs executive order inspired by lessons from recent cyberattacks

The order gives CISA more eyes to hunt cyber threats on government networks and directs agencies and contractors to be more transparent about the security of their software stockpiles.

Cybersecurity

Forthcoming executive order seeks to plug holes in federal cyber practices

The eleventh-hour cybersecurity executive action asks agencies to rethink software procurement, supply chains and AI, among other things.

Exclusive Digital Government

Coming cyber executive order includes a push to mobile drivers licenses

The draft order does not, however, tackle the full breadth of actions that were expected from a promised identity executive order that has yet to materialize.

Cybersecurity

US has ‘a lot of work to do’ on cyber defenses, departing cyber czar says

Outgoing National Cyber Director Harry Coker thinks his office needs more influence over the federal cyber budget but not necessarily more authority on offensive cyber operations.

Cybersecurity

White House unveils Cyber Trust Mark program for consumer devices

The label is designed to help consumers make more cybersecure choices when they pick products off the shelf.

Artificial Intelligence

DOD announces completion of pilot to identify medical AI vulnerabilities

The Pentagon’s red teaming effort identified more than 800 “potential vulnerabilities and biases” in the use of large language models for clinical note summarization and for a medical advisory chatbot.

Cybersecurity

Congress approves 2025 NDAA with important cyber provisions

Left out was language that would have helped clarify the scope and reach of a controversial surveillance power that was renewed in April.

Cybersecurity

CISA orders federal agencies to secure their cloud environments

Federal civilian agencies are compelled by the Binding Operational Directive to adopt specific cloud standards under SCuBA, a government blueprint that helps agencies assess cloud security security guidelines.

Cybersecurity

FY2025 NDAA targets spyware threats to U.S. diplomats, military devices

The language comes as the State department has pressed foreign governments to collectively set standards to prevent spyware abuses.

Cybersecurity

FCC to soon announce lead administrator for cyber assurance program

More information will also be unveiled during the 2025 CES, Deputy National Security Advisor Anne Neuberger said.

Cybersecurity

Will cyber suffer under Trump’s goal to slash federal budgets?

Donald Trump’s intent to cut agency budgets has sparked concerns over adequate cybersecurity funding for government networks. Some believe these fears may be overstated.

Cybersecurity

White House cyber czar launches new hiring sprint 

The federal government’s main occupational series for IT jobs saw 3,000 open positions in fiscal 2024.

Emerging Tech

Officials urge a quick start migrating to post-quantum encryption

Biden administration officials on Tuesday emphasized the need for entities to start network migration efforts as encryption algorithms are now ready for implementation.

Cybersecurity

Researchers race to document voting machine vulnerabilities ahead of November

Voting machines are key physical targets in election fraud schemes. At the DEF CON hacking conference, cybersecurity experts have been working to safeguard them.

Cybersecurity

Nearly 200 firms have signed pledge to build more secure software, top cyber official says

The initial tally began at around 70 companies when CISA first headlined the initiative at RSA Conference in San Francisco.