Prioritization is an important element of any security strategy. Once a risk assessment is performed we can start building systems that protect what is most vulnerable and essential. Since breaches can happen at all levels of the city government, it is also important to develop protocols that can be leveraged by federal, state and local officials. Further adoption of the National Institute of Standards and Technology Cybersecurity Framework would help provide robust protection for public-sector organizations and citizens alike, at the same time also reducing the administrative burden and uncertainty for smaller agencies (Daley, 2016). Take an Intelligence-led, Analytics-based Approach Effective cybersecurity can no longer rely on a …show more content…
Invest in Cybersecurity Talent No cybersecurity initiative can succeed without the proper talent to back it up. Unfortunately, many government organizations are finding themselves short on the skills and competencies required to stave off digital threats due to budget constraints. Also, not being adequately equipped to conduct threat and vulnerability assessments is a major short fall. To prepare for the next wave of digital threats, all government-sector leaders must allocate resources to build a strong cybersecurity team. Investment should not only be made in equipment and in personnel but also in cybersecurity education and training. City officials deterred by the idea of additional spending should consider the potential cost of a data breach. In today’s data-driven world, a reactive approach to cybersecurity will not cut it. By developing a robust, proactive cybersecurity strategy, government agencies will be better equipped to prepare for, prevent and resolve digital threats into the future (Daley, 2016). Digital Forensics A forensic team will identify direct evidence of a crime, digital forensics can be used to attribute evidence to specific suspects, confirm alibis or statements, determine intent, identify sources. This team will also be assigned to investigate and process systems encompasses seizure, forensic imaging (acquisition) and analysis
Abstract Chad Wolf, the former acting secretary of the US Department of Homeland Security, provides insight in his essay, "Diversity in Cybersecurity Tools: A National Security Issue." Drawing from his firsthand experiences and recent cyber threats, Wolf presents concrete evidence and appeals to the reader's emotions to effectively advocate for a multi-layered approach to cybersecurity. He emphasizes the importance of addressing cybersecurity vulnerabilities to avoid potential chaos and ensure the strength of government security. Keywords: Chad Wolf, cybersecurity, cyber threats, firsthand accounts, experience, urgency, government operations. Rhetorical Analysis of Chad Wolf's Essay "Diversity in Cybersecurity Tools: A
The EO13636 chief objective is to improve the Cybersecurity Framework of principles and determine what the best practices are that may possibly be taken to decrease the threat from all cyber dangers. Under EO13636, The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), National Security Staff, and The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) will coordinate with additional investors to advance the Cybersecurity Framework. National Institute of Standards and Technology executives are asking that everyone who is involved take an active role in the development of this Framework (Fischer et al., 2013)
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is Incharge of shielding our country’s crucial infrastructure from physical and cyber dangers. Of the varied kinds of infrastructure, cyberspace is crucial constituting the information regarding the government and business operations, crisis management and readiness information, and our crucial digital and process control systems. Safeguarding these critical resources and infrastructure is
The issue of strong cybersecurity efforts in the United States has been especially topical in 2017, and on the rise over the last few years. The Equifax breach and the breaching of the Democratic Party during the 2016 Presidential Election are recent examples that are bringing up the conversation of cybersecurity and make citizens curious of whether or not the United States government has plans in place to deter these events from happening. People are already worried about the damages these attacks can cause with consequences such as stolen information or monetary loss of close to five billion dollars in 2017 alone (cybersecurityventures.com). Although there are already solid plans in place to raise cybersecurity efforts in the United
The article “Defending America in Cyberspace” in the journal The National Interest authored by Keith Alexander, Emily Goldman, and Michael Warner taught me much about how the Department of Homeland Security handles America’s cyber threats. The Department of Security is the lead agency in protecting America from domestic cybersecurity incidents. It stated how America fights Cyber crime and security threats. In this day and age, countries are very vulnerable to skilled hackers. Some of them not even under the age 18.
“The number of cyber incidents reported by federal agencies increased in fiscal year 2013 significantly over the prior 3 years. An effective response to a cyber incident is essential to minimize any damage that might be caused.”
Predicting attacks is important, but swift response is key. DHS realized that the only way to have effective incident responses is to have plenty of practice and close cooperation across government and with the private sector. To prepare for and ensure effective cooperation during a significant event, DHS instituted a cyber-attack exercise program to periodically test processes and procedures for responding to a significant cyber incident impacting the financial sector. These exercises will help clarify roles and responsibilities, identify gaps in response plans and capabilities, and assist with developing plans to address those
Cyber security is a major concern for every department, business, and citizen of the United States because technology impacts every aspect of our daily lives. The more we use technology the more complacent, we get with the information that is stored within our cyber networks. The more complacent, we get, the more vulnerable we become to cyber-attacks because we fail to update the mechanisms that safeguard our information. Breaches to security networks are detrimental to personal, economic, and national security information. Many countries, like Russia, China, Israel, France, and the United Kingdom, now have the abilities and technology to launch cyber-attacks on the United States. In the last five years there have been several attacks on cyber systems to gain access to information maintained by major businesses and the United States Government. Cyber-attacks cause serious harm to the United States’ economy, community, and the safety, so we need to build stronger cyber security mechanisms. Based on my theoretical analysis, I recommend the following:
Recognition of the highly networked nature of the current federal computing environment while providing effective oversight of information security risks, including management of security efforts throughout the civilian, national security, and law enforcement communities.
Additionally, many state and local government respondents don’t feel that their security protocols have reached maturity—more than likely this is because states and local government didn’t really have security issues in the past—they are just beginning. The following are areas of concern when it comes to IT security for states and local
On February 12, 2015 president Obama signed an executive order with the intention to expand the Cybersecurity of the U.S. and to promote principles of collaboration not just in America but around the globe. Cybersecurity has been identified as one of the most challenging subjects of the 21st-century; moreover, cyber-attacks can further compromise the future of our economic development as much as our national security and the decrement of our civil rights and privacy. Since Obama initiate his administration, he has been working on establishing the framework to better balance the interaction between, government agencies, private sector, and the general public. The objective in this essay is to better understand the connotations from several
Without a doubt, cybersecurity is one of the biggest threats the DHS faces. As technology evolves, this threat will continue to grow. What is the department doing about it? A cyber-attack could cause serious damage to our critical infrastructure if it was done properly. This is something that must be protected! The first step is to protect our federal networks and critical infrastructure. “The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) works with each federal civilian department and agency to promote the adoption of common policies and best practices that are risk-based and able to effectively respond to the pace of ever-changing threats. As systems are protected, alerts can be issued at machine speed when events are detected
For the possibility of an uptick in cyber incidents, the federal government has developed a number of tools to help
Homeland Security is about effectively managing risks to the Nation’s security (DHS, 2010). The Department of Homeland Security and many other security and defense organizations rely on a process of identifying risks, the consequences of those risks, the vulnerabilities of a potential threat, and the likelihood of a specific target (infrastructure, resource, and/or people) will actually suffer the attack. This process is commonly referred to as Risk Management. Risk Management is the “process for identifying, analyzing, and communicating risk and accepting, avoiding, transferring, or controlling it to an acceptable level considering associated costs and benefits of any actions taken” (DHS, 2015).
As we allow the Internet to become more and more embedded into our lives the topic of cyber security also need to become more embedded in our lives as well. Duncan Campbell, president and CEO of the Pennsylvania Bankers Association, points out, “Now more than ever, the world is vulnerable to hacking, phishing, data breaches, malware attacks and denial of service attempts from bad actors and nation states who want to compromise individual identification data and wreak havoc on our economy,” (Campbell). Each year we here about these attacks, Target, T. J. Maxx, Home Depot just to name a few. More concerning then, the frequency of these attacks is the magnitude of the data lost in these attacks.