Defense Systems

CIA nominee: Cyber threats are 'ever greater risk' for U.S. society

William Burns, the president's nominee to lead the Central Intelligence Agency, said the SolarWinds attack was a "harsh wake-up call" about the country’s vulnerabilities in both critical infrastructure and supply chains.

Defense Systems

AF Academy urgently needs IT modernization, superintendent says

Unless the Air Force can upgrade the IT infrastructure at the Air Force Academy, the school’s accreditation could be in jeopardy, according to Lt. Gen. Richard Clark, the academy's superintendent.

Defense Systems

White House plans executive action in response to massive breach

In the wake of a wide-ranging hack involving SolarWinds IT management software and other commercial products, the White House is planning executive action to address cybersecurity gaps.

Defense Systems

Tech exec to Congress: Supply chain hack took 1,000 engineers

The scope and scale of the attack as described by Microsoft President Brad Smith is in keeping with the attribution being made by public sector and private sector officials that the hack was perpetrated by Russian-sponsored actors.

Defense Systems

Microsoft calls for acquisition reform amid JEDI battles

Defense industry experts call on lawmakers to push for procurement protest reforms to enhance national security.

Defense Systems

DOD’s 5G-powered smart warehouse network kicks off

A private 5G wireless network is being installed as part of a multi-year initiative to create a smart warehouse reference design.

Defense Systems

Pentagon plans for spectrum policy changes, IT modernization

DOD Deputy CIO Frederick Moorefield says "static" policy remains spectrum's "biggest hurdle" -- something he hopes to change in 2021.

Defense Systems

GAO: DOD has to get a handle on future services spending

As the Defense Department looks to buy more services, it's going to need to come up with action plans to better account for spending in future years, according to a recent Government Accountability Office report.

Defense Systems

CISA looks inward to stop future supply chain attacks

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency is exploring ways to better monitor internal systems’ communications for suspicious signals.

Defense Systems

Biden pledges international cooperation on cyber in speech

Biden addressed the global security forum for the first time as president last week when he called for the United States to cooperate with European allies on establishing cyberspace norms.

Defense Systems

Crowdstrike: Pandemic drove 2020 uptick in cyberattacks

The company's new report highlights the threats facing healthcare institutions by both criminal and nation state-backed actors.

Defense Systems

Expect more nation-state cyberattacks, Krebs says

Attacks from China, Russia, Iran and North Korea will likely continue “until the leadership has decided that it cannot tolerate further behavior," former CISA Director Chris Krebs told the House Homeland Security Committee.

Defense Systems

Solving for DOD's AI education gap

Officials at the Pentagon's Joint Artificial Intelligence Center said the department needs to improve education to build up AI readiness while improving data collection and data standards.

Defense Systems

Pentagon watchdog flags cyber issues in DEOS, JRSS

The Defense Department's testing and evaluation body has serious cybersecurity concerns when it comes to using commercial cloud offerings and the embattled Joint Regional Security Stacks effort.

Defense Systems

Key weapons programs need new cyber requirements, IG finds

The Pentagon's watchdog says the five weapons programs it audited have been updating cybersecurity requirements to defend against identified threats.

Defense Systems

DOD eyes CMMC-FedRAMP reciprocity by end of FY 2021

The Defense Department is working with the General Services Administration to work out reciprocity between the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification program and the Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program.

Defense Systems

Biden taps former NSA cyber director to lead SolarWinds response

The lawmakers had sent a letter to the White House earlier this week urging President Joe Biden to select one official to oversee the federal government’s response to the breach.

Defense Systems

Space Force begins onboarding cyber specialists

The U.S. Space Force has begun transferring more than a thousand cyber professionals into its ranks as of Feb. 1 with plans to start recruiting talent for multiple career fields from across the military branches this year.

Defense Systems

Lawmakers demand accountability for 'disjointed' SolarWinds response

The two leaders of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence say the government's response to the hack so far has been "disjointed and disorganized."

Defense Systems

NIST posts enhanced requirements for protecting CUI

The National Institute of Standards and Technology has published requirements that can help organizations protect controlled unclassified information against nation-state backed threats.