Science & Tech

Senators Offer to Let NSA Hunt Cyber Actors Inside the US

After SolarWinds hack, Gen. Nakasone seeks some sort of a fix for the cybersecurity ‘blind spot’ against Russia, China, but others cite privacy concerns in potential expanded authorities.

Science & Tech

These Are the Riskiest ‘Smart City’ Technologies, Cybersecurity Experts Say

Technology like sensors built into infrastructure and emergency alerts has possible benefits, but in a new study dozens of experts weigh in on where some of the more significant pitfalls may lie.

Defense Systems

Where's the accountability for Solarwinds?

Three top cybersecurity officials struggled to answer questions from lawmakers about who is to blame for the government's failure to stop the breach of nine federal agencies.

Defense Systems

King: Mandatory breach disclosure bill coming soon

Sen. Angus King (I-Maine), a co-chair of the Cyberspace Solarium Commission, said he plans to propose new legislation in the coming weeks.

Defense Systems

U.S. power grid increasingly susceptible to cyberattacks, watchdog says

The country's electrical systems are increasingly susceptible to cyberattacks, according to government auditors, and there is uncertainty about the extent to which a localized attack might cascade through power distribution systems.

Defense Systems

CMMC board preps for staff changes

The body in charge of standing up and running the Defense Department’s unified cybersecurity standard is shifting its staffing arrangement.

Defense Systems

What cyber risks will Biden's supply chain EO uncover?

The administration has ordered a wide-ranging assessment of the risks to various supply chain. Analysts, former government officials and industry say a large workforce gap and problematic frameworks are among the threats cybersecurity poses to the country's supply chains.

Defense Systems

House task force digs into DOD supply chain vulnerabilities

The House Armed Services Committee has launched a task force to investigate defense supply chain vulnerabilities, foreign manufacturing concerns and other issues raised by the pandemic.

Defense Systems

IC: Influence campaigns, not hacking, used to meddle in US elections

The intelligence community's newly declassified report largely concludes Russia attempted to meddle in the U.S. election through influence operations but did not attempt the kinds of cyberattacks observed in 2016.

Defense Systems

NIST charting federal vulnerability disclosure policy

To design a software vulnerability program for the federal government, the National Institute of Standards and Technology is reviewing work done by the Defense and Homeland Security Departments.

Defense Systems

Hafnium hack poses extended threat

IT teams have a long road ahead of them as they work to find and root out all vestiges of the Hafnium hack in their Microsoft Exchange systems.

Defense Systems

GAO: Vague contract language hampers weapons systems' cybersecurity

The Government Accountability Office found that missing or vague cybersecurity requirements in acquisitions contracts for weapons systems often led to DOD getting a system that didn't meet its security needs.

Defense Systems

Pentagon issues cyber tasking order in response to Exchange hack

The Pentagon's new order to its agencies and commands aligns with the recent emergency directive issued by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.

Defense Systems

DARPA picks teams to bring homomorphic encryption to life

Four research teams will work to develop a hardware accelerator and software stack for fully homomorphic encryption that can bring the speed of FHE calculations in line with similar unencrypted data operations.

Science & Tech

Splitting NSA, CyberCom Now Could Reduce Military Access to Intelligence, Milley Says

The Joint Chiefs chairman says the organizations have not yet worked out how to keep the data flowing after the long-awaited split.

Policy

It’s Time for a Cybersecurity Quid Pro Quo

Require companies to disclose breaches to the government in exchange for legal liability limitations.

Defense Systems

Still more questions than answers on SolarWinds attack

At a recent hearing on the massive hack on SolarWinds' IT management software, witnesses explained that they are still unsure how widespread the attack was, how hackers corrupted the Orion software and what they intend to do with the information they’ve accessed

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.

Threats

Defense Innovation Unit Launched 23 Projects Last Year, Up One-Third

The group also sent 11 capabilities to Defense Department partners, according to its annual report.

Business

Space Firms Put Aside Rivalries to Share Threat Data

A new clearinghouse has begun gathering and distributing information about threats to space networks, products, and services.