Biden Administration Ramping Up On Cyber-Security

Posted by mctracy On November 9, 2021

In accordance with the executive order signed in May to make efforts to improve national cyber-security, President Biden met with tech giants Apple, Google, Amazon, and more to discuss strategies in improving cyber-security.

“The Administration has been ramping up its cyber-security efforts and encouraging private companies to do the same, especially since a malicious ransomware attack on US critical infrastructure company Colonial Pipeline in May.” (HealthITSecurity).

The meeting consisted of several announcements from leaders of technical companies promising to commit to the initiatives outlined by the national security memorandum, issued in July.

“Represented by CEO Tim Cook, Apple announced that it will establish a program to improve security across the technology supply chain. Apple pledged to work with its suppliers to encourage widespread adoption of multi-factor authentication, vulnerability remediation, event logging, incident response, and security training.” (HealthITSecurity).

In the meeting Biden announced the development of a new framework by the National Institute of Standards and Technology for private companies designed to assist them with their cyber-security efforts.

“The federal government can’t meet this challenge alone,” Biden said to the group of tech giants. “We’ve got a lot of work to do and thank you very much.” (New York Post).

At the meeting, Google announced a substantial investment in their cyber-security.

“Google committed to investing $10 billion over the next five years to roll out zero-trust programs, improve open-source security, and secure software across the supply chain. Google also said it will train 100,000 individuals on cyber-security-focused digital skills certificates.” (HealthITSecurity).

The education of future generations on cyber-security was also brought up in the meeting due to the ongoing demand for cyber-security professionals.

“Focusing on education, Girls Who Code announced that it will spearhead a micro-credentialing cyber-security program for underrepresented groups in technology. Code.org said it will educate over three million students on basic cyber=security concepts over the next three years.” (HealthITSecurity).

This development in national cyber-security is especially important for not only large corporations, but local organizations such as healthcare providers as well.

“Recent cyber-attacks on healthcare providers, hospitals, and private sector US critical infrastructure entities have further emphasized the importance of improving the nation’s cyber-security and keeping valuable data out of the hands of bad actors.” (HealthITSecurity).

According to Forbes, there is even more the Biden administration can do to combat cyber-threats.

“New hires alone won’t be enough to mitigate the size and scope of cyberattacks that we’ve seen in just the last six months. The Biden administration must issue a new set of recommendations for both public-sector agencies and businesses to create a baseline of preparedness that will not only address the primary contributors to this year’s cyberattacks but also modernize the government’s and private sector’s incident response strategies.” (Forbes).

In a time of ransomware, it is increasingly important that the Biden administration ramp up on cyber-security for the wellbeing of all companies, businesses, and citizens.

“While the Biden administration has gotten off to a good start in shoring up cybersecurity for federal civilian agencies, there is much more to do be done. The White House and its partners must continue to direct and implement specific policy, funding and staffing decisions to ensure that everyone, from the federal government and its suppliers to critical infrastructure organizations and the private sector, is doing all they can to upgrade their cybersecurity strategies for the ransomware era.” (Forbes).

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Sources:

McKeon, Jill. “Biden Administration Announces National Cybersecurity Initiatives.” HealthITSecurity, 7 Sept. 2021, healthitsecurity.com/news/biden-administration-announces-national-cybersecurity-initiatives.

Wayt, Theo. “Biden Meets with CEOs of Amazon, Google, and More over Cybersecurity.” New York Post, 25 Aug. 2021, nypost.com/2021/08/25/biden-meeting-with-ceos-of-amazon-google-over-cybersecurity.

Shiappa, Daniel. “200 Days In: How The Biden Administration Can Keep Pushing Forward On Cyber Security”. Forbes. Oct. 6, 2021. https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbestechcouncil/2021/10/06/200-days-in-how-the-biden-administration-can-keep-pushing-forward-on-cybersecurity/?sh=3c9ef7a76d56