ITAC Blog » 60-day cyber review

PODCAST: Jim Lewis, Director and Senior Fellow, Technology and Public Policy Program, Center for Strategic and International Studies

ITACadmin — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 15:46:19 +0000

Following is an exclusive podcast on the ITAC Identity Blog with Mr. Jim Lewis, Director and Senior Fellow, Technology and Public Policy Program, Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). We were able to speak with Mr. Lewis about the results of the 60-day cyber security review and the overall cyber security efforts by the new administration.

Front Runners for “Cyber Czar” Position and 60-Day Review will be Released Tomorrow

ITACadmin — Thu, 28 May 2009 14:41:15 +0000

While we are anxiously awaiting for President Obama to name the new “cyber czar” and release the findings of the 60-day review on cyber security, we thought we would share the latest news. The front runners have been named and they are Melissa Hathaway, Rod Beckstrom and Paul Kurtz.

So, who do you think the winner will be? We are betting on Hathaway, since she has already been playing the interim role. Also, big reminder that we are soliciting Three Recommendations from our readers as to how this person can best serve in this position. Don’t be shy! And remember, we will be taking these recommendations and formally presenting them to the new cyber czar.

Pentagon Detected 360 Million Attempts to Penetrate its Networks in 2008

ITACadmin — Wed, 06 May 2009 15:01:05 +0000

Well, it seems that the recent breach of the Joint Fighter Strike project was not the first cyber attack against the Department of Defense. According to a recent Wall Street Journal article, the Pentagon confirmed that it detected 360 million attempts to penetrate its networks in 2008, which is up from six million in 2006. The Department of Defense also disclosed that it had spent $100 million in the past six months repairing damage from these cyber attacks.

While we are not surprised that the Joint Strike Fighter breach was not the only attempt at attacking the Pentagon’s networks, we are astounded by the sheer volume of attacks. We are also curious to hear how the 2009 numbers will shake out, which will surely be an increase in the 2008. Also, $100 million dollars is a significant investment for the Department of Defense, but surely they will need to pore even more resources into fighting this battle.

We are still anxiously await the results of the Obama administration recently completed a 60-day review of the government’s efforts to protect key public and private networks. And, fortunately, the Pentagon will be creating a new “cyber command” for defending the Pentagon computer networks and improve U.S. offensive capabilities. So, our government is moving forward with addressing this issue.

Interesting times we live in right now. We will keep you posted on the results of the 60-day cyber review.