White House Cybersecurity Coordinator Howard Schmidt set a goal for federal departments and agencies to achieve a 95 percent utilization of critical administration cybersecurity capabilities on federal information systems.
That goal includes three areas the administration has named priorities for improvement: trusted internet connections (TIC), continuous monitoring of federal information systems and strong authentication.
“The purpose in selecting three priority areas for improvement is to focus Federal Department and Agency cybersecurity efforts on implementing the most cost effective and efficient cybersecurity controls for Federal information system security,” Schmidt wrote on the White House blog. “Federal Departments and Agencies must defend their information systems in a resource-constrained environment, balancing system security and survivability while meeting numerous operational requirements requires robust risk management.”
To support implementation of these policies, Schmidt said he is leading a Cross-Agency Priority (CAP) Cybersecurity goal.
“My goal is that by the end of 2014, Federal departments and agencies will achieve 95 percent utilization of critical administration cybersecurity capabilities on Federal information systems, including Trusted Internet Connections (TIC), Continuous Monitoring, and Strong Authentication,” Schmidt said. “Many Departments and Agencies have been working on these areas for several years, and there has been much progress. By focusing on these priorities we plan to push adoption past the tipping point of adoption for all Federal systems.”
