Cybersecurity
US has ‘a lot of work to do’ on cyber defenses, departing cyber czar says
Outgoing National Cyber Director Harry Coker thinks his office needs more influence over the federal cyber budget but not necessarily more authority on offensive cyber operations.
Lawmakers request briefing from Treasury secretary on Chinese hack
The compromised third-party offering was a commercial remote services tool not listed in the marketplace for FedRAMP, the government’s cloud security compliance framework.
Feds claims just 7% of available funds from OPM breach settlement, remainder returns to Treasury
Only a few thousand current federal workers, former employees and applicants cashed in from 2015 hack.
Chinese-sponsored hackers accessed Treasury documents in ‘major incident’
The incident comes in the final days of the Biden presidency and as officials work to root out China-tied hackers from U.S. telecommunications systems.
Could states’ cyber get trickier under a Trump administration?
Some Republicans have proposed eliminating CISA altogether, which could complicate information sharing efforts. More pressing, though, is the ending of federal cyber grants.
Senators call for watchdog to investigate TSA’s use of facial recognition
In a letter to the Department of Homeland Security’s Inspector General, 12 senators warned that the deployment of facial biometrics at every U.S. airport could create “one of the largest federal surveillance databases overnight without authorization from Congress.”
Hackers nabbed emails between congressional staff and the Library of Congress
Affected staff were notified Friday afternoon, according to an internal email. Capitol Hill communications with the Congressional Research Service frequently involve confidential legislative drafts or policies still in the brainstorming stage.
CISA Director Jen Easterly to depart on Inauguration Day
Easterly and Deputy Director Nitin Natarajan are set to leave as an administration change casts doubt on the agency’s future.
Veterans’ military skills can help them fill cyber vacancies, State official says
The White House’s national cybersecurity strategy said that greater veteran participation in the U.S. cyber workforce can help enhance critical digital defenses.
Exclusive
DHS issues internal comms guidance amid telecom breach investigation
The DHS Cyber Safety Review Board is already slated to investigate the hacking collective, dubbed Salt Typhoon, and its intrusion into telecommunications firms and wiretap infrastructure.
Pentagon puts a dent in cyber workforce vacancies
Nearly a quarter of the Defense Department’s cyber jobs went unfilled last year.
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Will cyber suffer under Trump’s goal to slash federal budgets?
Donald Trump’s intent to cut agency budgets has sparked concerns over adequate cybersecurity funding for government networks. Some believe these fears may be overstated.
Russian email domains sent uncredible bomb threats to polling places, FBI says
Kremlin-backed actors have a long record of sowing fear and disinformation into the U.S. election process.
‘Every single American’ a target of election interference, former DHS official says
Adversaries have heavily accelerated efforts to sway the outcome of next week’s presidential election.
FBI arrests man accused of hacking SEC’s X account in January
The hijacked account posted illegitimate news about a widely-anticipated Bitcoin announcement, leading the cryptocurrency to spike some $1,000.
Updated
FBI raids government IT and cyber contractor Carahsoft
The FBI confirmed the raid but declined to provide further details.
Expedited STEM and cybersecurity hiring authority extended
OPM grants direct hire authority to agencies when there’s a lack of candidates or major hiring needs.
CISA issues guide to help federal agencies set cybersecurity priorities
The guidance comes as federal civilian agencies are closing in on zero trust deadlines looming at the end of the current fiscal year.
Major agencies are close to meeting September zero trust deadline, federal CIO says
The deadline is linked to a sweeping 2021 cybersecurity executive order.
CISA, FBI assert election infrastructure’s fortitude despite ransomware threat
Both organizations aim to instill confidence in U.S. voting infrastructure ahead of the 2024 elections.
