State Department and CISA officials highlight the need for dedicated cybersecurity budgets and modernization.
Federal officials are promoting a shift in the way cybersecurity efforts, including zero trust implementation, are funded. At a recent summit, State Department Chief Technology Officer Donald Bauer highlighted the need for dedicated cybersecurity funding, separate from general modernization budgets.
Acting Associate Director Shelly Hartsook in the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) suggested that programs like the Technology Modernization Fund (TMF) and the Continuous Diagnostics and Mitigation (CDM) program can help agencies build and maintain strong cybersecurity stacks, even if the resources available are limited.
“That’s really where we’re trying to go in the future,” she stated, “where you might only be able to make an incremental investment based on your budget situation, working with the program so that these things are working in concert. And that we’re helping build towards your own cyber stack and not a competing set of tooling that’s tied into CDM.”
CTO Bauer advocated for more consistent and dedicated funding for cybersecurity, calling on Congress to allocate resources specifically for this purpose.
As the Lord Leads, Pray with Us…
- For Chief Technology Officer Bauer as he seeks to ensure the cyber security of the State Department.
- For Acting Associate Director Hartsook as she seeks to ensure the protection of cyber infrastructure through CISA.
Sources: FedScoop, ExecutiveGov
