Mayorkas Sets Out Steps to Elevate Cybersecurity – Homeland Security Today

/in


Secretary Alejandro N. Mayorkas has today announced the many ways the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will carry out President Biden’s vision to elevate cybersecurity across the government. DHS will lead efforts to mitigate risks to the United States, further strengthen its partnerships with the private sector, and expand its investment in the infrastructure and people required to defend against malicious cyber attacks as part of a whole-of-government effort.

 “Cybersecurity is more important than ever, and we will build on the Department’s excellent work as we transform our whole-of-government approach to tackle the challenge we face as a nation,” said Secretary Mayorkas.  “This week is just the beginning of a series of actions DHS will pursue nationally and internationally to improve cybersecurity at all levels.”

DHS plays a key role in protecting the American people from threats in cyberspace.  The Department’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) is charged with securing Federal civilian government networks and our nation’s critical infrastructure from physical and cyber threats. Congress, in the recent National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), further empowered CISA to execute this mission, including by providing authorities for CISA to “hunt” for cyber threats in federal agency networks and to more effectively identify vulnerable technologies used by critical infrastructure sectors. Over the past months, CISA has honed its capabilities and furthered the Department’s effort to advance national cybersecurity by:

  • Leading the national effort to secure the 2020 election, including by sharing timely cybersecurity information with state and local election officials;
  • Driving urgent remediation of risks posed by the exploitation of commonly used network management software and providing incident response assistance to compromised entities;
  • Collaborating with government and private sector partners to disrupt and help protect against malicious activity perpetrated by North Korean actors against financial institutions, including the distribution of technical alerts to help network defenders protect against these threats;
  • Issuing a…

Source…