Specifically citing a series of recent incidents, including SolarWinds, Microsoft Exchange server hacks, and the current state of the colonial pipeline, President Biden signed an executive order today, which focuses on “improving the nation’s cybersecurity”. The steps it sets out are meant to improve information sharing between agencies, define policies to protect federal networks and improve response to violations by creating a standardized “playbook” that will be reviewed by the director of CISA.
According to a abstract released at the same time, it also sets standards for software sold to the federal government and directs NIST to develop a labeling program “to educate the public on the security capabilities of Internet of Things (IoT) devices and software development practices. ”similar to existing Energy Star labels on appliances.
The impact of the commission is not clear without the action and funding of Congress, but it presents some first steps. According to NBC News, an administration official told reporters that this “reflects a fundamental shift in our mindset from incident response to prevention.” In a statement, Senator Mark Warner said: “This executive order is a good first step, but executive orders can only go so far.”
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