Tag Archives: Executive Order on Improving the Nation’s Cybersecurity

FITARA 18 Sees Agencies Move to the Head of the Class

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FITARA

The latest Federal Information Technology Acquisition Reform Act (FITARA) scorecard, released in September, showed dramatic improvements in the progress agencies have made towards meeting IT modernization goals. The overall grades of 18 of the 24 tracked agencies increased, while grades for the remaining six agencies were unchanged. Per the scorecard,13 agencies now have an overall 'A,' 10 have a 'B,' and only one agency--the Energy Department--has a grade of 'C.' The Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of State showed the greatest improvements, with both agencies' grades moving from 'D's to 'A's.

The grading categories, unchanged from the previous report, measured agency CIO authority enhancements; CIO investment evaluation; cloud computing; modernizing government technology; cybersecurity; and progress transitioning from legacy contracts to the GSA's newer Enterprise Information Solutions (EIS) contract. Improvements in the categories of cloud computing, cybersecurity, and EIS transition contributed to higher scores. Continue reading →

Zero Trust in Government Accelerates 0-60

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Zero Trust is a logical evolution of security in a world where remote access to networks and applications is more common than being on-site with an organization's data center. From cloud applications to the explosion of remote work, the traditional "castle and moat approach" simply does not scale or protect networks that are constantly being accessed by outside users.

The Executive Order on Improving the Nation's Cybersecurity (Cyber EO) has a strong emphasis on moving government toward a Zero Trust approach for security. It laid out deadlines for agencies to submit plans for implementing Zero Trust architectures, holding organizations accountable for changing how they allow users to access their systems. Continue reading →