{"id":3091,"date":"2018-04-10T13:36:34","date_gmt":"2018-04-10T20:36:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newed.any0.dpdns.org\/industry\/blog\/uncategorized\/three-strategies-to-advance-government-cybersecurity\/"},"modified":"2023-05-31T16:36:17","modified_gmt":"2023-05-31T23:36:17","slug":"three-strategies-to-advance-government-cybersecurity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newed.any0.dpdns.org\/en-us\/industry\/blog\/government\/2018\/04\/10\/three-strategies-to-advance-government-cybersecurity\/","title":{"rendered":"Three strategies to advance government cybersecurity"},"content":{"rendered":"

Cyberattacks on government agencies, whether national, state, local, or tribal, can not only compromise private citizen information and cost money, they can also damage political careers, threaten national security, and erode citizens\u2019 trust in government.<\/p>\n

Cybercriminals can come in many sizes from nation state efforts to individual actors. Some may deploy sophisticated measures while others might operate through simple phishing scams and malicious URLs. And the threats are continually evolving.<\/p>\n

What can you do? <\/strong><\/p>\n

Many of the security breaches that have been in the headlines\u2014and the countless more that aren\u2019t reported publicly\u2014could have been significantly mitigated, if not entirely avoided<\/em> with three key strategies. These recommended strategies don\u2019t require significant financial outlay or human capital and they can go a long way toward helping your government agency protect its technology infrastructure:<\/p>\n

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  1. Organizational accountability<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Clear lines of authority and responsibility should be established at the highest levels. Policy, strategy, and the execution of a robust security posture should reside within senior leadership<\/em><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

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    1. Identity management<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      Username and password are not enough. Security strategies that count on \u201chiding behind thick castle walls and deep moats\u201d are doomed to failure. The security perimeter is ever evolving. Today\u2019s reality requires new approaches to credential, authenticate, and manage resources within networks. Identity is the new firewall<\/em><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

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      1. Cyber hygiene<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

        Patching<\/em><\/strong> critical systems and maintaining their health is vital to protecting agency information. It\u2019s also crucial to move toward more standardized and automated backups<\/em><\/strong> including validation of backup processes. Finally, mitigating attacks requires training<\/em><\/strong> personnel on best practices\u2014including how to work safely in email, on social media, or with outside systems. Often, employees (at all levels) in the public sector don\u2019t recognize that they\u2019re potentially compromising sensitive information. Devices are the new perimeter.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

        See how California is advancing its cybersecurity<\/strong><\/p>\n

        In this video<\/a> of a recent public hearing on cybersecurity in the state of California, top government leaders share some of the ways they\u2019re implementing the above strategies. Many of them talk about how they\u2019re using Microsoft cloud solutions<\/a> to help them secure their technology infrastructure.<\/p>\n

        For example, about 38 minutes into the video, Department of Technology Director Amy Tong says: \u201chelp screen out or flag … these phishing emails.\u201d<\/p>\n

        Around an hour and 21 minutes into the video, LTC. Jim Parsons of the Military Department Cyber Network Defense Team says: \u201cEvery user\u2019s mailbox gains the protections from the Office 365 policies and security controls that are in place.\u201d He goes on to explain why that\u2019s so important given that the security perimeter has shifted and cybercriminals have learned that they just need to compromise a user in order to gain access to the data they want.<\/p>\n

        Toward the end of the video\u2014an hour and 32 minutes in\u2014Scott Howland, Chief Information Officer for the California Highway Patrol, shares several statistics demonstrating the state of California\u2019s cybersecurity progress, including that while phishing attacks have increased, infections resulting from phishing have gone down.<\/p>\n

        Your partner in government cybersecurity<\/strong><\/p>\n

        We\u2019re here to help you advance your government agency\u2019s cybersecurity strategies. Contact your Microsoft representative to learn how you can take advantage of our in-depth approach to security and regulatory compliance<\/a> to help you protect your systems and data end to end\u2014while keeping people productive. You might be surprised to learn how quickly you can start improving your cybersecurity posture with our trusted cloud solutions for Government<\/a>.<\/p>\n

        You can also:<\/p>\n