NIST Releases Continuous Monitoring FAQs

Continuous monitoring is at the center of proposed reform to FISMA, which is currently maligned as being an exercise in paperwork rather than an effective guide for cybersecurity.

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has released a list of 17 frequently asked questions about continuous monitoring. The questions include:

What is continuous monitoring?

If my information system is subject to…

Leave My Electrons Alone: Security the Smart Grid

The use of the smart grid has been touted by many in government and in the private sector as a method to reduce energy prices, cut down on power glitches and increase the use of renewable resources. However, the system also has a number of security challenges that need to be addressed prior to implementation.

In a smart grid, the…

House Committee Approves Restructuring of NIST

A bill approved by a House Committee Wednesday could result in the first restructuring of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in around twenty years. The House Science and Technology Committee has approved the America COMPETES Reauthorization Act, which looks to promote the current director of NIST, Patrick Gallagher, to the position of undersecretary for standards and…

NIST Issues Second Draft of Smart-Grid Cybersecurity Plan

The National Institute of Standards and Technology has issued its second draft of its strategy, Smart Grid Cyber Security Strategy and Requirements, for public review.

The implementation of smart-grid technology opens up a variety of new vulnerabilities with the power grid. Foreign nations and terrorists would be capable of using cyberspace to take down the power grid throughout…

Utility Companies to Invest Billions on Cybersecurity

Within the next five years, utility companies will likely invest $21 billion on cybersecurity to protect electrical grids, according to a new report by Pike Research.

Much of the increased spending (investment will triple between 2010-2015) will be driven by configuration management and equipment protection.

As the United Stats and other nations look to increasing cybersecurity, the critical infrastructure is…

Learn to Hack on the Government’s Dime

Yesterday, the U.S. House of Representatives passed HR 4061, the Cybersecurity Enhancement Act, which is the first major cybersecurity legislation to pass the House within the past year. The bill provides increased guidance for the role of NIST and NSF, looks to promote education and awareness efforts, coordinate R&D in the cyber realm and seeks to build…

House Passes Cybersecurity Bill

The U.S. House of Representatives has passed the first cybersecurity bill, 422 to 5.

The bill, HR 4061, known as the Cybersecurity Enhancement Act, will now be sent to the Senate for approval.

Rep. Dan Lipinski (D, IL), the sponsor of the bill, said:

“The amount of time all of us spend on the Internet, the vulnerabilities that are out there,…

Cybersecurity Performance Metrics may be coming

The Office of Management and Budget and the National Institute of Standards and Technology have released a draft proposal for new cybersecurity performance metrics. The new metrics focus, among other things, on real time monitoring, combating one of the principle complaints regarding current cybersecurity metrics under FISMA.

Under FISMA, the metrics that agencies reported on dealt more with tangential issues, such as back up plan testing, instead of real-time operational…

NIST Role in Cyber Security Could Expand

A bill cleared a House subcommittee yesterday that could alter the role that the National Institute for Standards and Technology (NIST) will play in cyber security. The Technology and Innovation Subcommittee of the House Science and Technology Committee approved the bill that would make NIST responsible for coordinating the US government effort in establishing international cyber security standards.

The bill, titled the “Cybersecurity Coordination and Awareness Act,” also…

NIST Publishes Updated Report on Government Cybersecurity

The National Institute of Standards and Technology has released a report updated from its 2005 version on recommended standards on security controls for federal organizations.

The report is meant to create a centralized set of requirements and controls that cover both the national security communities and civilian agencies.

The report sought security protocol information from Department of Defense, the Intelligence Community, and other civilian agencies to format…