The Biden administration is searching for malware believed to be hidden in the networks controlling power grids, communications systems, and water supplies that feed US military bases in the US and around the world, which could disrupt military operations in the event of a conflict, including if Beijing moves against Taiwan. The malware was discovered in telecommunications systems in Guam, and investigations show that the Chinese effort appears more widespread than initially realized. The discovery of the malware has touched off a series of Situation Room meetings in the White House in recent months, as senior officials from the National Security Council, the Pentagon, the Homeland Security Department, and the nation’s spy agencies attempt to understand the scope of the problem and plot a response.
The Office of the National Cyber Director has released the National Cybersecurity and Education Workforce Strategy, which aims to tackle the issue of hundreds of thousands of vacant U.S. cyber jobs across four pillars: giving all Americans cyber skills, transforming education, building the national workforce, and fortifying the federal workforce. The plan also emphasizes the non-technical components of cybersecurity, including equity, inclusion, privacy rights, and data security. It’s a “whole of society” approach to expanding the cybersecurity workforce, with a partnership of nine government agencies and over 200 nonprofits, corporations, colleges, and universities. The strategy also calls on Congress to enact “meaningful immigration reform” to expand the workforce and retain foreign-born cyber workers trained in the U.S.
According to a report by the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation, the United States has lost its global leadership position in digital policy due to growing political polarization over policies that hinder domestic innovation and economic growth. The report recommends a 15-point plan to reassert the nation’s digital dominance, including measures for the federal government to maintain U.S. competitiveness and promote U.S. tech policy over that of China or the EU, as well as establishing U.S.-led forums for multi-stakeholder participation in digital policy issues and reprioritizing a pro-innovation approach to regulating digital policy issues in Congress.
Why do we care?
Care about the MSP market? It would be best if you cared about what the government invests in. Portions of the US government are waking up here, both from a threat perspective and on how to invest in building the future workforce. The new Workforce Strategy is the initiative to care most about here. And for me, the detail to care about most is putting some of the responsibility on software vendors. This would remove that pressure from providers – and for me, that’s a welcome change. Providers should want this more shared responsibility versus carrying the entire burden.