Cybersecurity
How the nation’s largest school system keeps students safe
By thinking of physical and digital safety as the same, the New York City schools are preparing their systems for ever-evolving technologies.
Crowdstrike debacle underlines single-point-of-failure risk
COMMENTARY | As our dependency on technology and energy increases, state and local leaders need to take a hard look at their disaster recovery and business plans.
Texas’ $1.4B settlement with Meta highlights the need for data privacy protections, experts say
Attorney General Ken Paxton secured an eye-watering sum for Facebook’s alleged misuse of facial recognition tech. But observers argue that states need to go further and put more teeth in privacy laws.
Cyberattacks still ravage schools, defying White House efforts launched last year
Thousands of school districts have tapped into resources committed by the private sector to shore up their cyberdefenses.
Using ‘mindfulness’ to train employees against cyberattacks
Ohio has launched a cyber range that promises a different curriculum for state and local employees than the standard, once-a-year cyber training most public employees get.
The nation’s first law protecting against gift card draining has passed. Will it work?
Despite industry pushback, Maryland became the first state to require secure packaging for most gift cards sold at stores. “It will change packaging nationally,” one retail insider predicted.
Tribal governments receive first-ever cyber grants
Having seen states and localities receive hundreds of millions of dollars already, the feds announced $18.2 million for 32 tribal nations.
Calls for cyber framework harmonization ramp up
Efforts to streamline cybersecurity regulations across governments, industries and sectors are underway. The nationwide program StateRAMP has launched its initiative to standardize those rules and regulations.
What is ‘reasonable cybersecurity’?
The term is used in policy after policy. But with no standard definition, networks are often left unprotected and open to lawsuits. That is changing.
‘Death by a thousand cuts’: A look at Big Tech’s efforts to influence data privacy
Maine’s struggles to pass such a law have familiar ring for Maryland lawmakers.
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Identifying and mitigating third-party IT risks
COMMENTARY | Transparency, accountability and collaboration with vendors can help agencies reduce the risks associated with third-party contracting.
FCC approves pilot to boost cybersecurity in schools
Amid a rapid increase in ransomware attacks on k-12 schools, the commission is allocating $200 million over three years to strengthen cyber protections.
Proposed federal AI roadmap would fund local election offices
Amid warnings that artificial intelligence could “totally discredit our election systems,” a group of U.S. senators released a sprawling roadmap that includes grant funding to keep elections safe from AI.
Why cybersecurity begins with users
COMMENTARY | Employees who are the least aware of security threats often present the biggest risk.
New cyber range helps future tech workers wargame cybersecurity
Fulton-Montgomery Community College in New York will open its range to students this fall, making it the first in the nation to offer one on campus as part of its academic curriculum.
More than 70% of surveyed water systems failed to meet EPA cyber standards
The agency says it will take certain enforcement actions in cases where there is imminent danger from a cyberthreat against water infrastructure.
Whole-of-state program delivers security that’s ‘antivirus on steroids’
Woodbury, Minnesota, was one of the first cities to take advantage of the subsidized managed detection and response solution.
National DELETE Act included in privacy discussions
California already has a law that gives consumers more control over the data held on them by data brokers. A federal effort would give Americans a central place to request it be deleted by all brokers.
National data privacy standard would preempt state efforts
A bill in Congress would supersede more than a dozen state laws. While most support a national standard, some state leaders and experts worry the legislation’s preemption provisions are too prescriptive.
Lessons learned from whole-of-state cybersecurity efforts
More than two years into the federal cybersecurity grant program, state and local tech leaders say information sharing between the different levels of government is the most important aspect of the approach.
