"CISA, NIST to Develop Cybersecurity Goals for Critical Infrastructure Control Systems"
The Biden administration has released a national security memorandum to develop cybersecurity standards for critical infrastructure. The "Improving Cybersecurity for Critical Infrastructure Control Systems" memorandum brings the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) together with the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) at the Commerce Department to establish cybersecurity performance goals aimed at setting a security baseline that is clear and easy-to-understand. In addition, President Biden formally established the Industrial Control System Cybersecurity Initiative to promote the development and deployment of technology to improve threat detection. The program began with a pilot in the electricity sector and is now being moved to natural gas pipelines. There are plans to move the program to chemical, water, and wastewater sectors this year. According to a senior administration official, the ICS initiative technologies, which are now used by over 150 utilities, would have prevented the ransomware attack on Colonial Pipeline. The ICS initiative has gathered CEOs of utilities and pipelines to inform them about threats to stress the urgency of addressing the cybersecurity threat. The memorandum emphasizes that the cyber threats facing critical infrastructure are among the most significant, and they are growing issues that could significantly harm the U.S. economy and national security. This article continues to discuss the national security memorandum on Improving Cybersecurity for Critical Infrastructure Control Systems and the Industrial Control System Cybersecurity Initiative.