Pentagon making progress on cybersecurity amid challenges, watchdog says

WASHINGTON — The Office of Defense is building significant development locking down sensitive networks amid cyber difficulties from international adversaries bent on attaining entry to intel, a report from a federal watchdog displays.

The division as of January recorded compliance at 70% or greater in utilizing four decide on protections for controlled unclassified information, which may consist of facts tied to important technologies or the enhancement and operation of weapons and protection infrastructure, according to the Authorities Accountability Office environment.

Pentagon networks store huge quantities of facts and are less than continuous menace of attack from opponents such as Russia, China, Iran and North Korea. Russia’s assault on Ukraine is including to worries about U.S. cybersecurity, as federal officials and other authorities warn of Moscow’s malicious cyber history and access in the digital domain. A breach of CUI methods, and the common dissemination or theft of the information, could pose serious dangers to U.S. security.

“Safeguarding federal personal computer programs has been a longstanding problem,” the GAO wrote in a May well 19 memo to congressional committees. “Underscoring the worth of this situation, we have bundled cybersecurity on our superior-threat checklist since 1997.”

The US Navy had cybersecurity wrong. Anticipate improve.

The accountability office’s evaluation, posted Thursday, discovered that although no entity was absolutely compliant with important CUI cybersecurity specifications, the Pentagon is transferring in the ideal way. The GAO from May perhaps 2021 to May possibly 2022 focused on some 2,900 CUI programs, most of which are owned by the Army, Air Drive, Navy, Marine Corps and the Protection Health and fitness Agency.

The official liable for office-huge protection of CUI techniques is the main info officer, at present John Sherman. The GAO in its report mentioned the data business “has taken the latest action to address” the difficulties and noted the office has retained tabs on progress.

The GAO audit bundled no official suggestions or fixes for the Pentagon to go after. Sherman in a pre-publication letter in late April acknowledged the watchdog’s evaluation and stood by his office’s do the job.

“As pointed out inside the report, the Department has taken action to operate with DoD components to guarantee implementation of the proper stability steps for CUI units,” Sherman wrote.