Cornyn, Hassan Introduce Bill to Improve Federal Agencies’ Cyber Defenses

U.S. Senators Maggie Hassan (D-NH) and I today introduced the Advancing Cybersecurity Continuing Diagnostics and Mitigation Act, which would update and improve federal agencies’ cybersecurity posture.

Cyber-attacks on government networks are increasing in frequency and sophistication, so updating the programs and tools federal agencies use to thwart these attempts is critical. By codifying the CDM program and providing congressional oversight, we can ensure the federal government is better prepared for cyber threats.

“As we saw just recently in Strafford County, New Hampshire, cyberattacks pose a real and growing threat to everything from local nursing homes to our national security,” said Sen. Hassan. “These threats are constantly evolving, and I’m glad to join Senator Cornyn in reintroducing this bipartisan bill, which not only requires the Department of Homeland Security to monitor and address cybersecurity vulnerabilities as they arise, but also ensures that these resources are available to state and local governments in New Hampshire and across the country.”
 

Background:

The Continuous Diagnostics and Mitigation (CDM) Program is run through the Department of Homeland Security (DHS)’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and is meant to provide a suite of cyber capabilities to provide real-time, continuous monitoring of the networks of federal agencies. This bill would:

• Codify the work of the CDM program to date;
• Require the Secretary to make CDM capabilities available, at the federal, state and local level;
• Establish policies for reporting cyber risks and incidents based upon data collected under CDM;
• Direct the Secretary to deploy new CDM technologies to continuously evolve the program;
• Mandate that DHS to develop a strategy to ensure the program continues to adjust to the cyber threat landscape.