Shaun Waterman
FedScoop
Washington, DC, United States
Contact Shaun
Discover and connect with journalists and influencers around the world, save time on email research, monitor the news, and more.
| Recent: |
|
| Past: |
|
Past articles by Shaun:
Deputy CTO Rob Palmer leaving DHS
Department of Homeland Security Deputy CTO Rob Palmer is leaving this week, after more than eight years of federal service, FedScoop has learned. His last day will be, he confirmed. He told FedScoop he will be joining a new cybersecurity services firm, ShorePoint, adding he would have more to share about those plans when it launches next month. … → Read More
Government not 'sitting on hundreds of zero days,' former NSA official says
This story first appeared on CyberScoop. Storm clouds are rising over the U.S. government’s policy on software flaw disclosure after the massive WannaCry infection spread using a cyberweapon developed by the NSA, and even former agency leaders say it might be time to take a fresh look at the Vulnerability Equities Process. Under the VEP, U.S. … → Read More
OMB to take central role implementing cyber executive order, acting U.S. CIO says
This story first appeared on CyberScoop. The White House Office of Management and Budget will be at the center of the Trump administration’s move to modernize and secure federal computer networks, the government’s senior-most IT official said Wednesday. The agency is at the hinge where several important IT initiatives meet the federal budgeting process, explained acting federal CIO … → Read More
The case for multi-factor authentication in NIST's cyber framework
This story first appeared on CyberScoop. The U.S. government should specify some form of online identity security that goes beyond a username and password in the forthcoming update to its voluntary cybersecurity framework, advocates urged at an industry conference Tuesday. “Right now, you have a situation where Teen Vogue is recommending [two-factor identity authentication, or] 2FA and the … → Read More
Cybersecurity takes a quiet role in DHS secretary’s loose outline of priorities
Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly laid out the new administration’s priorities for his department Tuesday, listing cybersecurity alongside defending the nation’s borders and stopping terrorist attacks — but providing far fewer details about the online defensive mission than about the other two. “We live in an interconnected world,” Kelly told a packed theater at the … → Read More
Federal officials say their cybersecurity paradigm is changing
This report first appeared on CyberScoop. Technologies like cloud computing are changing the way federal agencies think about cybersecurity, with more emphasis on network resilience over perimeter security and an overriding need for automation, officials said Thursday. Cybersecurity today “comes down to automating your response. If you cannot automate your response [to an attack], you are hosed,… → Read More
What’s in the NIST cybersecurity controls catalogue update?
This report first appeared on CyberScoop. NIST Special Publication 800-53 isn’t the most exciting book, but for federal IT managers, the canonical catalogue of cybersecurity controls is like the English Hymnal and the Book of Common Prayer rolled into one. Changes to it are a very big deal. The latest version, put together by top federal scientists … → Read More
IARPA director: New homomorphic crypto is ‘math magic’
This report first appeared on CyberScoop. The latest kind of advanced encryption could soon allow classified computing to be done on unclassified computer systems, a senior intelligence official said Thursday. “That’s really one of the next places [we’re] likely to look — Can we use homomorphic encryption to do secure multiparty computation?” Jason Matheny, director … → Read More
Not just cyber: NASA CIO says all IT is about risk management
This report first appeared on CyberScoop. It’s axiomatic that cybersecurity is all about risk management, but NASA CIO Renee Wynn said Tuesday that all IT, indeed all technology, has a “dark side” that must be contained. In a federal agency like NASA “the IT spend is all about managing risks — what are you buying?,” … → Read More
Legacy IT makes federal agencies less secure, study says
This report first appeared on CyberScoop. Federal agencies that shift money from maintaining outdated legacy IT systems to modernizing them can expect to see fewer cybersecurity incidents — as can the agencies that migrate legacy systems to the cloud or implement strict data governance policies, according to a new academic study. On average, for each … → Read More
FISMA 2016: White House claims progress against cyberattacks
The White House Office of Management and Budget released fiscal 2016 statistics on cybersecurity measures and incidents at U.S. agencies Friday, using new methodologies that make comparison with prior years essentially impossible, but nonetheless saying the government had made progress. For the first time, agencies were required to report only incidents that affected their operations, and to … → Read More
Cyber order coming soon, says exec briefed by White House
Donald Trump’s anticipated cybersecurity executive order could be done in a week or so. The White House is putting the finishing touches on a new draft of the executive order, originally scheduled for signature in January, former IBM CEO Sam Palmisano said Monday. “My sense is that they’re moving along and maybe within a week … → Read More
Thiel protege Michael Kratsios named White House deputy CTO
The chief of staff to billionaire Silicon Valley venture capitalist Peter Thiel is slated to be a new deputy chief technology officer in the Trump White House, according to news reports. Michael Kratsios has worked for the better part of a decade for Thiel, an early backer of President Donald Trump’s campaign who remains one … → Read More
Governments are ready to expand use of blockchain, report says
A new survey from IBM reports that 9 out of 10 government leaders worldwide think they will be using blockchain by 2020, but a small group of leaders expects to start working on it this year. → Read More
N.Y. issues revised draft cyber rule for banks
Criticism from industry prompted a revision of the new rules, now available for review. → Read More
N.Y. bank cyber regs revised after criticism
After scrutiny from smaller banks, the New York Department of Financial Services will revise its cybersecurity regulations. → Read More
Small banks slam New York’s proposed cyber rules
Some banks believe that the proposed regulation doesn't take into account the different circumstances and risk profile of smaller community institutions. → Read More
DHS putting out contracts 'within 10 days' of verbal pitch
The Department of Homeland Security’s Science and Technology Directorate is using new acquisition authorities to move government contracting at startup speeds, inking some deals within 10 days of a brief verbal pitch, a senior DHS official said. “We’ve put contracts in place in as little as 10 days,” Douglas Maughan, head of the directorate’s Cybersecurity … → Read More
New York plans cyber rules for banks, insurers
Because every major financial institution on the planet operates in New York, the state regulations will effectively form a global floor for cybersecurity standards. → Read More
Mandia: Phishing numbers show better U.S. cyber hygiene
Almost all the successful hacks against U.S. companies that cybersecurity specialists from Fire Eye responded to over the past year originated as phishing attacks — but that's better news than it might at first appear, CEO Kevin Mandia said Tuesday. → Read More