As part of Biden’s $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief plan, the administration has proposed spending $10 billion to improve U.S. cybersecurity and information technology, as The Hill reports.
Nine billion of that would go to the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency and the General Services Administration through the Technology Modernization Fund. Biden’s transition team said that he is also “calling on Congress to change the fund’s reimbursement structure in order to fund more innovative and impactful projects.”
The plan also sets aside $200 million “for the rapid hiring of hundreds of experts to support the federal Chief Information Security Officer and U.S. Digital Service.” Another $300 million would be dedicated toward “secure IT projects” in the GSA. Biden would also boost CISA spending by $690 million for better “security monitoring and incident response.”
The proposals follow in the wake of Russian cyberattacks on IT contractor SolarWinds, which affected government agencies as well as private companies.
“In addition to the COVID-19 crisis, we also face a crisis when it comes to the nation’s cybersecurity,” according to a “fact sheet” outlining Biden’s plan. “The recent cybersecurity breaches of federal government data systems underscore the importance and urgency of strengthening U.S. cybersecurity capabilities. [President] Biden is calling on Congress to launch the most ambitious effort ever to modernize and secure federal IT and networks.”
As Washington, D.C.’s Federal News Network reports, the proposed $9 billion would represent a 3,600% increase on the Technology Modernization Fund’s latest fiscal year budget of $25 million.
Jason Oxman, president and CEO of the IT Industry Council, told the radio station that the spending is “essential to ensure recovery from the SolarWinds breach, and to deliver modern and secure citizen services and critical networks.”
Greg Touhill, the former first federal CISO and now CEO of Appgate Federal, told Bank Info Security, “While there is lots of good in the [Biden] proposal, it would be even better with some specific targets that are feasible, acceptable, suitable and affordable.” He suggested penetration testing and bug bounty programs for each federal agency.