It’s an agonizing realization for any organization when a cyber breach is uncovered, but particularly so for federal government agencies that are tasked with the protection of so much sensitive data about citizens and national security. As high profile targets, for a wide range of adversaries from nation-state organizations seeking intelligence to hacktivists trying to bring attention to their cause, agency CIOs understand all to well the risks their organizations face. However, based on a the results of a recent survey conducted by Market Connections, many CIOs face difficulties in securing the resources they need to provide an appropriate array of cyber defenses to protect the nation’s most valuable data. In fact, the survey revealed that only a quarter of agencies believe their network data is fully protected.
Given that agencies are prime targets for cyber adversaries, why hasn’t more been done to bolster network and information security and to give federal CIOs the tools they need to ensure that US cyber defenses are as robust as the country’s physical defenses? Moreover, what is standing in the way of agency leadership overcoming these critical network security challenges?
Government IT decision makers interviewed for the Market Connections survey revealed that their top challenges in protecting data fall into four main categories, with budget constraints being the most frequently cited reason for lagging cyber security. The graphic below paints a clear picture of where agencies are most encumbered in meeting their cyber security priorities.
Driven by the clear need for help demonstrated by federal agencies to meet cyber security challenges, the team from Brocade Federal partnered with Market Connections and the Digital Government Institute to take a deep dive into the challenges that agency IT leaders face in data protection. The end result of this collaboration was the development of specific guidance and concrete strategies for agency IT leaders to overcome these four principle challenges and achieve the level of data security that federal agencies need and successful mission completion requires.
Interested in learning more about the strategies agencies can use to create successful data protection strategies? Brocade’s Judson Walker sat down with Mike Smoyer, President of the Digital Government Institute, and Dave Glantz, Director of Research at Market Connections, to walk agency IT teams through their thoughts on achieving a security digital future for the federal government. You can access to a recording of their conversation here.
