Slashdot Mirror
President Obama Unveils $19 Billion Plan To Overhaul U.S. Cybersecurity
erier2003 writes: President Obama on Tuesday unveiled an expansive plan to bolster government and private-sector cybersecurity by establishing a federal coordinator for cyber efforts, proposing a commission to study future work, and asking Congress for funds to overhaul dangerously obsolete computer systems. His newly signed executive orders contain initiatives to better prepare college students for cybersecurity careers, streamline federal computer networks, and certify Internet-connected devices as secure. The Cybersecurity National Action Plan also establishes a Federal Privacy Council (to review how the government stores Americans' personal information), creates the post of Chief Information Security Officer, and establishes a Commission on Enhancing National Cybersecurity.
Because "$19 Billion"
Most of the "cybersecurity holes" can be tracked down to some contractor slapping in an insecure installation of -whatever- to do the bare minimum needed to keep the contract. This is what needs to be fixed -- contracts need to be monitored closely and terminated in cases of poor performance. Security is a human error thing mostly:
- Not removing default passwords and accounts
- Leaving ports open and services running that aren't necessary
- Not keeping up with product versions and patch cycles
- Leaving unencrypted disks full of data on trains or in cars that get broken into
The problem is that even big companies can't manage to get this right, let alone government agencies. Big companies fall prey to the same mentality of just hiring contractors. Even the NSA did this -- if there was ever an organization that needed to do their own in-house IT, that's definitely #1 on the list. Employees will care about security when employers start demanding it.
The solution, which is nearly impossible to implement, is to make everyone involved step their game up. Hire real, full time employees who are committed to the agencies' or companies' missions at a level slightly above "I can keep my job." Make sure everyone is trained and double-check work.
So. If Obama was for Keystone the Republicans would be against it?
If Obama enforced the border the Republicans would be against it?
If Obama used Executive Privilege to relinquish Federal lands and give them back to the states the Republicans would be against it?
I don't think so.
However the Democrats passed Obamacare - how's it gone for them since then?
Pretty fucking bad:
Democrats have sacrificed a lot for ObamaCare. The party that rode two anti-GOP waves to unqualified power has been decimated. In 2009, Democrats controlled 62 of 99 legislative chambers, 29 governorships, and substantial majorities in both chambers of Congress. Today, the GOP controls 70 percent of all legislative chambers and 32 governorships. Nearly half the population of the United States lives under total Republican control. In the Congress, Republican majorities in the lower chamber appear nearly impossible to oust in this decade and the project of retaking the Senate in 2016 now seems a daunting task despite the number of exposed GOP members in traditionally Democratic states. If Democrats were to lose the presidency in 2017, they would no longer be able to avoid taking stock of the full scale of the party’s decimation. Obama’s hold on the White HoOuse has masked the scope of the party’s truncation.
Who votes Democrat other than sheltered white liberals and the "gimme free stuff!" crowd?