Federal Government Information Technology

CISA Leader Puts Health Sector Project on the Level of Election Security Initiative

NextGov: With the presidential election underway, the head of the agency that describes itself as the nation’s risk adviser said protecting the health care sector as it comes under ransomware attacks during the public health crisis is right up there with safeguarding democracy.

“Seeing how much ransomware was affecting the public health sector, we could absorb within the system a hospital or two hospitals prior to COVID, but with COVID, you know, New York City could not lose any capacity at all in April or May,” CISA Director Christopher Krebs said. “We brought in a whole range of folks that are just allowing us to really jump start a new initiative that, as I look at it ... is as important as our election security initiative.”

Read article