Outgoing President Joe Biden has moved to bolster U.S. cybersecurity with a last-minute executive order ahead of President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration on Monday, reports SiliconAngle.
Aside from subjecting government IT contractors to minimum cybersecurity standards, Biden's EO also broadens sanctions against foreign cyber adversaries, mandates new cryptographic standards for federal agencies, orders the development of artificial intelligence-based tools for determining government network flaws, and requires government Internet of Things vendors' Cyber Trust Mark compliance by Jan. 2027, as well as increases resources to combat cyber talent challenges. While Flashpoint Executive Director of Global Security Andrew Borene noted the EO to be a significant move toward addressing increasingly sophisticated Chinese, Russian, and North Korean cyber threats, its implementation was regarded by BlueVoyant Director of External Cyber Assessments Lorri Janssen-Anessi and Bugcrowd founder Casey Ellis to be uncertain under the Trump administration. "Given the critical nature of the threats and the fact that cyber incidents do not respect political boundaries, it is likely that the incoming administration will recognize the value in continuing to support and implement many of the executive order's objectives," said Janssen-Anessi.
