Biden’s Cybersecurity EO Requires Proactive Approach, Tech Official Says

The top technology official at Presidio Federal, a newly established information technology services provider, argued that taking a more proactive approach will help agencies implement the “bold changes” required by President Joe Biden in his cybersecurity executive order.

According to Craig Heartwell, chief technology officer at Presidio Federal and a past Potomac Officers Club event speaker, there is a tendency to be reactive in the federal government, with agencies focusing on addressing current pain points.

Being proactive requires a different perspective of identifying what the challenges are, Heartwell explained during a podcast hosted by Federal News Network.

He considers the challenges related to security, cloud, data and workforce transformation to be a distraction because the solutions to these problems are already available.

“The real challenge is in the intersection between the people, businesses and the technology and exploiting technology while avoiding being exploited by technology,” Heartwell said.

During the podcast, he also touched on the Technology Modernization Fund, a funding vehicle that offers loans to help agencies deliver IT services. TMF recently got a $1 billion boost as part of the American Rescue Plan, which was signed into law in March.

Heartwell believes that the TMF will coordinate modernization initiatives in the federal government and address the funding shortage among agencies while ensuring that money is spent wisely.