Increased Cyber Funding Recommendation Gains US Cyber Officials’ Approval

Harry Coker, the national cyber director, and Jen Easterly, the director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, have expressed support for a presidential advisory report recommending higher funding for sector risk management agencies.

The recently released report from the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology provides recommendations to strengthen critical infrastructure resilience against cyberattacks.

Speaking at an event panel, Easterly and Coker lauded the report, highlighting the need to improve cybersecurity through increased investments in cyber-related services and capabilities, CyberScoop reported.

According to Coker, the White House’s budget request for fiscal year 2025 indicates that the administration deems cybersecurity as a priority.

Meanwhile, Easterly, a Wash100 awardee, discussed CISA’s efforts to identify systemically important critical infrastructure entities to better protect them from cyberthreats. While the list of such entities has grown to nearly 500, the agency director noted that the initiative should be improved, citing the recent ransomware attack on the Change Healthcare claims processing and payments platform, which is not considered a systemically important entity.