National Security Adviser Mandates Federal Compliance With Biden EO on Cybersecurity

Jake Sullivan, the White House national security adviser, is requiring the executive departments aside from the Pentagon to fully comply with 2021 cybersecurity guidance by the end of 2023. He asked the agencies to submit implementation plans by the end of September.

In a memo first obtained by CNN, Sullivan warned the Cabinet secretaries that the government is more vulnerable to cyberattacks because agencies have not finished implementing President Joe Biden’s executive order.

He added that the lag in compliance undermines the government’s cybersecurity standards.

The memo is indicative of concerns by senior officials that the government’s measures to defend against state-backed and cybercriminal attacks have been inadequate. A series of high-profile intrusions have occurred in recent years, including the Colonial Pipeline ransomware attack and the SolarWinds hack, CNN reported Wednesday.

A 2022 survey found that zero-trust adoption and data security investments have accelerated since Biden issued the EO.

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency expanded the coverage of its continuous diagnostics and mitigation program in response to the order.