The U.S. Air Force (USAF) has announced it is developing a maturity model to broaden the service implementation of zero trust cybersecurity protection. The maturity model will be the foundation of the entire Air Force network architecture, FedScoop reported Friday.
Lauren Knausenberger, Air Force CIO and a 2021 Wash100 Award recipient, said at a recent event that the branch is looking to build on its first zero trust projects such as Platform One. Platform One had a network architecture built along with the no trust of wide access for any user. Knausenberger says it is time to implement those principles at the enterprise level.
“The vision is for the future to be completely zero trust…where we are able to collaborate seamlessly with all of our allies. We have these little pockets of zero trust, but we are also doing some basics right now,” commented Knausenberger.
The maturity model will not discontinue Platform One. In fact, Knausenberger said it is creating a secure environment for companies that have received Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) contracts that allow those companies to use government-approved, secure systems.
The new maturity model aims to help network administrators and IT workers throughout the Air Force bring their networks in line with zero trust security. The model includes critical elements of the process, such as ensuring proper access management and data tagging. Another IT feature the Air Force is developing is enterprise identity, credentialing and access management (ICAM) certification. ICAM will allow the USAF to recognize users more securely.
The Air Force will use the maturity model to strengthen its entire network. However, it is unknown how long the standing-up process will take. Knausenberger added that “We have a road map there … we have to do a better job of funding the road map.”
