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CISA Revives Data Analysis Working Group to Defend Critical Infrastructure Against Ransomware
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CISA Revives Data Analysis Working Group to Defend Critical Infrastructure Against Ransomware

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency is bringing back the Cybersecurity Insurance and Data Analysis Working Group, also known as CIDAWG, to guide organizations in IT defense investments, CISA Deputy Director Nitin Natarajan announced.

In a blog published Nov. 20, he wrote that the agency is introducing a new iteration of the working group in December to combat ransomware and other online threats faced by critical infrastructure entities.

CIDAWG was created in 2014 primarily to conceptualize a cyber incident data and analysis repository. It was comprised of IT risk management experts from the insurance and critical infrastructure sectors.

CISA plans to relaunch the working group as part of an interagency effort that will deploy tools such as the Joint Ransomware Task Force, Ransomware Vulnerability Warning Pilot and the Pre-Ransomware Notification Initiative, which obtains intelligence from the cybersecurity research community and infrastructure organizations.

“Achieving the goal of driving down cyber risk, as stated in the National Cybersecurity Strategy, requires coordinated action across the United States Government, the private sector, and American society,” Natarajan said. “Everybody has a role to play in cybersecurity…and we need everybody to play their role.”

Warfighter Brain Health Initiative Conducts Research on Blast Overpressure Exposures
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Warfighter Brain Health Initiative Conducts Research on Blast Overpressure Exposures

The Department of Defense’s Warfighter Brain Health Initiative is conducting research on the impact of blast overpressure exposures from weapons and munitions on service members’ brain health as part of efforts to optimize warfighters’ cognitive and physical capabilities.

As part of the initiative, the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs has created a list of “Tier 1” weapon systems that generate the most blast pressure exposure effects for service members, the Defense Health Agency said Tuesday.

Based on input from service members, OSD(HA) initial Tier 1 systems identified five distinct categories of high-overpressure weapon systems: shoulder-mounted weapons, .50 caliber weapons, Howitzers, mortars and demolition.

“We’re offering a mitigation strategy to try to keep service members safe and then the recognition that if they have these symptoms, go get checked out, go and get a medical person to do some eyes on, to do a quick assessment, and check those things that we talked about,” said Kathy Lee, lead for the WBHI and director of Casualty Management for the OSD(HA).

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NSF CIO Dorothy Aronson Adds Chief AI Officer Role
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NSF CIO Dorothy Aronson Adds Chief AI Officer Role

Dorothy Aronson will assume the chief artificial intelligence officer role at the National Science Foundation in addition to her current position as the agency’s chief information officer, FedScoop reported Tuesday.

The appointment was in line with President Biden’s AI Executive Order that requires many larger government agencies to have a chief AI officer tasked to coordinate uses of AI, promote AI innovation, manage risks and other related responsibilities.

“My focus has been the past couple of years on improving the quality of NSF’s data and our ability to leverage data,” Aronson said in an interview. “Data fuels AI.”

Her remarks were backed by Terry Carpenter, senior adviser to the director at NSF, who said, “[Aronson] has already been leaning into [data-focused] areas [and] is going to continue with that role as the chief AI officer role for the agency.

Aronson’s career includes time serving as acting CIO and director for the Division of Information Systems within the Office of Information and Resource Management before assuming her current roles. She also worked as director for the Office of Management Operations for the Defense Advanced Research Project Agency.

Keen on learning more about the government’s AI efforts? Join the Potomac Officers Club’s 5th Annual Artificial Intelligence Summit on March 21, 2024, to hear from federal leaders and industry experts about the transformative power of AI. Register here for the upcoming event.

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NSA Breaks Ground on New Joint Cryptologic Center in Colorado
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NSA Breaks Ground on New Joint Cryptologic Center in Colorado

The National Security Agency has broken ground on a Joint Cryptologic Center at Buckley Space Force Base in Aurora, Colorado.

The building will contain operational training and administrative facilities for NSA Colorado Service Cryptologic Elements and the new Rocky Mountain Learning Center, where unclassified training will occur, the NSA said on Tuesday.

NSAC Director Jenna Seidel said the new learning center aims to address the comprehensive training demands of NSAC personnel, who support national missions and priorities worldwide.

“This is a facility that builds upon the natural collaboration across the military and civilian workforce at NSA/CSS Colorado,” said Randy Westfall, chief of installations and logistics at NSA.

Catherine Aucella, executive director of NSA, and leaders from the agency’s Talent Learning & Development group also attended the ceremony.

“Being present for the Joint Cryptologic Center groundbreaking reaffirms the tight collaboration between NSA/CSS Washington and NSAC, as well as our enterprise-wide emphasis on training as a critical component to a successful career at NSA,” Aucella said.

Construction on the new multi-story JCC facility will begin in December with initial occupancy scheduled for spring 2026.

DOD Works With Industrial Base to Identify Opportunities in Manufacturing Tech
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DOD Works With Industrial Base to Identify Opportunities in Manufacturing Tech

The Office of the Secretary of Defense’s Manufacturing Technology Program has pinpointed new focus areas for manufacturing through the Organic Industrial Base Modernization workshop.

Hosted last month, the workshop was designed to identify promising innovations in military technology production that could meet the needs of the office in collaboration with nine of the U.S. Department of Defense’s Manufacturing Innovation Institutes, the DOD said Tuesday.

Representatives of the public-private MIIs who participated in the workshop include Berardino Baratta, CEO of Manufacturing x Digital, who said that the program spearheads the “innovation and adoption of advanced manufacturing capabilities to improve the U.S. supply chain and national security readiness.”

The event was attended by numerous DOD leaders, including Vic Ramdass, deputy assistant secretary of defense for materiel readiness; Richard Martin, director of supply chain management for the Army Materiel Command; and Jeffrey Sick, director of logistics for the Air Force Sustainment Center. Other participants were David Menzen, deputy director of the Logistics Division and Marine Col. Kirk Spangenberg, commander of the Marine Depot Maintenance Command. During the workshop, they spoke about modernization challenges and technologies important to DOD missions.

OSD ManTech will launch the OIB Modernization Challenge in February 2024 to help develop technologies that could support the department’s efforts to progress in its critical technology areas.

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Data Sharing Technology Linking US & Allies Wins Annual SSC Innovation Competition
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Data Sharing Technology Linking US & Allies Wins Annual SSC Innovation Competition

The U.S. Space Systems Command has selected the winner of its second annual Fight Tonight innovation competition.

The Allied Exchange Environment is designed to establish a unified interface that would enable the U.S. and its allies to share near real-time data from the Space Force’s Secret Unified Data Library, to which partners currently have no access, the SSC said on Tuesday.

Representing the winning team, SSC Cross Mission Data Deputy Branch Chief and Chief Engineer Sage Adorka said the win “will ensure delivery of a much needed data-sharing capability for our coalition partners.”

The AXE team received $2.8 million in fiscal year 2024 funding to develop and implement the proposed system in support of Australia and Japan.

AXE was selected from 28 proposals, with five others being chosen as finalists. Those not selected were sent to relevant program executive offices for possible implementation using other sources of funding.

Proposals had to be operationally relevant and actionable within a one-year timeframe. Civilian and military personnel from the SSC were eligible for participation.

Congressional Leaders Urged to Include Outbound Investment Screening Measure in 2024 NDAA
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Congressional Leaders Urged to Include Outbound Investment Screening Measure in 2024 NDAA

A bipartisan group of Senate lawmakers has called on congressional leaders to add language in the 2024 National Defense Authorization Act to prevent adversaries like China from acquiring sensitive U.S. technologies with dual-use applications.

Sen. Angus King, I-Maine, joined colleagues in writing a letter to chairmen and ranking members of the Senate and House Armed Services Committees to include an outbound investment screening measure in the defense spending bill, King’s office said Tuesday.

According to the lawmakers, the Senate has voted to include Amendment No. 931 in the NDAA to create an outbound investment screening program led by the Departments of the Treasury and Commerce.

The measure would require U.S. organizations to notify the government of outbound investments in specific technology sectors in foreign countries of concern.

“In order to protect our interests, we need to evaluate the full scope of our vulnerabilities and use the data and insight provided by outbound investment screening to implement tools that ensure sensitive technologies with dual-use applications are not further ceded to adversaries,” the letter reads.

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New Joint Cybersecurity Advisory Warns About Exploit of Citrix Bleed Vulnerability by LockBit Affiliates
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New Joint Cybersecurity Advisory Warns About Exploit of Citrix Bleed Vulnerability by LockBit Affiliates

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, the FBI, the Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center and the Australian Cyber Security Center have issued a joint cybersecurity advisory concerning the ongoing exploit of the Citrix Bleed vulnerability by LockBit 3.0 ransomware affiliates and multiple other threat actors.

CISA said Tuesday that the advisory contains indicators of compromise and tactics, techniques and procedures used by ransomware attackers.

The joint advisory explains that the Citrix Bleed vulnerability enables malicious actors to take over legitimate user sessions of Citrix NetScaler web application delivery control and Gateway appliances by bypassing passwords or multifactor authentication.

The advisory goes on to note that Citrix Bleed is typically taken advantage of by actors using LockBit, which, as of 2022, was the most deployed type of ransomware around the world, according to CISA. Attackers using LockBit have targeted various organizations across different sectors, including critical infrastructure, government, manufacturing and education.

Network defenders should work to detect malicious activity on their systems, the cyber advisory says, adding, “If a potential compromise is detected, organizations should apply the incident response recommendations. If no compromise is detected, organizations should immediately apply patches made publicly available.”

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ARPA-H Deputy Director Susan Monarez Discusses Agency’s Adoption of Generative AI
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ARPA-H Deputy Director Susan Monarez Discusses Agency’s Adoption of Generative AI

The Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health is increasingly integrating generative artificial intelligence into its operations and looking into use cases across the wider health sector, Federal News Network reported on Tuesday.

According to ARPA-H Deputy Director Susan Monarez, the agency is already leveraging these technologies.

During a webinar hosted by the Association for Federal Information Resources Management, she explained that ARPA-H is working to learn from the technology while harnessing it as information and “translating that into knowledge” in order to shape its programs, from recruitment to project development.

Generative AI will also help the agency design unique, high risk, high reward programs that can benefit the healthcare ecosystem, Monarez added.

“How could we actually help improve those patient outcomes through improved access to high quality primary care, help access screening diagnostics, help accessing monitoring for someone who has a chronic disease,” she said. “So we are looking at that particular space. We don’t have any programs yet, but it is something that we’re super excited about.”

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DOD Making Progress in Becoming More Agile, Says Deputy Secretary Kathleen Hicks
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DOD Making Progress in Becoming More Agile, Says Deputy Secretary Kathleen Hicks

According to Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks, the U.S. Department of Defense is advancing in its work to become more agile.

DOD leaders are pushing these efforts forward to promote change within the department, the three-time Wash100 Award winner told the Defense Writers Group Tuesday.

Hicks noted the replicator initiative — a program that aims to field thousands of self-piloting ships and uncrewed aircraft over the next few years — as an example of this progress. Replicator and other similar projects that are designed to accelerate the process of moving technologies from research to fielding are the future of the DOD, she said.

Despite some setbacks, there “has been phenomenal work that’s happened across the department.”

“One of the great things about our defense system is that innovation happens all across it,” said Hicks.

Simultaneous advancements both within the DOD and in the private sector are another factor in the department’s increased agility, Hicks stated. A major part of bringing all of these elements together, she said, is “predictable, reliable and appropriately strategically driven resources.”

Hicks also highlighted the benefits of working alongside international partners. She said it is important to “leverage that alliance structure” to maintain an asymmetric advantage, offering the U.S.-Philippine defense relationship as an example of “incredible progress.” The Australia-United Kingdom-United States agreement and partnership with India are also areas in which there is “lots of really positive momentum and real gains.”

Leadership, Hicks added, is critical to moving this process forward. She said the message to individuals advancing these efforts must be consistent.

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