Local Engagement Helps Shape State Cybersecurity Efforts

Source Domain: www.govtech.com

Effective statewide cybersecurity requires more than centralized planning, depending as well on trusted networks that help local governments work together while also respecting autonomy, said government cybersecurity leaders at a recent industry event.

Building engagement across local governments was a recurring theme during a whole-of-state panel discussion at last month’s ISAC Annual Summit.* As the concept has evolved over the past decade, state cybersecurity leaders said they have learned that engaging local governments early, working through trusted partners and respecting local autonomy are essential to successful statewide cybersecurity programs.

Moderator Karen Sorady said one definition of whole-of-state cybersecurity is a unified effort to coordinate collaboration and address shared cyber risks across state and local government, education, and sometimes industry and nonprofit partners. Sorady is the vice president of strategy and plans for the Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center (MS-ISAC), which hosted the summit.

“We don’t have an official definition, but we’ve been living it for years,” Tennessee Deputy CISO Aimé Nsengiyumva said. “We’ve been trying to figure out how we can work closely with local government organizations, how to support them, how to help them, but also how to work together.”

Nsengiyumva also said his state includes local leaders in developing cybersecurity initiatives through its cybersecurity advisory council and other committees, where officials help shape programs and evaluation criteria. State leaders also speak at conferences hosted by organizations such as the Tennessee Municipal League. This type of association can be key for finding trusted messengers and connectors.

In New York, Meghan Cook is director of the Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services’ Cyber Incident Response Team, and she has researched technology and…

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