NIST and IT Security: Much More Than Guidance

What this episode covers

Interview with Cita Furlani, NIST Information Technology Laboratory Director Think of the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and most people charged with safeguarding government IT assets think of NIST's information security guidance. But NIST's core strength lies in its long history of measurement and testing, and that should prove valuable as the federal government changes the way it evaluates IT security, from a process that focuses on agency and departmental compliance with regulations to one of measuring IT systems in real time to verify they're truly secure. "People think of us as only the standards, but you can't really have effective standards unless you can measure that you're meeting those standards, and measurement at NIST means testing," says Cita Furlani, director of NIST's Information Technology Laboratory in an interview with GovInfoSecurity.com. Furlani discusses not only how NIST is gearing up for changes in the way government will measure cybersecurity but the proposed reorganization of the Information Technology Laboratory that she heads. The reorganization is on hold until a new NIST director is confirmed by the Senate. President Obama said he plans to nominate Patrick Gallagher, NIST interim director, to the post. In the interview, Furlani also addresses the struggles government IT security professionals face in complying with the Federal Information Security Management Act, and how NIST can help make that process easier through automated controls. FISMA charges NIST to develop cybersecurity standards and guidelines. ITL, as the lab is known, formulates metrics, tests and tools for a variety of subjects, including information complexity and comprehension, high confidence software, space-time coordinated mobile and wireless computing as well as issues of information quality, integrity and usability. ITL also has been charged to lead the nation in employing existing and emerging IT to meet national priorities that reflect the country's broad based social, economic, and political values and goals. Under provisions of the USA Patriot Act and Help America Vote Act, ITL also addresses major challenges presented by homeland security and electronic voting. Prior to being named ITL director 3½ years ago, Furlani served as NIST chief information officer, acting director of the NIST Advanced Technology Program and director of the program's Information Technology and Electronics Office. She began her career at NIST as a computer scientist and group leader in the Manufacturing Engineering Laboratory. Furlani also served as director of the White House's National Coordination Office for Networking and Information Technology Research and Development. Eric Chabrow, GovInfoSecurity.com managing editor, interviewed Furlani.

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