Booz Allen Hamilton's cyber solution facility. The Washington Post | Getty Images Consulting firm Booz Allen Hamilton will take on a $1.03 billion contract to build up cybersecurity capabilities over the next six years at several federal agencies, according to the company. The contract expands on work Booz Allen has done with the Department of Homeland Security and General Services Administration to build a "continuous diagnostics and mitigation" system, known as a CDM. The purpose of a CDM is to help cybersecurity workers triage threats, using electronic sensors and software, so they can focus on the most severe threats first. The programs Booz Allen will help stand up are ones to watch: they are a larger part of the federal government's overall DEFEND initiative, which stands for Dynamic and Evolving Federal Enterprise Network Defense. These programs are part of what several agencies hope will lead to a more active defense of government systems. This is the fourth iteration of the CDM program – earlier stages involved more basic elements of seeking out gaps in cybersecurity and filling. The CDM program is also a cornerstone of DHS's planned approach to securing elections infrastructure throughout the U.S. The new effort is meant to help streamline cybersecurity efforts across the DHS, GSA, the U.S. Postal Service, NASA and several other organizations. Efforts will include creating further safeguards for agency employees that have privileged access to sensitive systems, adding network access controls and enhancing security in cloud environments. The move comes at a time when Federal cybersecurity leadership and coordination has been shaky. National Security Advisor John Bolton eliminated the centralized White House cybersecurity coordinator position in May.
US consulting firm Booz Allen Hamilton has won a $1.03bn contract to strengthen cybersecurity capabilities across several federal agencies. The deal will see Booz Allen work with agencies including the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and NASA, helping to implement the government’s Dynamic and Evolving Federal Enterprise Network Defense (DEFEND) initiative. The firm will expand on its previous work with the DHS and General Services Administration, deploying a continuous diagnostics and mitigation system that enables cybersecurity workers to triage threats.