Leaders from various industries and organizations committed to bolstering US security during the White House’s cybersecurity summit that took place yesterday. The goal of the summit was to develop a plan to help businesses protect themselves from increasing cyberattacks.
Some of the world’s most influential executives, including Tim Cook, Satya Nadella, Andy Jassy, Sundar Pichai, and Jamie Dimon, attended the annual CEO Summit held in New York.
During the Summit, various institutions and companies committed to increasing their investments in education and cybersecurity.
Government initiatives included:
- The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) will work with various companies like Microsoft, Google, and IBM to develop new standards for securing open-source software and IT in general.
- The Biden administration has added natural gas pipelines to its Control Systems Cybersecurity Initiative. This program aims to strengthen the security of critical infrastructure.
Big tech initiatives included:
- Apple will promote the mass adoption of multiple-factor authentications, event logging, security training, and vulnerability remediation.
- In the next five years, Google is investing $10 billion to expand its zero-trust programs and secure the software supply chain.
- In addition, Microsoft is investing $20 billion in its security solutions over the next five years. This amount includes a $150 million program that is immediately available to local, state, and federal governments.
- To make its security awareness training more widely available, Amazon will make it free for the public. They also will provide a free multi-factor authentication device to AWS customers.
- Through a partnership with 20 Historically Black Colleges & Universities, IBM will train 150,000 individuals in cyber security skills over the next three years.
Insurance initiatives included:
- A cyber insurance provider, Resilience, will require its customers to meet a threshold of best practice when they receive coverage.
- Another cyber insurance provider, Coalition, will make their security risk assessment and continuous monitoring platform free to organizations.
Education initiatives included:
- Code.org announced that it would educate 3 million students about cybersecurity over three years.
- The University of Texas system also plans to develop new credentials in cyber-related fields.
- Whatcom Community College has designated NSF Advanced Technological Education National Cybersecurity Center for cybersecurity education. The center will focus on preparing students for careers in cyberspace.
