DEFENSE FROM THE TOP

摘要

After years of proposed changes, FISMA is finally morphing. What entered the legislative record in 2002 as the Federal Information Systems Management Act is almost certain to become the Federal Information Systems Modernization Act under the new Congress, following passage by its predecessor in December. The name change highlights a major shift, says Maria Horton, who was CIO for the National Naval Medical Center as FISMA made its way into law. "By modernization, Congress and the president are looking how to modernize in order to protect our security," says Horton, currently founder and CEO of EmeSec, a Reston, Va.-based consultancy with federal government clients. Under FISMA 2.0, as it is commonly known, "agencies themselves must be prepared to report on a breach, how large it is, how many people are effected, and the circumstances surrounding it," she says.