Feds’ cybersecurity program set for full implementation by next year

That would be a five-fold increase over last May, when it covered just 20 percent of federal agencies.

“It is my goal, before I leave office this year, [for] all federal departments and agencies across the civilian ‘dot gov’ system to have the EINSTEIN 3A system online,” Johnson told a panel of the House Appropriations Committee.

The EINSTEIN system that Johnson’s agency has been tasked with implementing works to block intrusions in federal systems. Previous versions focused mainly on tracking those intrusions. A report issued by the Government Accountability Office in January criticized the program’s limited functionality, and also criticized its inability to stop less familiar threats.

Johnson said that in addition to the system’s increasing range, it was also evolving as a program.

“I agree with much of what GAO says, but GAO in my view did not adequately note all the progress we’ve made to cover the entire civilian system,” Johnson said. “Currently, it can stop known signatures that are bad, but in the future we want technology that can stop suspected [terrorists] as well. That was something the GAO noted, and it has the potential to do that.”

Officials have been working to increase the efficacy of the EINSTEIN program in the wake of continued breaches in federal agencies. The expansion of the massive, $5.7 billion defense program is a complement to the Cybersecurity National Action Plan announced by President Obama last month, for which he has requested an additional $19 billion in funding.

Johnson also said it was too early to say whether liability protection granted by Congress to the private sector was helpful in terms of cybersecurity.

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“We’re in the implementation phase right now. Congress gave us firm deadlines for implementing this, which we are meeting. I would say that given the law was passed in late December, it’s a little too early to tell,” Johnson said.