Chairman DeFazio, Ranking Member Graves, and Members of the Committee:

Thank you for the opportunity to contribute to today’s discussion on federal perspectives to secure the nation’s infrastructure. As you know, our nation’s critical infrastructure sectors are dependent on information technology (IT) systems and digital data to carry out operations and to process, maintain, and report essential information.

1. The security of these systems and data is vital to public confidence and national security, prosperity, and well-being. We have long stressed the urgent need for effective cybersecurity, as underscored by increasingly sophisticated threats and frequent cyber incidents.
2. Recent events, including the ransomware attack that led to a shutdown of a major US fuel pipeline, have illustrated that the nation’s critical infrastructure and the federal government’s IT systems continue to face growing cyber threats.
3. The cybersecurity of critical infrastructure sectors has been a long-standing challenge for the federal government, underscored by the need for federal agencies to improve their own cybersecurity posture and enhance the cybersecurity support provided to the nation’s critical infrastructure.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.