View online version 12 05 2018 10 00 AM EDT   By TIM STARKS tstarks@politico com @timstarks     With help from Eric Geller Martin Matishak and Derek Robertson Editor's Note This edition of Morning Cybersecurity is published weekdays at 10 a m POLITICO Pro Cybersecurity subscribers hold exclusive early access to the newsletter each morning at 6 a m To learn more about POLITICO Pro's comprehensive policy intelligence coverage policy tools and services click here TAKING IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL — The Democratic National Committee wants to significantly expand and improve its cybersecurity program in the lead-up to the 2020 presidential election and its top security officials are considering everything from simulated cyberattacks on the Democratic ecosystem to enhanced training for DNC staffers who want to work with the party's outside vendors and sister committees The question is how are we going to take what we did and supersize it DNC Chief Security Officer Bob Lord told Eric for a story out today Lord produced a short cybersecurity checklist for midterm campaigns and he recently met with former campaign staffers to gather feedback about improving it The midterms didn't see massive cyberattacks like the 2016 campaign which meant that many of the DNC's procedures weren't tested But DNC Chief Technology Officer Raffi Krikorian did notice one problem on Election Day too many people jumping in whenever they saw suspicious cyber activity We were all trying to swarm around the soccer ball and being like 'I can help with that too ' said Krikorian The need to clarify roles and responsibilities is one reason why Krikorian wants to convene tabletop exercises before 2020 Simulations are definitely not something we did in preparation for this cycle he said but that would be a clear opportunity moving forward From improving Lord's checklist to planning these simulations cybersecurity preparations for 2020 are already well underway at the DNC Committee staffers recently met with cybersecurity experts from Democratic campaigns during an event at Microsoft's D C office Those discussions will help guide Krikorian and Lord as they refine the DNC's security work When you build a technical system first you've got to get all the humans working correctly Krikorian said and then you build tech stuff on top of it to automate it and make it move faster Pros can read Eric's story here MEANWHILE THE SHOE IS ON THE OTHER FOOT — POLITICO scored the scoop Tuesday about the National Republican Congressional Committee getting hacked in the spring You'll recall President Donald Trump said the DNC should be ashamed of themselves for allowing themselves to be hacked in 2016 even though the Republican National Committee also had been hacked at one point Senior House Republicans — including Speaker Paul Ryan — were not informed of the hack Rank-and-file House Republicans were not told either Rep Steve Stivers who was NRCC chairman this past election cycle did not respond to repeated requests for comment Some Democrats hoped the NRCC hack was a wake-up call for GOP colleagues they argue have not taken election security seriously enough The threat of cyber-attacks and info operations from our adversaries is not a Republican or Democratic problem tweeted Sen Mark Warner top Intelligence Committee Democrat Politicians who've insisted on viewing this threat through a narrow partisan lens over the past two years have put us at a massive disadvantage Rep Bennie Thompson top Homeland Security Democrat hearkened back to the 2016 interference In their age-old routine of choosing party over country Republicans swept the issue aside Now news of this hack — which was not released for months — makes it clear Republicans ignored election security at their own peril It's still unclear who conducted the hack but whether it was foreign or otherwise sources told The Wall Street Journal it was a sophisticated actor Also at issue is whether Republicans will regret turning down a truce over using hacked materials with Democrats if they'll be more circumspect about their cyber defenses going forward and whether they'll dial down their criticism of CrowdStrike which discovered the 2016 attacks and was part of the NRCC investigation HAPPY WEDNESDAY and welcome to Morning Cybersecurity Your MC host once watched live sumo wrestling and it was the absolute highlight of a trip to Japan Send your thoughts feedback and especially tips to tstarks@politico com and be sure to follow @POLITICOPro and@MorningCybersec Full team info below A message from ManTech With cyberattacks proliferating organizations need real-time dynamic cyber solutions to protect vital infrastructure and data from theft compromise and destruction Defense Intelligence Community and federal civilian agencies look to ManTech for aggressive cyber solutions that stop criminal hackers thwart nation-state attacks and expose insider threats Learn more at www mantech com MONEY MONEY MONEY MONEY — The Pentagon has proposed a change to military procurement rules that would discourage contracting officers from prioritizing cost when purchasing IT services a major step toward implementing language in recent defense policy bills Cybersecurity experts say the current lowest price technically acceptable or LPTA approach encourages agencies to buy products that are cheaper up front but costlier in the future when they create security issues The proposed rule published Tuesday in the Federal Register only applies to defense contracts as required by the defense policy bills for the 2017 and 2018 fiscal years But the fiscal 2019 defense policy bill enacted in August will require a similar rule for civilian contracts According to the new DoD rule which is open for public comment until Feb 4 contracting officers shall avoid to the maximum extent practicable using LPTA in the case of a procurement that is predominately for the acquisition of information technology services cybersecurity services systems engineering and technical assistance services advanced electronic testing or other knowledge-based professional services The rule also prohibits contracting officers from using LPTA to acquire engineering and manufacturing development for a major defense acquisition program for which budgetary authority is requested beginning in fiscal year 2019 RAISING THE RED FLAG — The Federal Trade Commission opened public comment Tuesday on its rules requiring financial institutions and creditors to track and prevent identity theft implemented in 2007 under the Fair Credit Reporting Act According to an FTC spokesperson this will be its first review of its Red Flags Rule since 2012 when a rule change was published as part of the Red Flag Program Clarification Act The commission will also review its Card Issuers Rule which protects consumers from fraud related to changes of address for the first time since its implementation in 2007 The FTC had announced in February that the rules would be examined as part of the agency's standard yearly review of existing rules and guides According to the commission the number of complaints filed regarding identity theft in 2017 was second only to those regarding debt collection The review comes after Marriott revealed a massive data breach exposedsensitive information on 500 million people The comment period will end Feb 11 SAILING THE CYBER SEAS — Legislation the president signed into law Tuesday would establish a committee to advise the Coast Guard on cyber and other security risks The Coast Guard authorization bill S 140 creates a National Maritime Security Advisory Committee that emphasizes improving information sharing on cybersecurity risks to transportation among the federal government state and local government law enforcement industry and port and terminal owners and operators STRAP ON MY JOB HELMET — Rep Jim Langevin cofounder of the Congressional Cybersecurity Caucus this week introduced legislation meant to bolster cybersecurity education According to a summary from Langevin's office the bill H R 7214 directs the secretary of Education to set up a pilot program awarding grants for developing and implementing high school career and technical education courses for careers in cybersecurity and critical infrastructure The grants worth no more than $500 000 per fiscal year and required to be scattered around the country would require consultation with DHS NIST and Critical Infrastructure Sector Coordinating Councils Overall the bill would set aside $10 million for the grants which would require acquiescence from appropriators TO BE A FLY ON THE WALL — Former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort trekked to Ecuador last year and raised the possibility of a deal with the country's president that would remove Wikileaks founder Julian Assange from the Ecuadorian embassy in London The New York Times reported this week Manafort's trip to Ecuador and what he discussed regarding Assange has become a subject of speculation in recent weeks The latest report will no doubt raise fresh questions about Manafort's relationship with WikiLeaks RECENTLY ON PRO CYBERSECURITY — GOP leaders on the Senate Commerce Committeeasked Marriott for a detailed timeline of its massive data breach TSA issued a cybersecurity roadmap The IRS said tax-related phishing scams have surged this year Sen Ed Markey remains opposed to a self-driving car bill TWEET OF THE DAY — It does make you wonder PEOPLE ON THE MOVE — Jon Callas most recently a senior Apple security expert began a two-year technology fellowship this week at the American Civil Liberties Union Reuters reported — ManTech has named John McNiff as senior vice president for business development of the company's mission cyber and intelligence solutions group He most recently worked at Northrop Grumman serving in senior positions in business development long-range strategic planning program development and strategic marketing QUICK BYTES — Ukraine says it thwarted a massive Russian cyberattack Associated Press — North Korean government hackers might be moving beyond financially motivated attacks The Washington Post — Navy awards $962M cyber engineering contract Washington Technology — Verizon-owned Oath agreed to pay $5 million in a settlement with the New York attorney general over its use of children's online information The Hill — The National Security Archive shares a lotttttt of NSA Cryptologs — Surveillance manhole covers are just one kind of Western technology to help governments spy Forbes — A new ransomware strain hit more than 20 000 personal computers in China ZDNet — Australia's cybersecurity boss defended a controversial encryption bill Guardian That's all for today And the T-shirts Sweet lord the T-shirts Stay in touch with the whole team Mike Farrell mfarrell@politico com @mikebfarrell Eric Geller egeller@politico com @ericgeller Martin Matishak mmatishak@politico com @martinmatishak and Tim Starks tstarks@politico com @timstarks A message from ManTech These days the biggest threat to our national cybersecurity may not be around the world It could be across the hall No organization can afford to be hacked That's why ManTech's insider threat program blends data collection aggregation and analysis with contextual clues to identify anomalies We use our experience with Continuous Diagnostics and Mitigation CDM and advanced analytics to look for anomalies that indicate potential threats inside the network—like trends and weaknesses indicators and alerts Our integrated solution applies pre-security screening to an employee's lifestyle counterintelligence factors and suitability We also provide continuous evaluations measured monitoring and rapid response And of course we analyze data from physical security safeguards including alarms CCTV and entry-and-exit checks The result is a full-spectrum Insider Threat program that seamlessly integrates data analytics with the human factor - personnel training and processes Just another ManTech advantage Find out more at https www mantech com capabilities cyber insider-threat-program View online To change your alert settings please go to https secure politico com settings