Federal IT Acquisition Policy Recommendations Focus On Cybersecurity

The Department of Defense and the General Services Administration, which together spend more than $500 billion annually on information technology, have released a joint report to the White House recommending steps to upgrade the cybersecurity requirements of acquisitions of information technology and services throughout the federal government.  These recommendations will affect not only suppliers to federal agencies, but together with the NIST cybersecurity Framework for critical infrastructure to be released in mid-February, will be felt throughout the broader U.S. marketplace for IT goods and services.

Executive Order 13636, issued in February 2013, is best known for initiating development of the NIST cybersecurity Framework for critical infrastructure, which is due to be released in two weeks.  The EO had other, less well-known provisions, including a requirement that DoD and GSA make recommendations to incorporate cybersecurity requirements into standards for