Photo By Timothy Koster | Cyber Nutmeg participants share their strategies for combating cyber attacks following...... read more read more
When thinking about the military’s obligation to protecting the American people, thoughts of battlefields in far off countries may come to mind. However, as our infrastructure becomes more dependent on technology, today’s adversaries may not be equipped with rifles and rocket propelled grenades, but keyboards and Wi-Fi connections.
To help combat this growing cyber threat, the Connecticut National Guard hosted Cyber Nutmeg, a cyber security and response training event in collaboration with the Connecticut Intelligence Center, Connecticut Interlocal Risk Management Agency, and Connecticut’s State Cyber Trainer on March 9, 2020 at the Governor William A. O’Neill Armory.
“This was the first cyber exercise we’ve ever done in Connecticut,” said Air Force Lt. Col. Cameron Sprague, adding that the Adjutant General has placed an emphasis on cyber security readiness, so the idea behind this event was to do something, as the National Guard, to improve our cyber readiness in the state.
The goal of the exercise was for participants to gain a better understanding of how a cyber incident progresses, identifying appropriate questions to assess an incident, determine roles and responsibilities within their own organizations during an attack, and to better understand what capabilities exist within the state and how they can be used when a cyber threat is present.
Thirty-five state agencies, municipalities, fire and police departments, school districts, and other organizations participated in the event which included a morning full of training and intelligence briefings and an afternoon of tabletop exercises.
At the end of the day, the response from the participants was very positive, said Sprague. “I think the towns are looking for guidance and collaboration and in this venue, where they’re able to do that and talk about the problems they face was something unique that they haven’t been able to do before.”
According to Sprague, the number one cyber-attack local municipalities and organizations are likely to encounter is what’s called a ransomware attack. During these attacks, a malignant actor installs software on a computer that encrypts all the system’s files and can only be unencrypted after the victim pays a ransom.
The second most likely problem these groups face is what’s called business email compromise. During this kind of cyber-attack, an email – which masquerades as a legitimate email from someone in the organization – is sent with the intent of stealing money or information.
Although training is a great way to help prepare the participants to identify and mitigate the risk of these attacks, the Connecticut National Guard is hopeful it can use its expertise in the field to do more than just offer periodical events like Cyber Nutmeg.
“The intent of the Adjutant General is to pursue something called Innovative Readiness Training … which means you can take a National Guard unit and put them in a Title 32 status and they can do training and, within that training, perform a function for a town or a state,” said Sprague. “In cyber, we can do Innovative Readiness Training and take our cyber organizations and audit towns and municipalities to help improve their cyber posture.”
Cyber is a new and evolving battlefield and the Connecticut National Guard aims to remain at the forefront of this war to fulfill its obligation to protect the state and nation from those who would wish it harm, especially those most susceptible to attack.
| Date Taken: | 03.09.2020 |
| Date Posted: | 03.30.2020 15:07 |
| Story ID: | 366184 |
| Location: | HARTFORD, CT, US |
| Web Views: | 172 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Cyber Nutmeg aims to equip agencies with digital protection, by Timothy Koster, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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