NIST Releases Updated Cybersecurity Framework"Cybersecurity is critical for national and economic security," said U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross. "The voluntary NIST Cybersecurity Framework should be every company's first line of defense. Adopting version 1.1 is a must do for all CEOs."Apr 18, 2018The National Institute of Standards and Technology this week released version 1.1 of its popular Framework for Improving Critical Infrastructure Cybersecurity, better known as the Cybersecurity Framework. It was developed with a focus on industries vital to national and economic security, including energy, banking, communications, and the defense industrial base, and has proven flexible enough to be adopted voluntarily by large and small companies and organizations across all industry sectors, as well as by federal, state, and local governments."Cybersecurity is critical for national and economic security," said U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross. "The voluntary NIST Cybersecurity Framework should be every company's first line of defense. Adopting version 1.1 is a must do for all CEOs.""The release of the Cybersecurity Framework Version 1.1 is a significant advance that truly reflects the success of the public-private model for addressing cybersecurity challenges," said Walter G. Copan, under secretary of Commerce for standards and technology and NIST director. "From the very beginning, the Cybersecurity Framework has been a collaborative effort involving stakeholders from government, industry, and academia. The impact of their work is evident in the widespread adoption of the framework by organizations across the United States, as well as internationally."Version 1.1 includes updates on authentication and identity, self-assessing cybersecurity risk, managing cybersecurity within the supply chain, and vulnerability disclosure. The changes are based on feedback collected through public calls for comments, questions received by team members, and workshops held in 2016 and 2017; NIST also circulated two drafts of Version 1.1 for public comment. "This update refines, clarifies, and enhances Version 1.0," said Matt Barrett, program manager for the Cybersecurity Framework. "It is still flexible to meet an individual organization's business or mission needs and applies to a wide range of technology environments, such as information technology, industrial control systems, and the Internet of Things."Later this year, NIST plans to release an updated companion document, the Roadmap for Improving Critical Infrastructure Cybersecurity, which describes key areas of development, alignment, and collaboration. The agency also is planning a Cybersecurity Risk Management Conference, which will include a major focus on the framework, Nov. 6-8, 2018, in Baltimore.