The state’s top computer boss is getting an early Christmas gift: $4.7 million in federal funds for cyber security projects and a statewide digital mapping system to improve emergency incident management.
The money for the state’s chief information officer, Teri Takai, includes $2.35 million for her information security division to conduct a statewide cyber security risk assessment.
California Emergency Management Agency spokesman Jay Alan said the federal money his agency is disbursing will boost the state’s ability to prepare for, prevent, manage and recover from terrorist or cyber attacks, as well as natural or human-caused disasters.
“It will be used to help us stay one step ahead of the bad guys,” Alan said.
Takai’s information security office is also getting $1.35 million for the Secureca.gov domain name system project, which involves upgrading the technology behind state Web sites and communication addressing.
The upgrade will beef up security to prevent hacking or attempts to compromise state IT infrastructure.
Bill Maile, a spokesman for Takai’s office, said the grant money will support efforts to protect the state’s technology infrastructure, saying it will “greatly advance the state’s cyber security program.”
A 2008 global security report, which Takai’s security office obtained, said cyber attackers are increasingly part of organized and well-funded groups, generating millions of dollars in the underground economy “where tools specifically developed to facilitate fraud and theft are freely bought and sold.”
Hackers and vandals have been linked to major attacks and breaches of state systems in the past year, Takai’s office says in an October report.
• A six-month hacking effort at the University of California, Berkeley, saw 97,000 Social Security numbers stolen. Hackers infiltrated restricted computer databases between October 2008 and April 2009, putting the health records and personal information of 160,000 students, alumni and others at risk.
• In April, vandals cut underground fiber optic cables, causing Internet and telephone outages to thousands of San Francisco-area residents and businesses, including 9-1-1 lines and mobile phones. Most major telecom providers suffered disruptions.
Takai’s office said it will use its final $1 million to help Cal EMA develop geographic information systems (GIS) maps of critical infrastructure and other key locations statewide, such as command centers, shelters, vulnerable populations and gathering locations, to improve emergency responses statewide.
Cal EMA awarded the money to Takai’s office after receiving funding from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.