Governor Kathy Hochul has announced New York’s first-ever statewide cybersecurity strategy aimed at protecting the State’s digital infrastructure from today’s cyber threats.
New York State’s cybersecurity strategy provides public and private stakeholders with a roadmap for cyber risk mitigation and outlines a plan to protect critical infrastructure, networks, data, and technology systems. It clarifies agency roles and responsibilities, outlines how existing and planned initiatives and investments knit together into a unified approach, and reiterates the State’s commitment to providing services, advice, and assistance to county and local governments.
“Our interconnected world demands an interconnected defense leveraging every resource available,” said Governor Hochul. “This strategy sets forth a nation-leading blueprint to ensure New York State stands ready and resilient in the face of cyber threats.”
The strategy unifies New York’s cybersecurity services in order to safeguard critical infrastructure, personal information and digital assets from malicious actors. It also provides a framework to align the actions and resources of both private and public stakeholders, including county and other local governments.
New York’s cybersecurity strategy is not just about protecting digital assets. It also sets out to ensure the safety and security of all New Yorkers and maintain the ability to function and thrive in the digital age.
Governor Hochul announced her commitment to bolster New York State’s centralized cybersecurity during this year’s State of the State address. The $90 million investment for cybersecurity included in the Fiscal Year 2024 Budget made $30 million in shared services funding available to assist local governments in strengthening their own defenses against cyber threats. This initiative signaled a new and stronger collaboration between the state and its local governments on this critical and evolving issue. A part of this strategy includes providing $500 million to enhance New York State’s healthcare information technology, primarily cybersecurity infrastructure, as well as $7.4 million to expand the New York State Police’s Cyber Analysis Unit, Computer Crimes Unit and Internet Crimes Against Children Center.
The state’s new cybersecurity strategy is defined by three central principles: Unification, Resilience and Preparedness. When taken together, New York State can lean on these tenets to present a unified and more resilient defense against new and more sophisticated cyber threats; preventing the vast majority of attacks but also isolating, controlling and mitigating potential threats; and preparing, adapting and always being ready for the cyber challenges of the future.
The strategy offers a blueprint for cybersecurity stakeholders across New York, from State agencies to local governments, to understand how they fit into a larger plan. The blueprint provides objectives, lines of effort, and a commitment from the Governor that they can use when doing future planning and program design.
Governor Hochul also signed legislation to expand New York’s technology talent pool and provide funding to help ensure that New York-based employers are able to hire and retain necessary cybersecurity personnel.
