cybersecurity

News / National / State

Rogers praises four Homeland Security bills advanced in the House

Wednesday the House Homeland Security Committee advanced four bills that are a part of committee Republicans’ American Security Agenda. These bipartisan bills include: Border Security Subcommittee Ranking Member Clay Higgins’ (R-Louisiana) H.R. 4761, the DHS Opioid Detection Resilience Act of 2019, Transportation Subcommittee Ranking Member Debbie Lesko’s (R-Arizona) H.R. 4402, the Inland Waters Security Review … Continued

October 24, 2019

DCH Hospital System pays Russian hackers in ransomware attack

An Alabama hospital system paid hackers to regain access to patient files, according to The Tuscaloosa News, but it was unclear Saturday when the system’s three hospitals would fully reopen. A California-based cybersecurity firm believes the group of hackers who use the particular ransomware software found on DCH Health System computers work from Russia. DCH … Continued

October 5, 2019

Rogers: America faces “vast, evolving” security threats

U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Saks, wrote an editorial in the Hill Tuesday in which he warned of growing threats from new and old adversaries. “The threats America faces today are vast, evolving, and from new adversaries,” Rogers warned. “We must take steps to ensure that the Department of Homeland Security, the agency tasked with identifying … Continued

July 5, 2019

Jim Purcell steps down as acting information technology secretary

Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey announced Wednesday that Jim Purcell is stepping down as acting Secretary of the Alabama Office of Information Technology. Ivey appointed Purcell to the position in July 2017. “Jim brought a great deal of experience to the table, and his leadership has been a tremendous benefit to OIT and the state,” Ivey … Continued

June 13, 2019

Roby says that internet safety is a growing concern

U.S. Rep. Martha Roby, R-Montgomery, in an email discussed cybersecurity and told parents that at the end of the day, they are still the strongest most reliable protection that children have on the internet. “In today’s connected world, Internet safety is a growing concern for all age groups,” Roby said. “From credit card fraud and … Continued

April 17, 2019

Cybersecurity attack leads to warning

A cybersecurity attack threatened the State of Alabama’s computing network in December, prompting the Office of Information Technology to issue a warning for state workers to change passwords and to monitor workflow more carefully because fraudulent invoices and purchase orders were being sent to the Department of Finance and internal agencies’ accounts payable. According to … Continued

January 2, 2019

Governor Ivey attends unveiling of state security operations center and cybersecurity website

Monday, Alabama Governor Kay Ivey (R) joined the state of Alabama’s Office of Information Technology (OIT) Monday to unveil its new Security Operations Center (SOC) and cybersecurity website. The SOC is Alabama’s first ever centralized security operation. It monitors the state’s use of electronic resources, including what is being attacked and where the attacks are … Continued

October 3, 2018

Sewell, Gowdy, others introduce bill to strengthen election infrastructure against cyberattacks

Friday, four members of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI) introduced the Secure Elections Act, which would provide local communities and state governments with the resources needed to strengthen election systems against cyberattacks. The bill was introduced by Reps. Tom Rooney (R-Florida), Terri Sewell (D-Selma), Trey Gowdy (R-South Carolina), and Jim Himes (D-Connecticut). … Continued

August 14, 2018