DHS: $40M To Research Next Big Thing in Cyber Security

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced a call for proposals this week in a $40 million program to encourage research and development in a wide range of topics related to cyber security. In a Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) dated January 26th, the DHS said it was soliciting papers and proposals centered on 14 different areas, including topics in software assurance, enterprise security metrics, usable security, as well as challenges arising from insider threats.

The Federal government has moved in recent ears to attract top security talent, while organization's like In-Q-Tel, the CIA's venture firm, have funded new, innovative ideas. But, as in the private sector, an overabundance of security products hasn't improved the security position of government networks.

Concurrently, spending on IT security continues to be criticized for waste of resources and a poor track record concerning learning from security incidents, e.g., the Wikileaks issue showcased the startling lack of security with sensitive data. The new DHS Proposal aims to address those issues as well.

See article in threatpost.