In a decisive move to bolster cloud security, CISA unveiled Binding Operational Directive 25-01, targeting vulnerabilities that expose federal civilian agencies to cyber threats. “Recent cybersecurity incidents highlight the significant risks posed by misconfigurations and weak security controls, which attackers can use to gain unauthorized access, exfiltrate data, or disrupt services,” said CISA Director Jen Easterly. “Malicious threat actors are increasingly targeting cloud environments and evolving their tactics to gain initial cloud access. The actions required by agencies in this Directive are an important step in reducing risk to the federal civilian enterprise.”
Secure Cloud Business Applications (SCuBA)
The Directive mandates agencies to identify cloud tenants, implement CISA’s Secure Cloud Business Applications (SCuBA) baselines, and deploy assessment tools for continuous security monitoring. Easterly underscored the broader implications: “While this Directive only applies to federal civilian agencies, the threat to cloud environments extends to every sector. We urge all organizations to adopt this guidance. When it comes to reducing cyber risk and ensuring resilience, we all have a role to play.”
Agencies must inventory their cloud tenants by February 21, 2025, and deploy SCuBA tools by April 25, 2025. Continuous reporting, through automated integration with CISA systems or manual quarterly updates, is required. Mandatory SCuBA policies must be implemented by June 20, 2025, with updates applied as new baselines are issued. Agencies are required to integrate these measures before granting Authorization to Operate (ATO) for new cloud systems.
National Security Systems
The Directive excludes national security cloud systems and certain Department of Defense and Intelligence Community systems. However, it reinforces CISA’s broader effort to reduce the federal government’s cybersecurity risks. Agencies must also address and report deviations from SCuBA policies, subject to CISA review.
CISA will monitor compliance, provide support for assessment tool deployment, and submit a progress report within a year. The Directive complements resources like FedRAMP and NIST guidelines, ensuring federal systems remain resilient against evolving cyber threats.
Source: CISA Directs Federal Agencies to Secure Cloud Environments.
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