The Federal Bureau of Investigation has issued Operation Winter SHIELD guidance identifying ten actions that organizations can take to improve cyber resilience.
Overview Of Operation Winter SHIELD
Operation Winter SHIELD is an initiative by the Federal Bureau of Investigation focused on strengthening organizational cybersecurity posture through defined mitigation measures. SHIELD stands for Securing Homeland Infrastructure by Enhancing Layered Defense.
The operation guides organizations in knowing what definite steps should be taken to make exploitation more difficult for threat actors. There are practical plan developed together with domestic and international partners for securing IT and operational technology systems, hardening security, and minimizing the attack surface.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation urges organizations to implement ten actions designed to reduce exposure to cyber threats and strengthen resilience against cyber incidents. The guidance is presented as the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s most impactful cyber resilience actions that organizations can take.
Ten Cyber Resilience Actions Identified By The Federal Bureau Of Investigation
Operation Winter SHIELD identifies ten actions for organizations to implement in order to improve cyber resilience. The ten actions include:
- Implementing phishing resistant multifactor authentication.
- Enforcing vulnerability management programs based on risk assessments.
- Implementing a tested backup strategy.
- Keeping systems and software updated with timely patching.
- Segmenting networks to limit lateral movement.
- Restricting the use of administrative privileges.
- Implementing application allowlisting especially for email systems.
- Disable unused ports and services to protect internet-facing systems.
- Monitor network traffic and logs for suspicious activity.
- Develop and exercise an incident response plan.
Application To Regulated Entities
The Federal Bureau of Investigation states that these actions are intended to help organizations defend against cyber threats that could disrupt operations or compromise data.
Healthcare organizations, HIPAA Covered Entities, and Business Associates are subject to the HIPAA Security Rule, which requires the implementation of administrative, physical, and technical safeguards to protect electronic protected health information.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation guidance provides mitigation measures that organizations can adopt as part of broader cybersecurity risk management programs.
As Operation Winter SHIELD moves forward, the FBI will publish more details and guidance about these cybersecurity procedures.