Jamie Bennet
U.S. government spending on cybersecurity capabilities have focused more on innovation rather than interoperability, which sets back the efficiency of their cyber infrastructure, said Drew Epperson, vice president of federal engineering at Palo Alto Networks.
In an article published Tuesday, he compared the best-of-breed approach with the platform approach, noting that federal agencies are beginning to learn to adopt unified and integrated platforms for IT defense.
Best-of-breed is the proclivity of organizations to adopt the latest technology offered by software vendors, oftentimes without thinking about how it will function alongside other components of their IT infrastructure.
On the other hand, the platform approach may enable integration but not provide the newest solution to online threats. Epperson said the mutual exclusivity is due to the prioritization of competition over collaboration within the industry.
However, agencies are starting to learn that they can do both approaches as cybersecurity developers increasingly introduce unified and integrated platforms. Such products are also more cost-effective, consistent and enable continuous innovation.
The Potomac Officers Club has opened registration for its 2024 Cyber Summit happening on June 6. Save your seat among cyber experts, industry leaders and government officials specializing in IT defense.
