Protecting Against the Rasputins of the World: An Introduction to NIST 800-171
Rasputin.
The name Rasputin represents a Russian man who is best remembered for his infiltration of the Romanov Russian Royal Family during imperialist twentieth century Russia. As a mystic and self-proclaimed holy man, he was entrusted to save the Romanov heir from his fatal hemophilia.
However, today in the early twenty-first century, the name Rasputin means something else. Rasputin is now the name used to reference the Russian hacker responsible for the security breach of over 60 prominent universities including Cornell University, University of Pittsburgh, Virginia Tech, University of California, Los Angeles, and many more. Additionally, Rasputin has been involved with breaches in many federal, state, and local U.S. government agencies.
Rasputin, and people like him, are the reason why educational institutions especially should consider implementing NIST 800-171.
This piece is an introduction to what will be a four-part series published on Enlightened Knowledge & Insights, regarding the establishment of NIST 800-171. In this series, we will address what prompted the United States federal government to create NIST 800-171, why it is important, the effects of this regulation, and the opportunities that may arise from it.