CISA’s Shields Ready Initiative

Introduction

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has introduced Shields Ready, an initiative to help organizations of all sizes bolster their defenses against evolving cyber risks. The Shields Ready program is designed to equip you with actionable tools, guidance, and strategies to strengthen your cybersecurity posture. 

What Is Shields Ready?

Shields Ready is part of CISA’s broader "Shields Up" campaign, initially launched in response to heightened geopolitical tensions and an increased risk of cyberattacks targeting critical infrastructure and essential services. While Shields Up emphasized immediate defensive measures, Shields Ready shifts the focus to long-term resilience, ensuring your organization is better equipped to respond to threats in the months and years to come. The initiative offers:  

• Guidance on Incident Response: Step-by-step playbooks for dealing with ransomware, phishing, and supply chain compromises.  

• Best Practices for Cyber Hygiene: Recommendations for patch management, multi-factor authentication (MFA), and network segmentation.

• Free Resources: Access to CISA’s Cybersecurity Evaluation Tool (CSET), tabletop exercises, and vulnerability scanning.  

How It Differs from Shields Up

• Shields Up: Focused on immediate threats, particularly cyber threats following geopolitical events (e.g., Russian invasion of Ukraine).

• Shields Ready: Takes a broader and strategic approach, addressing diverse threats (e.g., natural disasters, cyberattacks, terrorism, and pandemics) with a focus on resilience as a system-wide attribute.

Key Features of Shields Ready

Proactive Defense Strategies  

• CISA encourages organizations to evaluate and harden their systems before an attack occurs. This includes measures like regular security audits, zero-trust architecture implementation, and conducting phishing simulations for employees.  

Incident Reporting & Collaboration  

• Shields Ready emphasizes the importance of reporting incidents to CISA promptly. By sharing data and collaborating with the federal government, organizations contribute to a national defense effort that helps identify and neutralize threats faster.  

Tailored Resources for All Sectors  

• Whether you’re in healthcare, education, energy, or finance, Shields Ready offers sector-specific insights and recommendations. CISA recognizes that different industries face unique challenges and has curated resources to address them.  

Focus on Operational Technology (OT)  

• With OT environments becoming a prime target for cybercriminals, Shields Ready provides critical guidance on protecting industrial control systems and other operational technologies.  

How to Get Started with Shields Ready

1. Evaluate Your Current Posture: Use CISA’s Cyber Resilience Review (CRR) tool to assess your organization's strengths and weaknesses.

   • The Cyber Resilience Review (CRR) by CISA is a free, voluntary assessment designed to evaluate and enhance an organization’s operational resilience and cybersecurity capabilities.

2. Adopt the Basics: Implement MFA, patch vulnerabilities, and train employees to recognize phishing attempts. These measures provide a strong foundation.

3. Leverage Free Services: Take advantage of CISA's free vulnerability scanning and penetration testing to identify weaknesses before attackers do.

   • CISA offers free Cyber Hygiene Services, including vulnerability scanning and penetration testing, to help organizations identify and fix security weaknesses in their systems before attackers can exploit them.

   • To enroll in these services, organizations can contact CISA at vulnerability@cisa.dhs.gov with the subject line "Requesting Cyber Hygiene Services." 

4. Stay Informed: Subscribe to CISA alerts to receive updates on emerging threats and vulnerabilities.

   • Subscribe to Updates from CISA 

5. Develop an Incident Response Plan: Work with your team to create a playbook for responding to various types of cyber incidents. Regularly test this plan with tabletop exercises.  

Why Shields Ready Matters

Shields Ready ensures that organizations don’t just react to attacks but build a framework for ongoing protection and recovery. By embracing this initiative, you’re not just protecting your systems: you’re contributing to a broader, collaborative defense effort that benefits everyone.  

• Resilience ensures continuity of operations and protects national security and economic prosperity. It stresses collaboration among businesses, government, and communities to build national resilience.

Conclusion

In cybersecurity, preparation is everything. With CISA’s Shields Ready initiative, you have access to the tools, knowledge, and resources needed to keep your defenses sharp. Visit the Shields Ready page to explore these resources and take your first steps toward a stronger, more resilient cybersecurity posture.