Governor Josh Green, M.D.

Photo courtesy: DAGS

The Hawai‘i Office of Enterprise Tech­nology Services (ETS) received the Top Cybersecurity category award from the National Association of State Chief Information Officers at its 2023 State IT Recognition Awards this past October in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Selected from nearly 100 submissions, the award recognizes the ETS project named “Surfing the Cyber Risk Monster Wave,” which presents the state of Hawai‘i Cyber Risk Scoring System (CRSS). 

ETS created this system to deliver real-time visibility around cybersecurity controls and risk posture across all state departments in the executive branch. The CRSS collects risk data from every endpoint in the executive branch into an easily digestible risk score that is updated for state leadership as frequently as every two minutes.

By effectively identifying and mitigating risks before they escalate, the system further protects the state’s information systems against cyber threats. As a result, the state saves money by avoiding costly problems.

“This system allows the state of Hawai‘i and our department to identify and prioritize risks intelligently, and in lock­step with one another,” said Steve Sakamoto, chief of the Health Informa­tion Systems Office, Hawai‘i Department of Health. With the CRSS we are able to be more effective, make better-informed decisions, and advise state entities by building a roadmap to improve cyber security readiness.”

To read more about the ETS project, click here. 

The State IT Recognition Awards honors transformational projects and initiatives that address critical business problems, improve business processes, and elevate the citizen experience. The award showcases the use of information technology to address critical business problems, more easily connect citizens to their government, improve business processes, and create new opportunities that improve the lives of citizens.