CISA Urges Partnerships So We Can All Be “Resilient Together”
WASHINGTON – Today, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) kicks off the third annual Emergency Communications Month to honor the nation’s emergency responders and communicators, emphasizing the importance of emergency communications and the need to work together in building resilient critical infrastructure.
CISA is focused on how the nation can be “Resilient Together,” highlighting the importance of secure, interoperable emergency communications and how CISA supports this effort in collaboration with its partners across the emergency communications ecosystem. CISA encourages critical infrastructure organizations, state, local, tribal, and territorial government, and others to significantly bolster communications resiliency and emergency preparedness by enrolling in free priority telecommunications services. These services, which include the Government Emergency Telecommunications Service (GETS) and Wireless Priority Service (WPS), enable essential personnel to communicate when networks are degraded or congested due to weather events, mass gatherings, cyber incidents, or events stemming from human error.
Through its emergency communications mission, CISA conducts extensive outreach across the nation. These efforts are aimed at bolstering the capacity of emergency response providers and government officials to communicate effectively during crises such as natural disasters, cyber incidents or other hazards that impact landline and wireless communications. CISA’s programs and services coordinate emergency communications planning, preparation, and evaluation to ensure safer, better-prepared communities nationwide. Moreover, CISA offers essential guidance on establishing protocols for identifying and promptly reporting significant cyber incidents to relevant personnel, local law enforcement, and the agency. CISA serves as a vital resource, collaborating with both government and industry partners to strengthen and enhance emergency communication capabilities, thereby reinforcing our nation’s resilience.
“As the nation’s cyber defense agency and the national coordinator for infrastructure security, CISA’s mission continues to prioritize ensuring interoperable, secure, and resilient emergency communications for our nation,” remarked CISA Director Jen Easterly. “In this third Emergency Communications Month, we not only honor our invaluable emergency communications partners nationwide but also urge them to enroll in our priority telecommunications services. By emphasizing the ‘Resilient Together’ theme, we aim to unite efforts towards integrating the next generation of emergency communications systems, thereby enhancing the safety and security of our nation and its critical infrastructure.”
On April 30, CISA will host an informational webinar to provide overviews of the GETS and WPS services. Organizations can begin the enrollment process here: www.cisa.gov/apply-pts. CISA’s Priority Telecommunications Service Center assists with the enrollment process and can be reached by phone at 866-627-2255 or by email at [email protected].
To learn more about Emergency Communications Month and how to amplify our resources, visit https://www.cisa.gov/emergency-communications-month.
About CISA
As the nation’s cyber defense agency and national coordinator for critical infrastructure security, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency leads the national effort to understand, manage, and reduce risk to the digital and physical infrastructure Americans rely on every hour of every day.
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