Maryland launched a Vulnerability Disclosure Program (VDP) to encourage ethical hackers to report security flaws in state systems before malicious actors exploit them. While the initiative itself is proactive, the article highlights systemic risks tied to unpatched vulnerabilities in government infrastructure. Historical context reveals legal ambiguities and hostile responses (e.g., Missouri’s 2021 case where a reporter was accused of 'hacking' for exposing a flaw), deterring responsible disclosure. Maryland’s prior month-long bug bounty uncovered 40+ vulnerabilities, suggesting persistent gaps in cybersecurity resilience. The expansion of the Maryland Information Sharing and Analysis Center (MD-ISAC) mandating participation from agencies, schools, and critical infrastructure underscores the urgency to mitigate threats leveraging AI and automation. The program’s 'safe harbor' clause protects good-faith researchers but implies prior exposure to unaddressed vulnerabilities that could have led to breaches, data leaks, or operational disruptions. The lack of a federal mandate for state-level VDPs (unlike CISA’s 2020 directive for federal agencies) leaves Maryland’s systems historically vulnerable to cyber attacks targeting public services, elections, or citizen data. The initiative’s aggressiveness hints at pre-existing high-risk vulnerabilities that, if exploited, could threaten government service continuity, financial systems, or public trust aligning with impacts seen in attacks on critical infrastructure or regional economies.
Source: https://statescoop.com/maryland-vdp-md-isac-expansion/
TPRM report: https://www.rankiteo.com/company/mddoit
"id": "mdd0932609102225",
"linkid": "mddoit",
"type": "Vulnerability",
"date": "6/2020",
"severity": "60",
"impact": "3",
"explanation": "Attack with significant impact with internal employee data leaks"{'affected_entities': [{'industry': 'Public Sector',
'location': 'Maryland, USA',
'name': 'State of Maryland',
'size': 'Statewide (all executive branch entities, '
'local governments, and units of government)',
'type': 'Government'},
{'industry': 'Public Sector / IT',
'location': 'Maryland, USA',
'name': 'Maryland Department of Information Technology '
'(DoIT)',
'type': 'Government Agency'},
{'industry': 'Cybersecurity',
'location': 'Maryland, USA',
'name': 'Maryland Information Sharing and Analysis '
'Center (MD-ISAC)',
'type': 'Threat Intelligence Organization'}],
'customer_advisories': ['White-hat hackers and security researchers are '
'encouraged to report vulnerabilities via Maryland’s '
'VDP with assurance of safe harbor protections.',
'Maryland residents and businesses can expect '
'improved cybersecurity resilience due to proactive '
'vulnerability management.'],
'date_publicly_disclosed': '2024-02-20',
'description': 'Maryland has launched a Vulnerability Disclosure Program '
'(VDP) to provide white-hat hackers with an official channel '
'to report security vulnerabilities in the state’s websites '
'and online properties. The program, supported by Bugcrowd, '
'covers all executive branch entities, local governments, and '
"units of government across the state. It includes a 'safe "
"harbor' clause to protect good-faith researchers from legal "
'action. The initiative aims to proactively identify and '
'remediate vulnerabilities before threat actors exploit them. '
'Maryland also expanded its Maryland Information Sharing and '
'Analysis Center (MD-ISAC) to enhance threat intelligence '
'sharing across state agencies, counties, K-12 schools, and '
'eventually critical infrastructure operators and technology '
'vendors.',
'impact': {'brand_reputation_impact': ['Positive (Enhanced trust in state '
'cybersecurity posture)',
'Potential reduction in fear of legal '
'reprisals for researchers)'],
'legal_liabilities': ['Safe harbor clause protects good-faith '
'researchers from legal action']},
'investigation_status': 'Ongoing (VDP is a permanent program; MD-ISAC '
'expansion in progress)',
'lessons_learned': ['Proactive vulnerability disclosure programs can mitigate '
'legal risks for researchers and improve cybersecurity '
'posture.',
'Collaboration with white-hat hackers and threat '
'intelligence sharing are critical for defending against '
'evolving threats (e.g., AI-driven attacks).',
"Clear 'safe harbor' policies encourage responsible "
'disclosure by removing fear of legal reprisals.',
'Expanding threat intelligence sharing (e.g., via ISACs) '
'raises the baseline cybersecurity resilience across all '
'government entities.'],
'motivation': ['Proactive Cybersecurity Defense',
'Collaboration with White-Hat Hackers',
'Threat Intelligence Sharing'],
'post_incident_analysis': {'corrective_actions': ['Implementation of '
'statewide VDP with '
'Bugcrowd support.',
'Introduction of safe '
'harbor clause to protect '
'good-faith researchers.',
'Mandatory enrollment in '
'MD-ISAC for all government '
'entities and future '
'inclusion of critical '
'infrastructure.',
'Cultural shift to position '
'cybersecurity as a '
"collaborative 'team sport' "
'(per James Saunders, '
'Maryland CISO).'],
'root_causes': ['Historical lack of clear '
'vulnerability reporting channels '
'in government (as noted by CISA’s '
'2020 directive).',
'Potential legal risks for '
'researchers reporting '
'vulnerabilities without safe '
'harbor protections (e.g., '
'Missouri 2021 case).',
'Fragmented threat intelligence '
'sharing across Maryland’s '
'government entities prior to '
'MD-ISAC expansion.']},
'recommendations': ['Other states and local governments should adopt similar '
'VDPs to leverage collective expertise in identifying '
'vulnerabilities.',
'Safe harbor clauses should be standardized to protect '
'good-faith security researchers nationwide.',
'Threat intelligence sharing programs (like ISACs) should '
'be mandated for all critical infrastructure sectors.',
'Public-sector cybersecurity leaders should prioritize '
'cultural shifts to foster collaboration with external '
'researchers.'],
'references': [{'date_accessed': '2024-02-20',
'source': 'StateScoop',
'url': 'https://statescoop.com/maryland-vulnerability-disclosure-program-bugcrowd-2024/'},
{'source': 'CISA Directive (2020)',
'url': 'https://www.cisa.gov/resources-tools/services/vulnerability-disclosure-policy'},
{'source': 'Bugcrowd (Maryland VDP Page)',
'url': 'https://bugcrowd.com/maryland'}],
'regulatory_compliance': {'regulatory_notifications': ['Alignment with CISA’s '
'2020 directive on '
'VDPs for federal '
'agencies (extended to '
'state level)']},
'response': {'communication_strategy': ['Public announcement via social media '
'by Maryland’s CISO (James Saunders)',
"Emphasis on 'Team Maryland' "
'collaboration culture',
'Clarification of safe harbor '
'protections for researchers'],
'enhanced_monitoring': ['Expanded threat intelligence sharing '
'via MD-ISAC'],
'remediation_measures': ['Vulnerability Disclosure Program (VDP) '
'for proactive reporting',
'Expansion of MD-ISAC for threat '
'intelligence sharing'],
'third_party_assistance': ['Bugcrowd (bug bounty platform '
'support)']},
'stakeholder_advisories': ['All Maryland government entities (state agencies, '
'locals, K-12 schools, boards, commissions) are '
'required to enroll in MD-ISAC.',
'Critical infrastructure operators and technology '
'vendors will be required to join MD-ISAC within '
'six months.'],
'title': 'Maryland Launches Statewide Vulnerability Disclosure Program (VDP)',
'type': ['Vulnerability Disclosure Program (VDP)',
'Proactive Cybersecurity Initiative']}