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The Angelo State Regional Security Operations Center (RSOC) is the first of these, and it officially opened in January. The RSOC works with the Department of Information Resources (DIR) as guiding partner under legislation that took effect in September 2021.
Angelo State University (ASU) Provost Don Topliff said the university already had cybersecurity initiatives in place and a relationship with DIR, so the progression to an RSOC was a natural next step. The university worked with Deloitte and Apollo IT Consulting to work on an expression of interest.
Topliff and DIR Deputy CISO Jeremy Wilson spoke at last week’s Texas Digital Government Summit* in Austin.
Wilson said that after a 2019 cybersecurity event that impacted 23 local governments, DIR leadership suggested the state move to the RSOC model to monitor and prevent cyber crime.
In the San Angelo area, the RSOC plans to onboard public schools in the Region 15 Education Service Center. So far 38 public-sector entities are in an onboarding process.
The RSOC monitors 10,000 endpoints, and they expect to cover 40,000 endpoints by the end of the year. Students in training will take on the monitoring processes, with about 35 students in training now. The training represents 400 hours including certification.
Topliff said one of the challenges was creating the legal framework, working through interlocal agreements and developing policy.
According to a document, the RSOC is tasked with:
- Real-time network security monitoring
- Alerts and guidance for defeating security threats
- Immediate response to remote and on-site cybersecurity incidents
- Policies and plans to improve the cybersecurity posture of RSOC customers
- Cybersecurity educational opportunities and planning assistance
