SANTA FE — Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham on Monday announced that she has signed an executive order establishing a new Cybersecurity Planning Committee to guide New Mexico’s initiatives to protect the state’s Information security and privacy.

“It is more critical than ever to defend New Mexicans against the increasing threats of cyber-attacks,” said Gov. Lujan Grisham. “As hackers grow more sophisticated it is vital for the state to safeguard private information and protect against threats to services and infrastructure.”

The committee will work to plan and develop a robust cyberinfrastructure to address risks and threats to information systems owned by state and local governments. The committee will also advise the governor regarding necessary cybersecurity legislation and support applications to receive federal funding to address cybersecurity needs and challenges.

The committee will include cybersecurity professionals, to be appointed by the governor, from state agencies, school districts, counties, cities and tribal communities.

The New Mexico Department of Information Technology (DoIT) is the state’s technology service provider and is actively involved in protecting and supporting state agencies with cybersecurity solutions. The committee will work with DoIT to provide recommendations and advice on funding opportunities for cybersecurity infrastructure.

Gov. Lujan Grisham has also issued a proclamation designating October as Cybersecurity awareness month and reminding all New Mexicans the importance of being diligent when using the internet. New Mexicans are encouraged to set up multi-factor authentication, use strong passwords, learn to recognize phishing, and update software.

“The Cybersecurity Executive Order will lead us to additional funding and help improve our state’s cyber security posture and control maturity for the schools, local governments, and tribal territories. I am looking forward to collaborating with the task force and I am very excited to bring the best possible cybersecurity posture to the state” said Raja Sambandam, state chief information security officer.

The executive order can be found here.