Booz Allen Hamilton has won a $1 billion contract from the Department of Homeland Security to protect federal agencies' computer networks, the company announced Aug. 21.
The six-year contract is a a $1.03 billion task order, consisting of one base year and five one-year options. It was awarded to support Homeland Security’s Continuous Diagnostics and Mitigation program, which protects the federal government from cyberattacks and hacking attempts.
The mitigation program uses sensors to search for known cyber flaws, which allows officials to manage critical risks.
The contract will protect the networks of six agencies, including the Departments of Health and Human Services, Treasury, as well as NASA and the U.S. Postal Service. Booz Allen said in a release their solution secures nearly 80 percent of the .gov enterprise, including 4.1 million network addressable devices, more than 1.75 million users, over 19,700 sites, and 89 individual Federal organizations.
Booz Allen will begin by analyzing what and who is on the networks. They will also be charged with monitoring the systems and enhancing data protection.
The program is part of the larger Dynamic and Evolving Federal Enterprise Network Defense (DEFEND) program,, which protects the federal government’s network against cyberattacks and is valued at as much as $3.4 billion.
In February, Booz Allen was awarded a six-year contract to help federal departments and agencies defend networks faster with more greater visibility, according to Marcie Nagel, the firm’s leader on its CDM portfolio.
Justin Lynch is the Associate Editor at Fifth Domain. He has written for the New Yorker, the Associated Press, Foreign Policy, the Atlantic, and others. Follow him on Twitter @just1nlynch.
