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State says volunteer cyber-security corps program faces “growing pains”

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The state Auditor General has found problems with a program that matches volunteer I-T experts with small local governments trying to fend off cyber-attacks.       The state still considers the program a success.

               The state Auditor General says the Michigan Cyber Civilian Corps has issues with training its volunteers and making sure they file timely reports on their work.  Chris DeRusha (duh-RUSH’-uh) is with the Michigan Department of Technology, Management, and Budget, which runs the program. He says the department is already working to fix the problems, which he describes as “growing pains.” But DeRusha says the work is critical.

“Look, uh, I think that this plays into the American spirit of public service, and I think it’s a fantastic model.”

DeRusha says most of the requests for help come from small local governments that can’t afford big I-T support teams. He says the most common problem is systems that become infected with ransomware.