According to the National Institutes of Standards and Technology (NIST), http://www.nist.gov a key part of our Nation's critical infrastructure is grossly insecure and outdated, and must be replaced with security-conscious systems – quickly.

NIST officials believe that the computer hardware and software systems controlling the Nation’s critical infrastructure are grossly insecure and outdated. NIST Director Arden Bement said that the government must exercise control over hardware and software and ensure that every system has protection and security built-in, initially.

While praising the efforts of the American National Standards Institute on homeland security standards [ANSI Homeland Security Standards Panel (ANSI-HSSP) http://www.ansi.org/standards_activities/
standards_boards_panels/hssp/overview.aspx?menuid=3], Director Bement called for new standards for controlling system security, interoperability and redundancy.

See article by Greta Wodele, at National Journal's Technology Daily http://www.nationaljournal.com/technologydaily for additional information.