Federal IT Spending Will Keep Growing, But More Slowly

The federal government will continue to increase its spending on IT security, but not at the astounding rate as in the two years following Sept. 11, 2001, according to a report released Thursday by Input, an analysis firm that serves companies doing business with the government.

Spending on security products and services will increase at a 7% compound annual growth rate, increasing from $4.3 billion in 2003 to almost $6 billion in 2008, Input predicts. That's a dramatic drop to the 200% spending increases in such federal spending during 2001 and 2002--indicating that budget increases are returning to a more normal level.

Still, the vendor community can expect plenty of business as the federal agencies face the challenges of implementing infrastructure protection and security plans, according to Input. That's because many agencies are still coming up short in terms of risk assessment, security planning, and certification when audited by Congress and the Office of Management and Budget.

The report also says the Department of Homeland Security is serving as a coordination point for governmentwide security initiatives, but responsibility for securing specific agency systems still lies in the agencies themselves.