In a state known for its “Live Free or Die” motto, Weeks faced the challenge of engaging smaller, rural agencies in cybersecurity initiatives. His leadership style is therefore uniquely tailored to these communities.
“Most good ideas for home state cybersecurity in New Hampshire are launched over a couple of cigars and bourbon or scotch, quite truthfully,” Weeks said.
He’s passionate about “in a box,” free and turnkey approaches to cybersecurity challenges. New Hampshire boasts such solutions for a .gov domain anti-impersonation program, a community water cybersecurity program and, notably, the nation’s first K-12 cybersecurity “in a box” service.
Thoughtful add-ons to these solutions include little things with big impacts, like vouchers for town managers to reprint paper materials with a new .gov domain or iPads for water treatment supervisors to manage the water supply on a secure and specialized device.
“It comes down to eliminating reasons for people to say ‘No,’” Weeks explained. “Someone will always be able to find an excuse or rationalization for not doing something for security — even if it’s built for their benefit, it’s perceived as more work.” The “in a box” format simplifies adoption for local agencies.
Weeks emphasized securing equity of outcome, acknowledging that some communities may require additional resources.
“I just can’t stand the fact that the bad guys think they have an easy way with the most vulnerable folks,” he said. “So by putting all these things in a box, we can deliver a turnkey service that’s low impact on the school or the community.”
Weeks is excited about the potential for expanding these programs across state lines, creating regional partnerships where states collaborate and share costs. “We’ve proven it’s executable,” he said. “We’ve given everyone a model to follow.”
This story originally appeared in the Spring 2025 issue of Government Technology magazine. Click here to view the full digital edition online.
