Six states–Arizona, Maryland, Michigan, North Carolina, Rhode Island, and Virginia–are participating in a learning lab on improving the use of data to drive efficient decision-making in policymaking, the National Governors Association announced. […]

MeriTalk spells out the pros and cons of the Office of Management and Budget’s Data Center Optimization Initiative. […]

To dig deeper into the many factors that have contributed to the current state of affairs in the Federal Data Center Consolidation Initiative, MeriTalk spoke with some of the leading agency authorities about the many data center challenges facing chief information officers, and the plans and policies that hold the most promise of helping the government achieve its data center consolidation goals. […]

The Defense Department likes to hit its targets. So you can imagine the frustration that the department’s chief information officer, Terry Halvorsen, must have experienced when he realized that he wasn’t even going to come close to reaching the Federal mandate to close at least 40 percent of the department’s data centers by 2015. […]

The Federal Data Center Consolidation Initiative has been suspended as of March 2016, and the Office of Management and Budget is pushing forward a memorandum called the Data Center Optimization Initiative in its place. […]

Consumers comprehensively think that more needs to be done to protect their data, according to a study published by Purple Insights on behalf of ACT the App Association. But do they trust government or tech companies more? […]

A middle school filmmaker from New Jersey may be the next big expert in cybersecurity and cyber warfare. […]

The key to data center consolidation success is communicating and committing to an aggressive plan, according to Department of Justice CIO Joseph Klimavicz. […]

Speed and communication are key elements to effective threat intelligence in the government, according to panelists at the Akamai Government Forum. “It’s a team sport. We really need to work together,” said Renee Tarun of the NSA. […]

Cloud computing offers the most security for government data, argued Homeland Security CIO of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Mark Schwartz, at the Akamai Government Forum. […]

Third party cloud security auditing firms are worried that new documentation requirements put in place by FedRAMP could open them to significant liability risks. […]

Food and Drug Administration CIO Todd Simpson is working toward a new tech-savvy agency by creating programs specifically aimed at technological innovation. “I created a separate, stand-alone innovations office that speeds new technologies into the CTO shop once they’re approved,” he said. These technologies include various Apple and Android phones, applications, and tablets. […]

MeriTalk Executive Editor Dan Verton discusses the theme of this year’s Akamai Government Forum—Safeguarding a Dynamic Government—with Akamai CEO Dr. Tom Leighton. During his keynote address, Leighton offered a unique look at the future of the Internet and security. […]

As Federal agencies move forward with big data and infrastructure initiatives, “we really have to assume that all of our networks are compromised,” said Ann Dunkin, CIO at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). […]

Many cars on the road contain dangerous cybersecurity flaws, according to a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report that identified three major types of security flaws: direct access, short-range wireless, and long-range wireless. […]

Department of Veterans Affairs Chief Information Officer LaVerne Council announced that Susan McHugh-Polley, the official who led the development of the VA’s enterprise cybersecurity strategy, is now the permanent deputy assistant secretary for Service, Delivery, and Engineering. […]

The new reality of elections in the United States is a return to paper ballots. They’re a semi-high-tech optical scan ballot that is first marked by the voter and then processed by an optical scanner to tabulate the votes. […]

Cybersecurity responders are falling far behind the speed of the hackers they defend against, according to Verizon’s 2016 Data Breach Investigations Report. […]

The White House announced that 53 police departments have committed to an initiative designed to make local policing more transparent. […]

The size of the digital universe will grow to 176 zettabytes by 2025 – leading to a future of machine learning. James Harris, CTO, Defense Intelligence Agency, and Jason Matheny, Director, Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity, joined Defense One on a live webcast on how the future of digital information will intersect with the future of intelligence collection and analysis. […]

There are wide discrepancies in satisfaction among Federal employees at various agencies, and Congress wants to know why. “We don’t have a culture of performance recognition in government,” Max Stier, president and CEO of the Partnership for Public Service, told the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform Hearing. […]

Connecticut, Illinois, Louisiana, Nevada, and Oregon will participate in a policy academy on developing and implementing comprehensive cybersecurity strategies, the National Governors Association announced. “Threats to our cybersecurity remain one of the most significant homeland security challenges facing the nation,” said Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe. […]

Cyber hygiene is essential for combating the modern, professional hacker, according to Symantec Security Response director of project management Kevin Haley. “When cyber criminals work in call centers, write documentation, and take the weekend off, you know it’s a profession,” he said. […]

Law enforcement reported an increase in ransomware attacks during 2015, and it looks like these attacks will continue throughout 2016. To deal with the rising threats, the FBI posted recommendations. “These criminals have evolved over time and now bypass the need for an individual to click on a link. They do this by seeding legitimate websites with malicious code, taking advantage of unpatched software on end-user computers,” said James Trainor, the FBI Cyber Division Assistant Director. […]

FedRAMP Director Matt Goodrich said some Federal agencies may have refused to share a FedRAMP ATO granted to a CSP, but that’s only a small part of the story behind one of the major shortcomings of the FedRAMP program. One theory: It’s not that agencies are refusing to share—it’s that cloud service providers are failing to capture new business. […]

Look Who’s MeriTalking: Virginia CIO Nelson P. Moe
MeriTalk’s feature, a Q&A with prominent IT leaders, focuses this time on Virginia Chief Information Officer Nelson P. Moe. […]

In a guest commentary, Alan P. Balutis of Cisco Systems wonders why the government’s reliance on outdated technology has surfaced only recently as an issue. […]

The General Services Administration has announced the establishment of a third service branch, known as the Technology Transformation Service, that will be centered around GSA’s 18F digital service organization and will actively provide technology services to other government agencies. […]

Adding PIN requirements to chip-based credit cards is essential for consumer security, according to panelists at the Protect My Data discussion on credit card security. […]

The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy announced a series of workshops on artificial intelligence and machine learning, plus recognizing the opportunities and risks involved with this technology. […]