Security, in the past, was built on fixed physical networks that allowed access to trusted individuals and kept untrusted individuals out. But, as Federal agencies transform their digital environments and increase remote work security measures had to evolve, making zero trust architectures the new norm and identity the new perimeter. […]

Nand Mulchandani has stepped down from his role as chief technology officer (CTO) of the Department of Defense’s Joint Artificial Intelligence Center (JAIC), he announced on March 3. […]

In a review of Federal agencies work on cybersecurity, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) internet architecture is generally considered resilient, but there are still risks involved that Federal agencies are addressing. […]

The White House has released its National COVID-19 Preparedness Plan, which details plans to increase the hours of public-facing Federal offices and in-person services in April. […]

New legislation introduced in the House this week to Congress would allocate Federal granting funding to schools to promote cybersecurity education programs. […]

The Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Office of the CIO (OCIO) has named Greg Singleton the agency’s next Chief AI Officer (CAIO), effective Feb. 28. Singleton takes over for Oki Mek, who was the first-ever CAIO at the agency, an HHS spokesperson confirmed to MeriTalk. […]

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has named Karl Mathias, who had served as the chief information officer (CIO) of the United States Marshals Service since January 2015, as its next CIO, an agency spokesperson confirmed to MeriTalk March 3. […]

Federal employees can expect a broader embrace of telework and an increase in remote workers going forward, according to Rob Shriver, associate director of employee services at the Office of Personnel Management (OPM). […]

While President Biden’s 2021 cybersecurity executive order (EO) doesn’t address all of the Federal government’s cybersecurity needs, a security expert from the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) said the EO’s goal drives toward prioritization of the government’s most pressing needs – rather than a fix-all approach. […]

The National Security Agency (NSA) has released a cybersecurity technical report for its Network Infrastructure Security Guidance that features network infrastructure best practices, according to a March 1 release from the agency. […]

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is looking to modernize physician training with a new virtual reality technology that can be brought to scale and utilized as a “one size fits all” solution through a request for information (RFI). […]

The Department of Commerce has appointed Oliver Wise as chief data officer (CDO). Wise will join the Department on March 14 according to a post on his Twitter page. […]

Several senators asked the Treasury Department this week for an update on the agency’s ability to enforce cryptocurrency sanctions against Russia and others in light of concerns that Russia will increase its use of cryptocurrency in the face of a wide-ranging financial sanctions in response to its invasion of Ukraine. […]

The Senate this week voted to approve two nominees to the three-member Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) – giving the board its first quorum in five years so that it can begin to take action on a big backlog of cases. […]

The Pentagon Reservation has moved to Health Protection Condition Bravo, allowing up to 50 percent occupancy amid a significant decrease in COVID-19 cases. […]

President Biden in his March 1 State of the Union pleaded with members of Congress to complete work on reconciling two bills that would fund the CHIPS Act to support domestic semiconductor manufacturing, provide funding to the National Science Foundation (NSF) for a new technology directorate, and direct billions of new money to improve supply chain resiliency. […]

President Biden during his State of the Union address called on “the vast majority” of Federal employees to return to the office amid improving COVID-19 pandemic conditions. […]

The U.S. Army announced via Twitter on Tuesday that it appointed a new team leader to spearhead efforts in modernizing the service branch’s tactical network. […]

The General Services Administration (GSA) is working with the Office of Management and Budget’s (OMB) Office of the Federal CIO to finalize the launch date of its modernized Federal IT Dashboard, which is now being targeted for a mid-March debut. […]

The Space Development Agency (SDA) has awarded a trio of contractors a total of $1.8 billion of contracts to build a mesh network of interconnected space satellites that will form the basis of a high-volume data communications system expected to make up the “backbone” of its Joint All-Domain Command and Control (JADC2) network, SDA said in a release. […]

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is developing a Cybersecurity Practice Guide through its National Cybersecurity Center of Excellence (NCCoE) and Communications Technology Laboratory (CTL) and are requesting comment to refine the project’s scope. […]

Even while women continue to make significant gains in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields, many are still encountering obstacles in their career trajectories. Several women leaders in Federal government STEM fields offered advice from their own experiences at a March 1 virtual event hosted by ATARC on how to overcome challenges they have faced. […]

The Senate on March 1 approved by unanimous consent the Strengthening American Cybersecurity Act of 2022. The bill is a sweeping legislative package introduced last month that aims to update the Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA), codify the General Services Administration’s Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP), and require timely cyber incident reporting by critical infrastructure providers. […]

Surveillance advertising has allowed Big Tech to profit off of consumers’ personal data, and witnesses at a March 1 hearing told lawmakers it’s time to put an end to this invasive practice. […]

The Biden-Harris administration is taking new steps to combat fraud and theft of Federal pandemic relief funds, President Biden announced during his State of the Union (SOTU) address on Tuesday. […]

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) awards of $824,234 to 17 faculty members from minority serving institutions (MSI) to advance their research projects. […]

As the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) is shifting its focus from protecting sets of critical assets to improving the resilience of critical functions, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) said the agency should improve its priority setting, stakeholder involvement, and threat information sharing in connection with that effort. […]

The General Services Administration (GSA) has named its 2022 cohort of Presidential Innovation Fellows (PIF), who will serve one-year stints at 14 Federal agencies to support the Biden-Harris administration’s focus on empowering the Federal workforce and delivering an effective and efficient government. […]

Jason Miller, deputy director for management at the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), said today that OMB is due to issue additional policy soon aimed at speeding up the Federal government’s work in processing security clearances. […]

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) is busy deciphering how to best distribute $48 billion of new broadband funding from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021, which the head of the NTIA said is a “once in a generation opportunity” to close the digital divide. […]