DoJ Indicts North Korean Military Hackers in $1.3B WannaCry Attacks Feb 18, 2021 | 1:14 pm The Department of Justice (DoJ) announced it has indicted three North Korean military hackers as part of a series of cyberattacks intended to steal and extort more than $1.3 billion of money and cryptocurrency from financial institutions and companies. […]
Sen. Warner Asks FBI and EPA for More Information on Florida Water Hack Feb 18, 2021 | 11:39 am Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, is asking the FBI and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to provide more information on the recent attempt by cyber criminals to poison the water supply at an Oldsmar, Fla. water treatment facility. […]
Former DoE CESER Official Joining Lumen as Public Sector CISO Feb 17, 2021 | 3:40 pm Nick Andersen, who held senior cybersecurity positions at the Department of Energy (DoE) and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) over the past few years, has joined communications services provider Lumen as the chief information security officer for the public sector. […]
CISA, FBI, Treasury Issues Cyber Advisory on North Korean Malicious Activity Feb 17, 2021 | 3:21 pm The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), FBI, and the Treasury Department have issued a joint cybersecurity advisory about North Korean malicious activity known as “AppleJeus.” […]
Kevin Smith Takes Over as Federal Housing Finance Agency CIO Feb 17, 2021 | 1:43 pm Kevin Smith has taken over as CIO of the Federal Housing Finance Agency in Jan. 2021, according to his LinkedIn page. Smith has a wide range of Federal experience, having served for five years as the CIO of the U.S. Census Bureau and six years with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office as Deputy CIO […]
GSA Launches Updated Regulations.gov to Improve the Public Commenting Feb 17, 2021 | 1:25 pm The General Services Administration (GSA) announced today that a new version of Regulations.gov will launch on Feb. 18. The new website, which has been in beta testing since July 2019, will help improve the integrity of the public commenting process, GSA explained in a press release. […]
GSA Names Laila ElGohary White House Liaison Feb 16, 2021 | 2:49 pm The General Services Administration (GSA) announced several key leadership positions today, including Laila ElGohary as White House Liaison, who brings substantial technology experience to the position. […]
NIST Establishes PNT Profile for Cybersecurity Feb 16, 2021 | 11:49 am The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) created a Positioning, Navigation and Timing (PNT) Profile using its Cybersecurity Framework that can be used as part of a risk management framework to assist organizations in managing risk to systems, networks, and assets that use PNT services. […]
Reps. DelBene, Katko Reintroduce IoT Readiness Act Feb 15, 2021 | 12:22 pm With IoT devices exploding in popularity and use in recent years, Reps. Suzan DelBene, D-Wash., and John Katko, R-N.Y., reintroduced a bill that would direct the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to collect data from devices that connect to the Internet to ensure there is enough spectrum capacity. […]
Treasury Department Employees to Wear Contact-Tracing Devices to Work Feb 12, 2021 | 1:02 pm The Treasury Department’s Bureau of Engraving and Printing (BEP) employees have a new fashion accessory to wear to work – a contact-tracing device that utilizes 4G cellular data with the Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. […]
GAO: VA Makes EHR Progress, But Needs to Slow Deployment Based on Test Findings Feb 12, 2021 | 1:01 pm The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has made progress on implementing its new electronic health records (EHR) system, but should postpone deployments of the system at additional locations because additional testing will likely identify issues that need to be resolved first, the Government Accountability Office said in a new report. […]
Hopes for Snow Days Melt as Maximum Telework Normalizes Feb 11, 2021 | 3:46 pm The prospects for Snow Days for most Federal workers may be melting away in the Washington, D.C. area even as the 2021 winter season stays stormy, and the COVID-19 pandemic persists. […]
Nancy Sieger Named IRS CIO Feb 10, 2021 | 11:55 am The IRS announced on Feb. 9 that Nancy Sieger will become CIO of the tax agency, after serving as the acting CIO since June 2019. […]
Agencies Embracing a Hybrid Workforce Future Feb 9, 2021 | 4:03 pm Building resiliency in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic was an essential aspect of keeping the Federal workforce humming and managing a hybrid workforce of the future. […]
FERC Proposes Cybersecurity Incentives for Electric Companies Feb 9, 2021 | 1:53 pm The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) is proposing a rule change that would provide rate incentives for electric companies that go “above and beyond” current regulations in their cybersecurity investments. […]
Denis McDonough Confirmed as VA Secretary Feb 9, 2021 | 11:56 am The Senate voted late Monday to confirm President Biden’s nomination of Denis McDonough as secretary to the Department of Veterans Affairs. The vote was 87-7. […]
DoJ Drops Lawsuit Against California’s Net Neutrality Statute Feb 9, 2021 | 9:30 am The Department of Justice (DoJ) has dropped a legal challenge to California’s net neutrality statute – a lawsuit filed by the Trump administration in 2018. The withdrawal of the lawsuit to block the state law provides an opportunity for net neutrality rules to return on a Federal level. […]
Sens. Hassan, Cassidy Reintroduce Bill to Standardize USPS Address System Among Health Providers Feb 8, 2021 | 3:49 pm Sens. Maggie Hassan, D-N.H., and Bill Cassidy, R-La., reintroduced legislation on Feb. 3 that would work to improve information sharing between health IT systems to aid in the distribution and administration of COVID-19 vaccines. […]
DHS Issues Another Update on Data Center, Cloud Optimization Solicitations Feb 8, 2021 | 10:01 am The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued another update – now up to three in total – in its search for solicitations that would improve the agency’s Data Center and Cloud Optimization (DCCO) efforts. […]
IT Automation Fueling Citizen Service Strategies, Experts Tell MeriTalk Feb 5, 2021 | 3:16 pm Think about technology from a restaurant perspective – every Federal agency is a pizzeria, providing citizens with one service. The goal – pivot from pizzeria to GrubHub – allowing citizens to identify essential technology, while agencies serve as the enabler, or “delivery service.” Being a positive digital disruptor will enhance the customer experience, IT experts said Feb. 3 during MeriTalk’s Power of Prediction: Federal IT Operations Management (ITOM) webinar. […]
Labor Secretary Nominee Calls for State Unemployment Tech Upgrades Feb 5, 2021 | 2:23 pm President Biden’s Labor Secretary nominee – Boston mayor Marty Walsh – emphasized that state unemployment insurance systems are in sore need of technology upgrades during testimony at a Feb. 4 confirmation hearing before the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions. […]
CISA Extends ICT Supply Chain Risk Management Task Force Feb 5, 2021 | 12:33 pm The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has extended by six months the term of its Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Supply Chain Task Force, which was set up by the agency two years ago as a venue for government and industry to develop consensus strategies to improve ICT supply chain security. […]
NNSA CIO Wayne Jones Retires Feb 5, 2021 | 12:04 pm Wayne Jones, CIO of the Department of Energy’s (DoE) National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), retired Jan. 30, following three decades in public service and 14 years at NNSA. It is not immediately clear who will replace him in the post. […]
FCC Joins NTIA, NSF on Spectrum Cooperation Initiative Feb 5, 2021 | 9:00 am The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is joining the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) and National Science Foundation (NSF) in the Spectrum Innovation Cooperation Agreement, which seeks innovative R&D advancements on challenges facing the United States because of increasing demands for electromagnetic spectrum access. […]
Rocky Campione Stepping Down as Energy Department CIO in April Feb 4, 2021 | 3:08 pm Rocky Campione is resigning as Energy Department CIO effective April 2, capping a 20-month stint at the helm of the agency’s IT operations marked by modernization efforts including a fresh push to cloud services, and helping to chart the agency’s course through the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. […]
Agency Officials Endorse Value of CDM-in-Cloud Efforts Feb 3, 2021 | 3:35 pm Strengthening cloud service capabilities over the past year has been an important step for Federal agencies to both deal with pandemic-era network service demands, and bolster cybersecurity by meeting requirements of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency’s (CISA) Continuous Diagnostics and Mitigation (CDM) program while using cloud services. […]
House Homeland Security Tabs Cybersecurity as Key Priority Feb 3, 2021 | 1:01 pm The House Committee on Homeland Security today designated cybersecurity as a key priority for the committee in the 117th Congress, and specifically noted the Russian-backed hack of thousands of government and private sector networks via a compromise of SolarWinds Orion products. […]
NIST Issues Guidance to Protect Against State-Sponsored Hackers Feb 3, 2021 | 12:56 pm The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has issued a Special Publication (SP) to help organizations protect sensitive information on different electronic systems from state-sponsored hacking. […]
Senate Approves Mayorkas to Head DHS Feb 2, 2021 | 3:48 pm The Senate voted today 57 to 43 to approve the nomination of Alejandro Mayorkas to head the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). […]
Senate Panel Approves VA Secretary Nominee; Full Senate Votes Next Feb 2, 2021 | 3:22 pm The Senate Armed Services Committee unanimously voted today to advance the President Biden’s nominee for Veterans Affairs (VA) Secretary Denis McDonough to a full-Senate confirmation vote. […]