The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) wrote to Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., on July 22 sharing details about its forthcoming guidance on how to securely share .zip files. […]
The General Services Administration (GSA) released several notices of intent today to negotiate its existing Local Service Agreement (LSA) contracts to continue to 2023, as the agency continues to transition Federal telecommunications and networking contracts to the $50 billion Enterprise Infrastructure Solutions (EIS) contract. […]
Sens. Cory Gardner, R-Colo., and Kyrsten Sinema, D-Ariz., introduced the TOWER Infrastructure Deployment Act (TOWER Act) with the goal of increasing broadband deployment across the country and addressing the workforce shortage within telecommunications industry. […]
Preliminary findings on the Multiple Awards Schedule (MAS) Consolidated Solicitation Requests for Information (RFI) revealed that a strong majority of the industry community believes that the proposed solicitation format is clear and beneficial to the industry. […]
While the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has completed its migration of existing records into the data center of its electronic health record (EHR) vendor, the VA and Department of Defense (DoD) are jointly searching for a director and deputy to oversee $10 billion, 10-year modernization effort. […]
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has completed the migration of its existing records in the VistA system into the data center of its electronic health record (EHR) vendor Cerner, notching a key milestone for the EHR modernization effort. […]
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Office Inspector General (OIG) discovered in a July 31 report that a VA healthcare facility in Long Beach, California, failed to adhere to VA and Veterans Health Administration (VHA) privacy and security policies in the midst of a patient electronic health record (EHR) complication. […]
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) on August 1 voted to approve reports, orders, and notices of propose rulemaking that taken together aim to improve mapping the availability of “fixed” broadband service – the type generally provided by cable and phone companies – in the U.S. […]
The FCC on August 1 voted to issue a notice of proposed rulemaking seeking comment on a range of proposals that would establish a Rural Digital Opportunity Fund funded with up to $20.4 billion to subsidize the further buildout of broadband services to rural areas of the U.S. that don’t have widely available high-speed broadband service. […]
Sens. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., and Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., on July 31, introduced a bill to combat illegal robocalls. […]
The National Institute for Standards and Technology (NIST) released a draft interagency report to establish a core baseline guide for cybersecurity that manufacturers may adopt for Internet of Things (IoT) devices they produce. […]
The Department of Agriculture (USDA) has taken implementation of FITARA (Federal Information Technology Acquisition Reform Act) to heart, making it part of performance plans, department policy, and gaining visibility across its IT environment, USDA officials explained July 31 at an ACT-IAC event. […]
Christopher Krebs, Director of the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), today outlined a range of security concerns associated with deployment of 5G wireless networks in the U.S., and offered a list of top-level recommendations for government and industry to deal with them. […]
Sens. Maggie Hassan, D-N.H., and John Cornyn, R-Texas, reintroduced the Advancing Cybersecurity Continuing Diagnostics and Mitigation (CDM) Act on July 30. […]
AI maturation and adoption should have elements of a natural process to prevent system rejection and enhance cybersecurity. […]
The Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Office of Inspector General (OIG) said it uncovered a transnational fraud ring that has impersonated DHS procurement officials in order to steal hundreds of thousands of dollars of IT equipment. […]
The Commerce Department’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) took the First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet) to task in a July 22 report that finds “control weaknesses” in FirstNet’s handling of a $336 million payment it made to its contractor AT&T. Separately, FirstNet said it has taken action to resolve the issue. […]
The Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) warned in a July 30 alert that network protocols of aircraft can make them vulnerable to data manipulation. […]
Sens. Mike Rounds, R-S.D., and Jacky Rosen, D-Nev., introduced new legislation on July 30 that would require the State Department to investigate the potential benefits of establishing a cooperative U.S.-Israel Cybersecurity Center of Excellence. The bill, dubbed the U.S. -Israel Cybersecurity Center of Excellence Act, has garnered bipartisan support in the Senate, and Rep. David Cicilline, D-R.I., has already introduced a companion bill in the House. […]
Senators and Federal representatives spoke about the challenges of and potential solutions to issues in Federal hiring – including in cybersecurity and IT – at a Senate Homeland Security Regulatory Affairs and Federal Management Subcommittee hearing today. […]
In an effort to become a more modern and technologically advanced office, the U.S. Copyright Office is working on a pilot program for its digital recordation system, beginning in the spring of 2020. […]
The Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA),the Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center (MS-ISAC), the National Governors Association (NGA), and the National Association of State Chief Information Officers (NASCIO) released new recommendations to help state, local, and tribal governments safeguard against ransomware, and urged governments to take “immediate action” to prevent attacks. […]
Sens. Ed Markey, D-Mass., and Mike Lee, R-Utah, pressed the Department of Homeland Security in a July 26 letter to deliver an overdue report on biometric identification technology viability. That report, the senators said, was due to be delivered on July 2. […]
The Department of Justice (DoJ) has awarded a 15-year, $984 million task order on the Enterprise Infrastructure Solutions (EIS) contract to AT&T, the company announced in a July 29 press release. […]
The National Science Foundation (NSF) announced it will hold a workshop next month that will focus on artificial intelligence (AI) applications to improve wireless spectrum efficiencies. […]
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is proposing to create a pilot program within the Universal Service Fund (USF) that supports “connected care” for low-income Americans and veterans. […]
The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) needs to do more to help Federal agencies with FISMA (Federal Information Security Modernization Act) compliance, according to a recent Government Accountability Office (GAO) report. […]
The Department of Energy (DoE) has appointed Chris “Rocky” Campione Chief Information Officer, according to the agency’s website. […]
Most government agencies have met Federal mandates to establish cyber risk executives and establish policies to make risk-based decisions on cybersecurity, but many agencies still need to establish cyber risk strategies, conduct risk assessments, and address gaps in existing risk management policies, according to a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report released July 26. […]
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is in the final stages of planning for its transition to a commercial electronic health record (EHR) system, but faces congressional concern on two fronts: the agency’s inability to reliably define costs for the existing VistA system, and its estimate of $4.8 billion to maintain the system throughout the EHR transition effort. […]