Welcome to MeriTalk News Briefs, where we bring you all the day’s action that didn’t quite make the headlines. No need to shout about ‘em, but we do feel that they merit talk. […]
Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., said in a tweet late Tuesday that he supports a “full investigation” by Federal government authorities into Facebook over its dealings with political consulting firm Cambridge Analytica including the firm’s use of Facebook user data on millions of Americans to construct voter profiles. […]
Underneath its more headline-grabbing aspects such as the proposed merger of the Departments of Labor and Education, the Trump administration’s Federal agency reorganization proposal issued on June 21 marks another step in the wider push toward greater Federal government IT modernization, a former Department of Commerce (DoC) official told MeriTalk. […]
The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for FY2019 will head into conference next week when legislators return from the Fourth of July recess. The $700+ billion must-pass defense spending bill has been approved in both the House and Senate, and now the two chambers must come together to reconcile differences in the legislation and re-vote the unified bill before it can land on President Trump’s desk for signing. […]
Leaders in the Federal intelligence community, speaking last Tuesday at Defense One’s Tech Summit, said that their agencies are using vast stores of data, machine learning, and neural networks to go beyond simple fact-finding, to now radically re-envision how the intelligence community acts on credible information. But with these advances in technology come thorny new ethical and procedural questions, those officials said. […]
With cybersecurity threats on the rise, most recently seen in a Chinese hack of a Navy contractor, the Department of Defense is taking new steps to ensure security, in part by putting more of the onus on contractors. […]
Sens. John Thune, R-S.D., and Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, on June 28 introduced S. 3157, the Streamlining the Rapid Evolution and Modernization of Leading-edge Infrastructure Necessary to Enhance Small Cell Deployment Act (STREAMLINE Small Cell Deployment Act), to mixed reviews from industry groups. […]
Deputy Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan last Wednesday issued a memorandum that officially establishes the Defense Department’s (DoD) new Joint Artificial Intelligence Center (JAIC), confirming statements made by Secretary James Mattis and other DoD officials in April that a center to house DoD’s roughly 600 AI projects was forthcoming. […]
California lawmakers on Thursday passed the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018, one of the toughest U.S. laws governing data privacy. The legislation specifically targets information companies, including Google, Facebook, Amazon, and AT&T–many of whom are headquartered in California. […]
The latest edition of the Army’s annual Cyber X-Games exercise is designed to let Reserve and other cyber warriors team up to train in dealing with real-world situations. It is focused on protecting U.S. infrastructure, an area somewhat outside the norm for the exercises, but one that reflects an emerging potential battleground on the cyber landscape. […]
Welcome to MeriTalk News Briefs, where we bring you all the day’s action that didn’t quite make the headlines. No need to shout about ‘em, but we do feel that they merit talk. […]
The House Science, Space, and Technology’s Oversight Subcommittee convened Wednesday to discuss the threat posed by international mobile subscriber identity (IMSI) catchers–which have recently come into the spotlight as tools foreign actors could be using to spy on Federal officials and perhaps even the President himself–but witnesses at the hearing said there were no easy solutions to the problem. […]
The House Foreign Affairs Committee today approved by voice vote the Cyber Deterrence and Response Act, which would “address state-sponsored cyber activities against the United States” by directing the President to designate “critical cyber threat actors.” […]
The Department of Defense (DoD) is using big data analytics and automated intelligence to both uncover discrepancies in budget-draining programs and engage leadership to direct funding to the correct priorities, according to a former Deputy Secretary of Defense and the founder of a business intelligence firm that supports the Pentagon. […]
While political and military leaders debate the pros and cons of whether the United States needs a separate “Space Force,” Chinese hackers have offered a reminder of two truths: operations in space are extremely important, and the assets used in space are vulnerable to cyberattack. […]
Welcome to MeriTalk News Briefs, where we bring you all the day’s action that didn’t quite make the headlines. No need to shout about ‘em, but we do feel that they merit talk. […]
Robert Wilkie, President Trump’s nominee for Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA), affirmed that IT modernization and the Electronic Health Records (EHR) Program are among his top priorities during today’s Senate Veterans Affairs Committee nomination hearing. […]
Small businesses are a particularly weak spot in the American armor when it comes to a potential blow that could be struck by Chinese telecommunications equipment manufacturers ZTE and Huawei. […]
There are many emerging technologies designed to help Federal managers optimize their data centers and operate their information technology infrastructures more efficiently. But with so many new choices, how do agencies pick the best solutions? […]
Welcome to MeriTalk News Briefs, where we bring you all the day’s action that didn’t quite make the headlines. No need to shout about ‘em, but we do feel that they merit talk. […]
The House Energy and Commerce Committee’s Subcommittee on Communications and Technology today discussed the most recent draft of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration Reauthorization Act of 2018, which the subcommittee said is intended to “support broadband infrastructure, efficient spectrum use, and drive the nation’s internet-connected economy.” […]
Josh Marcuse, executive director of the Defense Innovation Board (DIB), said today at Defense One’s Tech Summit that both Silicon Valley engineers and national defense community members are stuck in a line of thinking about artificial intelligence (AI) and warfighting innovation that could impact safety and contribute to greater risk on the battlefield. […]
The Trump administration’s nominees to become head of cybersecurity and Inspector General (IG) at the Department of Energy (DoE) received a largely warm welcome from members of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee today as the panel held a hearing to consider those and several other DoE nominations. […]
Google’s decision to pull out of the Defense Department’s (DoD) Project Maven artificial intelligence (AI) initiative without DoD consultation could have potential ramifications on American military and civilian lives, according to former Deputy Secretary of Defense Robert Work. […]
The State Department on Friday held the fourth United States-Republic of Korea Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Policy Forum in Seoul, South Korea, which brought together private sector representatives and delegations from the two nations to discuss how the countries can collaborate to advance mutual goals in areas of 5G mobile technology, artificial intelligence, inclusive Internet governance, and data privacy. […]
Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper appointed 12 members to the Council for the Advance of Blockchain Technology last week. […]
Many states are seeking to adopt blockchain technology to create more secure transactions, but that may not be the optimal route for ensuring the technology is applicable across the nation, according to Tiffany Angulo, a staffer for Rep. David Schweikert, R-Ariz., who is the co-chair of the Congressional Blockchain Caucus. […]
Joyce Corell, assistant director for the supply chain directorate at the Officer of the Director of National Intelligence’s (ODNI) National Counterintelligence and Security Center, predicts that regulation or other means to manage IT supply chain security risk is inevitable, given increased emphasis on the topic across government. Speaking at an Information Security and Privacy Advisory Board meeting Friday, Corell said rumblings across the Federal space concerning supply chain risk will soon likely lead to even more formal steps. […]
Welcome to MeriTalk News Briefs, where we bring you all the day’s action that didn’t quite make the headlines. No need to shout about ‘em, but we do feel that they merit talk. […]
Jordan Burris, senior cybersecurity advisor to Federal CIO Suzette Kent at the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), said Friday at an Information Security and Privacy Advisory Board (ISPAB) meeting that Federal agencies are continuing to make progress on curbing their cybersecurity risks, following concerning findings from the White House. […]