The Department of Defense (DoD) recently called cATO the “gold standard” in cybersecurity. However, the current process for obtaining authorization to operate (ATO) is “point in time,” costly, and time consuming. Based on these issues, an alternative, continuous authority to operate (cATO), is gaining momentum. […]
Federal cybersecurity agencies along with the Department of Energy (DOE) have published a new cyber advisory that talks about several Russian hacks on the energy sector between 2011 and 2018 that are the subject of a Department of Justice (DOJ) indictment unsealed this week against Russian actors for those past attacks. […]
The complex legislative process needed to bring congressional leaders together to reconcile differences between Senate-passed and House-passed semiconductor and innovation legislation advanced in the Senate this week, and now stands just a few steps from completion, as lawmakers call for cybersecurity-related components of the bills to make the final cut. […]
The U.S. Navy’s Chief Data Officer (CDO) said the service branch is embarking on a data infrastructure transformation to tackle a two-pronged challenge: first, how to deal with the sheer amount of data collected, and second, understanding if the Navy has the correct kinds of data to help leaders make decisions. […]
In the last few years, the city of St. Louis has become a hub for public and private innovators of geospatial intelligence (GEOINT). […]
New legislation introduced by Sens. Maggie Hassan, D-N.H., and John Cornyn, R-Texas would codify into Federal law the Continuous Diagnostics and Mitigation (CDM) program, and provide for a pilot program for state and local governments to deploy the cybersecurity technologies that the CDM program offers. […]
Blockchain technologies face challenges, but a new report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) offers a range of policy recommendations that could help enhance the benefits and mitigate challenges posed by the use of those technologies. […]
Bipartisan members of the House of Representatives have introduced legislation that would reauthorize the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) National Computer Forensics Institute (NCFI), which is the U.S. Secret Service’s Federally-funded training hub for digital evidence and cybercrime investigations. […]
Organizations of all sizes are susceptible to ransomware attacks, and the best set of defenses against those kinds of destructive cyberattacks rely on implementing multifactor authentication, network segmentation, and other zero trust security principles, Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, said in a new report released today. […]
A bipartisan group of senators introduced legislation this week that would require public reporting and notice – eventually – of hundreds of thousands of court-ordered criminal surveillance orders issued each year that are often kept under seal indefinitely even if the surveillance targets were not accused of any crimes. […]
Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Gary Peters, D-Mich., said today he has found the lack of Russian cyberattacks thus far “surprising,” and warned the United States and other countries “to expect more to happen.” […]
Top officials from the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) said they briefed more than 13,000 industry stakeholders on March 22 about the Federal government’s latest warning about possible Russian cyberattacks that may be directed against U.S. critical infrastructure sectors. […]
The Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee on March 22 voted to approve the Next Generation Telecommunications Act with strong bipartisan support. […]
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has reached an agreement with the union representing agency employees for policies governing the return of employees to traditional offices in what amounts to a larger hybrid work-location approach. […]
The late-day warning on Monday from President Biden and White House national security officials that the Russian government is exploring options for potential cyberattacks against U.S. critical infrastructure targets appeared to turn many heads in the Federal cybersecurity community that is by now long-used to receiving and generating cybersecurity advisories. […]
Democrats on the House Energy and Commerce Committee wrote a letter to the National Telecommunications and Information Association (NTIA) Administrator, asking that the $65 billion in broadband funding included in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act be prioritized for broadband affordability and digital inclusion. […]
The Senate voted March 21 to invoke cloture on House-passed legislation designed to fully fund the CHIPS Act to boost domestic semiconductor production and create a new technology directorate at the National Science Foundation (NSF). […]
We sat down in recent days with Amy Gilliland, who has run General Dynamics Information Technology as president for going on five years, to talk mostly about how the company is helping Federal agencies cybersecurity and zero trust policy mandates, but in the course of a wide-ranging conversation came away with a whole lot more. […]
The Office of the Director of National Intelligence’s (ODNI) Science and Technology Group (STG) is seeking feedback on its Fiscal Year (FY) 2022-2026 Science and Technology (S&T) Investment Landscape, which sets a pathway for its S&T investment portfolio over the next four fiscal years, according to a request for information (RFI) published last month. […]
The White House issued a call to action today to critical infrastructure (CI) companies to strengthen their cyber defenses, based on evolving threat intelligence that the Russian government is exploring options for potential cyberattacks on U.S. critical infrastructure. […]
The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) issued an alert on March 17 warning of possible threats to U.S. and international satellite communication (SATCOM) networks. […]
The National Institute for Standards and Technology (NIST) is emphasizing in a new report the need to tackle biases in artificial intelligence beyond just the data sets and machine learning processes – which tend to be the main points of emphasis when looking at how to make AI less biased and more equitable. […]
Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) Director Jen Easterly has set what she called an “ambitious goal” to fill talent gaps in the cybersecurity industry by targeting a 50 percent share of that workforce for women by 2030. […]
We caught up with Gilliland in recent days to talk about the policy landscape and how systems integrators like GDIT are helping government agencies to meet the new challenges. […]
As the COVID-19 pandemic wanes, the Department of Defense (DoD) Deputy Secretary Kathleen Hicks issued guidance on the reentry of DoD employees to their normal workplaces, stating that telework is here to stay. […]
While Democratic members of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs fear cryptocurrency could be used to help Russia evade economic sanctions, witnesses at a hearing on March 17 reminded lawmakers how crypto is being used for good, providing over $55 million to Ukraine for much needed humanitarian aid and supplies. […]
Prompted by the White House executive order on cybersecurity, Federal agencies are accelerating their adoption of zero trust architectures. And according to Gerald Caron, chief information officer (CIO) and assistant inspector general (IG) for information technology at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), these models must include automation. […]
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Office of the Inspector General (OIG) released a trio of reports today that found continued deficiencies with the VA’s Electronic Health Record (EHR) transition that has led to patient care issues in multiple areas. […]
Every four years, GAO releases a strategic guide for its work to help lawmakers in Congress oversee Federal operations and address governmental and societal issues over a five-year period. In its newest plan, GAO outlines key efforts for 2022-2027; goals and objectives for serving Congress and the nation; and trends that are affecting government and society, while also detailing how technology plays a role in these efforts. […]
Puesh Kumar, director of the Energy Department’s Office of Cybersecurity Energy Security and Emergency Response (CESER), detailed several steps that the agency is taking to implement executive branch and DoE supply chain security policies during a virtual event hosted by FCW on March 16. […]