The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced a new partnership with the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) to expand broadband connectivity to Tribal libraries. […]
In a reorganization of responsibilities, the Department of Defense (DoD) has put the Cybersecurity Maturation Model Certificate (CMMC) program under the oversight of the DoD’s Office of the CIO (OCIO), a shift from being the responsibility of the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment (A&S), according to a Feb. 3 release. […]
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has officially formed the Cyber Safety Review Board called for in President Biden’s Cybersecurity Executive Order issued last year, and said the board’s first action will be to examine the log4j software library vulnerability that emerged in December 2021 and to generate lessons learned from that for the cybersecurity community. […]
The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee on Feb. 2 voted to approve the Improving Cybersecurity of Small Organizations Act of 2021 (S. 2483), which would require the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) to maintain and promote cyber guidance for use by small organizations. […]
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced that FCC Chair Jessica Rosenworcel will lead the relaunched Cybersecurity Forum for Independent and Executive Branch Regulators. […]
The House of Representatives waded into the final stages of debate today in its consideration of the America Creating Opportunities for Manufacturing, Pre-Eminence in Technology and Economic Strength Act of 2022 (COMPETES). […]
An annual report from the Defense Department’s (DoD) Director for Operational Test and Evaluation (DOT&E) has found the Military Health System (MHS) GENESIS – DoD’s new electronic health records management (EHRM) system – was not deemed to be survivable in a cyber-contested environment following reviews in 2020 and 2021. […]
Rep. Jim Langevin, D-R.I., said he is eyeing a universe of about 100 private sector firms that he considers to be “systemically important” critical infrastructure providers as he completes work on legislation that will call for closer collaboration between the Federal government and those companies on cybersecurity and related intelligence sharing. […]
Third-party auditors found several deficiencies in the Department of Labor’s (DoL) information security program and determined it was not effective. […]
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report this week urging the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to address data management challenges with its Electronic Health Records Modernization (EHRM) program, which has come under fire in recent months from Congress over a troubled roll-out and inaccurate cost estimates. […]
The House Oversight and Reform Committee today approved by voice vote legislation that would update the Federal Information Security Modernization Act (FISMA). The committee’s vote sends the legislation to the full House of Representatives for consideration. […]
Ransomware and supply chain attacks dominated the news in 2021, and experts expect them to persist and continue to converge in 2022. Government agencies, suppliers, and other target organizations must evolve their own cybersecurity techniques to stay ahead of attackers, says Sam Curry, chief security officer at Cybereason. In the first episode of MeriTV’s new Fix Fed IT series, Curry takes stock of the ransomware-supply chain attack convergence and outlines actions that organizations can take to protect themselves. […]
The Department of Defense (DoD) has announced that its Chief Digital and Artificial Intelligence Office (CDAO) has achieved initial operational capability in accordance with a Dec. 8, 2021 memorandum that required the establishment of CDAO, and for the office to attain initial operating capability by Feb. 1. […]
With Federal employees accessing critical information, systems, and applications from anywhere, the mindset has shifted to never trust and always verify. Federal security experts explained that this shift put a focus on a new critical aspect of a zero trust architecture – identity management. […]
As part of the bipartisan infrastructure bill signed into law last year, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo is tasked with overseeing the Federal government’s $65 billion investment in broadband deployment to unserved and underserved areas across the country. […]
While one primary focus of the Biden administration’s President’s Management Agenda is continuing to improve Federal IT to enable better delivery of citizen services, tech leaders from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) explained on Feb. 1 that they face emerging challenges in pursuing those goals. […]
The Office of Management and Budget’s (OMB) finalized zero trust directive issued last week sets the stage for the first steps in implementing zero trust security architectures at Federal agencies, but a lot more work remains in the pursuit of that goal, a panel of Federal security experts agreed during an ATARC virtual event on Feb. 1. […]
A new report from the National Academy of Public Administrators (NAPA) is emphasizing the pressing need for a national cyber workforce development strategy and recommends that the Office of the National Cyber Director (ONCD) be in charge of developing the strategy. […]
In a report on the Department of Commerce’s system security assessment process, the Commerce Inspector General (IG) found that the agency must improve the system and continuous monitoring program for effective security controls. […]
Reps. Anna G. Eshoo, D-Calif., and William Timmons, R-S.C., have reintroduced bipartisan and bicameral legislation that aims to help improve the cybersecurity of local governments and small organizations. […]
In a new report, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that the National Telecommunications and Information Agency (NTIA) lacks a formal process to plan for the transfer of some Federally-used spectrum to the private sector to help build mobile networks, including 5G. […]
Growing technology advancements have created new opportunities for military officials to improve training, war fighting, and even efficiency in the court of law, officials from the U.S. Army, Navy, and Air Force explained at a GovExec virtual event on Jan. 28. […]
A bipartisan, bicameral group of 45 lawmakers led by Sens. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, and Roger Wicker, R-Miss., is calling on congressional leadership to extend Medicare coverage of telehealth services in February. […]
NASA has updated a draft solicitation for a $720 million contract that will help the agency develop new technologies, and has invited request for proposals (RFP) to review and comment on the solicitation. […]
The National Science Foundation (NSF) plans to invest in eight new CyberCorps Scholarship for Service projects to address the demand for dedicated cybersecurity professionals, particularly in government agencies. […]
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced today the agency is ready to authorize more than $1.2 billion through the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund to finance new broadband deployments in 32 states. The commission also announced creation of the Rural Broadband Accountability Plan, which is a new effort from to monitor and ensure compliance for universal service high-cost programs including the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund. […]
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has adopted an order updating the rules for its E-Rate program to clarify that Tribal libraries can access program funding. […]
The Department of the Interior is working to hire a new chief information officer (CIO) to lead the agency’s IT strategy and budget, according to a job posting on USAjobs.com. The new hire would serve in the Senior Executive Service and have a place on the Federal CIO Council. […]
A new report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) sees a slew of opportunities for the extended reality (XR) technology within the Federal government, but also cautions that several cyber-related challenges remain. […]
Lawmakers urge officials from the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) and the National Science Foundation (NSF) to staff the National Artificial Intelligence Research Resource (NAIRR) task force with AI experts in a letter sent Tuesday. […]