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GAO Official Explains How to Balance Open Data with Cybersecurity

For agencies pursuing new ways to share and manage data, Government Accountability Office (GAO) Director of IT and Cybersecurity Nick Marinos recommends focusing on the agency’s mission and incorporating security early on in the process.

  • U.S. Patent Trademark Office USPTO Commerce USPTO Rolls Out First AI Project to Speed Patent Exam Process

    The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) last week rolled out its first artificial intelligence (AI)-based project, one that aims ultimately to speed patent examination processes, said Tom Beach, Chief Data Strategist and Portfolio Manager at USPTO.

  • Pentagon DoD Defense Military NDAA to Align Pentagon’s CDO to OCIO

    For the Defense Department (DoD), the Chief Data Officer (CDO) for the agency will be within the Office of the CIO (OCIO), Deputy CIO for Information Enterprise at DoD Peter Ranks said today.

  • Reps. Question VA Timeline for Finance System Modernization

    The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is in the early implementation stages of its rollout of the modernized, $2.5 billion Financial Management Business Transformation (FMBT) effort, but full implementation isn’t scheduled until 2030, prompting concern from members of Congress during a joint meeting of the House Veterans Affairs’ Subcommittee on Technology Modernization and Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations on December 5.

Recent News
  1. SSA Faces Issues on Phishing and Malware, OIG Reports

    A FISMA audit found problems with both phishing and data exfiltration at the Social Security Administration (SSA), according to two report summaries released December 4 by the agency’s inspector general.

  2. House Oversight’s FITARA 9.0 Hearing to Feature NASA, DHS CIOs

    Chief information officers from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and NASA are scheduled to testify at the House Government Operations Subcommittee’s hearing on Dec. 11 to discuss results of the House Oversight and Reform Committee’s ninth FITARA (Federal Information Technology Acquisition Reform Act) Scorecard, MeriTalk has learned.

News Briefs
  1. NCTA Names Deputy General Counsel
  2. Romanian Hackers Get Long U.S. Prison Sentences
  3. Jonathan Pawlow Named ITI Government Affairs Senior Director
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  1. Soldier modernization DoD Defense Department technology mobile Rep. Houlahan Working to Improve DoD’s IT Workforce

    On Dec. 6, Rep. Chrissy Houlahan, D-Penn., introduced H.R. 5353, which will establish a policy that promotes and maintains “digital and software development expertise” in the Defense Department’s (DoD) workforce.

  2. NIAC Urges White House for Comprehensive Action on Infrastructure Cybersecurity

    The President’s National Infrastructure Advisory Council (NIAC) recommended “urgent and comprehensive action” on cyber threats to critical infrastructure in a draft of its Dec. 12 memo to the White House.

  3. FCC Chairman Appoints Precision Agriculture Connectivity Panel Chairs

    Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai has announced the appointment of chairs for four working groups that will support the work of the FCC’ new Task Force for Reviewing the Connectivity and Technology Needs of Precision Agriculture. 

  4. Spearphish Testing Paying Off at Education Department

    While figures vary across industry and government as to the size of the “phishing-prone” population in any organization, both sides agree that sustained internal employee training efforts are necessary to cut the success rate of spear-phishing exploits down to more manageable levels.

  1. Commerce’s BEA Posts Procurement Notice for National Cloud Pricing Index

    The Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) released a sole source procurement notice for 451 Research’s one-year subscription to the agency’s Cloud Price Index Service on Dec. 4.

  2. FDA Launches New App to Assist Clinical Community

    The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) launched a new mobile application called the CURE ID that will allow the clinical community to report uses of existing drugs for infectious diseases that may prove difficult to treat.

  3. CBP Pulls Support for Broader Facial Recognition Use

    The Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Customs and Border Protection (CBP) operation has pulled its support for a mandatory biometric entry-exit system that would require facial recognition scans for all travelers – including U.S. citizens – entering or departing the United States, according to a Dec. 5 press release from Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass.

  4. Sens. Coons, Lee Argue for Facial Recognition Technology Warrant Act

    At a Brookings Institution event on Dec. 5, Sens. Chris Coons, D-Del., and Mike Lee, R-Utah., made the case for their Facial Recognition Technology Warrant Act.

  5. How Agencies Are Overcoming Data Management Hurdles

    Officials from the General Services Administration (GSA), and Departments of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Veterans Affairs (VA) talked this week about some of the obstacles they’ve encountered, and are overcoming, in wrestling with Big Data sets.

  6. Senate Commerce Poised to Move on 5G Spectrum, Robocall Bills

    The Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee is poised to take action next week on a range of tech-related legislation including bills dealing with making available spectrum for 5G wireless services, and further action to rein in robocalling.

  7. VA Launches National AI Institute

    The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) announced today the launch of its National Artificial Intelligence (AI) Institute (NAII) to coordinate veteran-specific AI initiatives.

  8. House Oversight Panel Sets Dec. 11 Hearing for FITARA Scorecard 9.0

    The House Oversight and Reform Committee’s Government Operations Subcommittee has scheduled a  hearing for Dec. 11 at 2:00 p.m. to discuss results of the subcommittee’s upcoming release of the ninth edition of its FITARA (Federal Information Technology Acquisition Reform Act) Scorecard.

  9. Successful AI Stems from Human-Centered Design, Fed Leaders Agree

    Federal artificial intelligence (AI) technology leaders agreed today that a human-centered approach to data management and automation generates stakeholder buy-in and improves agencywide perceptions of AI projects.

  10. SSA Seeing Slow Adoption on Updated Disability Case System

    The Social Security Administration (SSA) has rolled out its modernized Disability Case Processing System (DCPS) to 31 states and territories, but the system is only being used to process seven percent of their workloads due to gaps in functionality, according to a review by SSA’s inspector general.