Federal CIO Kent Announces Cyber Reskilling Academy
Federal CIO Suzette Kent this morning announced creation of the Federal Cyber Reskilling Academy–a joint effort of the Office of Management and Budget, the Department of Education, and the Federal CIO Council Workforce Committee–to kickstart the Federal government’s efforts to address gaps in the Federal cybersecurity workforce and help retrain Federal employees.
Feds Reach IT Modernization Tipping Point
A new report from MeriTalk and the American Council for Technology and Industry Advisory Council (ACT-IAC) finds that Federal finance, IT, and procurement experts believe we’ve reached an IT modernization tipping point.
DHS Launches ICT Sector Supply Chain Risk Task Force
The Department of Homeland Security on Oct. 30 announced launch of the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Supply Chain Risk Management Task Force, which the agency said is charged with developing “consensus recommendations” to identify and manage risk to the global ICT supply chain.
DHS’ Manfra Discusses FISMA Update, Impact to CDM
Jeanette Manfra, assistant secretary for the Office of Cybersecurity and Communications at the Department of Homeland Security, said today that the new update to Federal Information Security Modernization Act (FISMA) guidance will place even more accountability on department leaders and reflects an evolution in discussions between agencies and DHS.
OMB Needs to Kick-Start Action on Federal Data Strategy, ITIF Argues
The Biden administration and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) need to take several big steps to reinvigorate action on the 2021 Federal Data Strategy (FDS) in order to realize the strategy’s goals, the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) think tank argues in a new report.
DHS Reaches CX Goal, Cutting Paperwork Burden by 20M Hours
As the department that interacts more frequently on a daily basis with the American public than any other Federal agency, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) recently announced that it has reduced the total amount of time the public spends accessing its services by 20 million hours annually.
DoD Bridging ‘Valley of Death’ with Second Year of Tech Funding
The Defense Department (DoD) recently picked 11 projects as part of a new program to bridge the “valley of death” for military technology.
NOAA Finalizes $8 Billion ProTech Contract RFP
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has released a final request for proposal (RFP) for its $8 billion ProTech Oceans Domain 2.0. contract, which covers major domains of satellites, fisheries, weather, and oceans.
Peeling Back the Layers of Modernization: A Pragmatic Approach
With unique environments and disparate needs, government agencies have widely varying modernization requirements. In particular, agencies with especially heavy or fast data processing needs can find it difficult to modernize and move to the cloud. We sat down with Larry Reagan, vice president, Federal financial, at Maximus, to explore how pragmatic modernization, flexible roadmaps, legacy technology know-how, and mission expertise can help agencies along their modernization journeys.
Rep. Waltz Calls for Special Committee on AI, More Regulation
Rep. Mike Waltz, R-Fla., made a broad call today for Congress to establish a special committee on artificial intelligence (AI).
DoD CIO Tweaks Digital Tech Acquisition Guide, With Cloud Emphasis
Department of Defense (DoD) Chief Information Officer (CIO) John Sherman on June 1 approved updates to agency guidance on buying software and digital technology that are better aligned with recent changes made to other statutes and policies that impact IT functions, a DoD spokesperson confirmed to MeriTalk.
CRS: Congress Should Consider Data Privacy in Generative AI Regulation
As it approaches any move to regulate the creation or use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) technologies, Congress should look to the state of data privacy laws in the U.S. – or the lack thereof – as an important guidepost in deciding the rules of the road for AI tech developers who must train their algorithms on massive amounts of data.
Pentagon Ramping up Sensory Capabilities for UFO Detection
The Pentagon’s All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO) is ramping up its abilities to sense and track unidentified flying objects (UFOs) – otherwise referred to as unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP) – as part of its ongoing mandate to investigate the presence of those phenomena in the air, sea, space, or on land.
Biden Inks Bill to Create FAA NOTAM Task Force
President Biden signed the NOTAM Improvement Act into law over the weekend, which requires the administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to establish a task force to provide recommendations for improvement of the agency’s Notices to Air Missions (NOTAM) system.
With 80 percent of every Federal IT dollar spent on life support for legacy systems, the Federal IT community is exploring new options to modernize and innovate – virtualization, cloud computing, Flash technology, software-defined options, shared services, and more. MeriTalk is staying close to the leaders on the front lines, bringing you new ideas and lessons learned.
And, as Federal IT leaders work to meet demands of an “always-on” highly mobile government, we bring you the stories and breaking news on balancing productivity with security. Our government IT news includes how agencies manage advanced persistent threats, and the steps that help guard against socially engineered threats. We look at the latest trends in malware, spyware, ransomware, and spear phishing. And – how can Federal agencies protect data from tomorrow’s cyber threats?
The MeriTalk “Industry Insider” column, offers a weekly news roundup of contracts and other activity in the Federal IT industry. Check with MeriTalk daily for the government technology news you need to know, or subscribe to get the latest stories delivered directly to your inbox. You’ll stay up to date with interesting and timely Federal IT stories on cybersecurity, big data, data center modernization, cloud, mobile, and other developments in your community – from what’s next for the MGT Act to the highly anticipated Federal IT revolving capital fund, MeriTalk brings you the trends and breaking IT news to help you modernize, innovate, and transform public sector technology and the missions you support.