Agencies lost around 20,000 tech workers last year — and now the Trump admin is hiring
Agencies lost around 20,000 tech workers last year — and now the Trump admin is hiring
Policy
Tech bills of the week: Restricting biometric use; expanding the quantum workforce; and more
Congress avoided a second mini-shutdown and saw a return-to-normal influx of new tech bills.
Artificial Intelligence
VA’s latest AI inventory includes new suicide, EHR-focused use cases
Seventy-two of the AI use cases previously included in the department’s 2024 inventory were listed as retired, meaning that their “development and/or use has since been discontinued.”
People
Now accepting applications — for classified intel
Foreign adversaries are using fake jobs and consulting gigs to coax secrets from former U.S. officials. It’s had results, and the efforts don’t appear to be slowing.
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Through a recent collaboration with AWS, ECCO Select and Datadog, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Forest Service was able to achieve significant measurable observability improvements, bringing greater efficiency to wildfire monitoring and response efforts.
People
Social Security is directing employees who normally process benefits to answer phones instead
After shedding thousands of employees, SSA is reassigning workers amid fears the moves will cause backlogs to grow.
Digital Government
Super Bowl gears up for massive security operation
While immigration officials will reportedly not be present at the San Francisco game this weekend, a raft of federal, state and local agencies will be on site to keep the event safe from various threats.
Cybersecurity
CISA orders agencies to patch and replace end-of-life devices, citing active exploitation
The directive gives agencies three months to identify unsupported edge devices, a year to begin removing them and 18 months to eliminate them entirely.
Artificial Intelligence
AI moratorium was never a ‘long-term solution,’ lawmaker says
Rep. Jay Obernolte, R-Calif., explained that Congress is angling to design a nationwide AI framework that works with state law while offering common guardrails.
Policy
VA’s National Cemetery Administration earns top customer satisfaction scores
For the eighth year in a row, the small agency earned the highest rankings in the American Customer Satisfaction Index.
Cybersecurity
Domestic surveillance fears loom over Congress debate to renew spying power
Lawmakers’ concerns about immigration enforcement and Fourth Amendment compliance are weighing on the reauthorization fight for Section 702 of FISA, even as the FBI privately warns against letting the foreign spying law lapse.
Sponsor Content
From legacy to cloud-ready
Learn how Atlassian and Clovity deliver a unified, scalable path from legacy tools to enterprise-wide modernization that helps all government teams.
Modernization
Digital GI bill delays are a reflection of VA’s IT management problem, lawmakers say
Rep. Tom Barrett, R-Mich., said the delays and cost overruns affecting VA’s new digital GI Bill system were “not unique.”
People
'Setting this agency up for failure': Amid staffing crunch, IRS taps employees with no relevant experience to assist during filing season
The tax agency is taking unusual steps to prepare for its busy season after watchdog finds it is severely underprepared.
Ideas
As US celebrates 250th, CIOs turn youngish 30
COMMENTARY | What can be done to improve federal IT leadership?
People
Inside the federal CIO’s culture-first approach
Gregory Barbaccia told Nextgov/FCW that his priorities for the coming year are aimed at making change at scale in government IT.
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Cybersecurity
Senator says AT&T and Verizon blocked release of Salt Typhoon security reports
“AT&T and Verizon apparently intervened” to block a major cyber intelligence firm from sending documentation about the telecom hackers, Sen. Maria Cantwell wrote in a letter.
Ideas
Trust, trade and the new data diplomacy
COMMENTARY | Data has become the connective tissue of global progress.
Cybersecurity
AI info-sharing center is in development, CISA official says
CISA’s Nick Andersen told reporters that he didn’t know of a completion timeline, but talks were ongoing across government and industry.
Policy
Partial shutdown ends less than 4 days after it began
Nearly every federal agency is now funded through September and employees will be paid for the days they were furloughed.
Cybersecurity
White House cyber shop is crafting AI security policy framework, top official says
ONCD chief Sean Cairncross also said a bedrock National Cyber Strategy, initially expected last month, is coming “sooner rather than later” without specifying a date.
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Emerging Tech
Draft quantum order tasks many agencies with reinvigorating the tech’s development
The order outlines a widespread effort to plan for increased quantum innovation, private sector cooperation and international partnership in pursuit of a quantum computer for scientific applications and discovery.
