Policy
Figuring Out How to Go After International Robocallers
The FCC will vote on a proposed rule next month that would ban malicious caller ID spoofing for text messages and robocalls that originate outside the United States. State attorneys general have long requested federal assistance with complaints about robocallers from out of the country.
Podcasts
Critical Update: Containing Chernobyl
We’re joined by an engineer who helped build the final containment structure at Chernobyl, in a race against time, bureaucracy and the aftermath of the Soviet Union.
Cybersecurity
NSA Isn’t Always Following Its Own Cybersecurity Policies, Watchdog Says
The NSA Inspector General found the agency has “room for improvement” in every IT security category outlined in FISMA.
Digital Government
Experts Say Federal Data Strategy Needs Leaders and Funding to Succeed
Stakeholders are pleased the government is poised to take action on the federal data strategy but had some management advice for the Office of Management and Budget.
Modernization
How an Agriculture App that Spills the Dirt on Soil Got a Second Life
The department’s barebones SoilWeb app grew a following until app stores changed their rules in 2017. Now it’s back.
Emerging Tech
Pentagon Looks into Virtual Reality to Prepare Troops for Nuclear War
The tech would let troops run through more exercises more frequently and at less cost than traditional training in the real world.
Cybersecurity
Suspected Iranian Cyber Attacks Show No Sign of Slowing
As Iran and the U.S. trade cyber blows, a new warning shows that the online fight is likely to go on.
Emerging Tech
A Startling Spike on Mars
Methane gas is a potential indicator of life on the red planet, but it’s proving difficult to track.
Emerging Tech
The Intelligence Community Wants to Hear Your Cutting-Edge Tech Pitch
ODNI is expanding one of its major vendor outreach programs to speed up adoption of emerging tech and modernize the intelligence community’s IT infrastructure.
Modernization
Watchdog: Poor Oversight Put GSA’s $50B Telecom Transition Over Schedule, Over Budget
The agency hired contractors to help with a smooth transition but ended up spending lots of money for little movement.
Emerging Tech
U.S. Army Making Synthetic Biology a Priority
New thermal cloaking, insect proof uniforms are on the horizon, if the U.S. can get out in front of China.
Modernization
GSA Releases Draft Requirements For Governmentwide E-commerce Pilot
Interested vendors have until Aug. 1 to weigh in on the project, which is expected to officially kick off by the end of the year.
Modernization
Modernization Fund Program Isn’t Recouping Overhead Costs Fast Enough
The Technology Modernization Fund is incurring millions more in overhead costs than it is recouping in administrative fees.
Cybersecurity
Report: Pentagon Should Assume U.S. Satellites Are Already Hacked
As U.S. and its allies tether more of their military operations to government and commercial satellites, they need to start taking cybersecurity more seriously.
Ideas
The Federal Data Strategy is a Trump Plan We Should All Support
It’s stakeholder-driven, it’s bipartisan and it’s reasonable.
Emerging Tech
Agriculture Unleashed 320 New Inventions in 2018
The agency detailed them all in its annual Technology Transfer Report.
Artificial Intelligence
Congress Wants DHS to Study Disruptive Deepfake Videos
Bills introduced in the House and Senate aim to combat the forged media through comprehensive research and technological assessments.
Digital Government
Justice Department Launches API for Foreign Lobbyist Data
The new online portal offers the public easier access to documents filed under the Foreign Agents Registration Act, the law that put Paul Manafort in jail.
Digital Government
