Cybersecurity
Scammers Posing as Border Patrol Agents Are Attempting to Swindle Banking Info
The Homeland Security Department warns it never solicits money over the phone.
Modernization
Remote Work and Hack Mitigation Show Need for IT Modernization Funding, Lawmaker Says
Rep. Ro Khanna detailed efforts to ensure agencies have resources for legally mandated updates.
Cybersecurity
FBI Director Says Extremists Flocking to Encrypted Apps Poses New Challenges
Christopher Wray told lawmakers tech companies are the ones making policies about encryption.
Digital Government
Cybersecurity and IT Remain Top Concerns on GAO’s High-Risk List
Agencies showed some slight progress on IT issues, though cybersecurity took a step backward in the latest report.
Emerging Tech
Defense Innovation Unit Initiated 35% More Projects in 2020
The group initiated 23 new projects and transitioned 11 capabilities to Defense Department partners last year, according to its annual report.
Cybersecurity
NSA Pushes Zero Trust Principles to Help Prevent Sophisticated Hacks
Operating under the default position that an organization has been compromised is a pain that’s worth it, the agency said.
Modernization
CBP Attempts to Mitigate Privacy Risks Created by New Customs App
CBP One will become the primary public-facing portal for a number of customs programs and services. But any new data collection effort brings privacy risks.
Digital Government
Cloud Security
Federal agencies are rethinking how they secure information as they move more mission-critical operations to the cloud.
Ideas
Securing Space: The Next Frontier of Credential-Based Attacks
Like many other sectors, the space industry needs to secure its supply chain from start to finish.
Cybersecurity
When water utilities get hacked, who should they call?
In the wake of a cybersecurity breach at a public water system, lawmakers have begun questioning what rules are in place to govern those facilities' cybersecurity and what changes may be necessary.
Cybersecurity
Mandatory breach reporting bill on deck, lawmakers say
Congress could be poised to require companies to report hacks in the wake of the massive breach linked to vulnerabilities on SolarWinds' IT management software.
Cybersecurity
Hearing on Hack Prompts Call for Review of Government’s Cloud Procurement
A key lawmaker highlighted a profit motive for “basic” cybersecurity as problematic following an exchange with Microsoft President Brad Smith.
Cybersecurity
Hackers Seized on the Pandemic. Some States Are Fighting Back.
Cyberattackers have forced states to take down websites, stolen $36 billion in unemployment payments and exposed millions of residents’ personal information to scammers.
Emerging Tech
Air Force Base Prepping for EMP Vulnerability Tests
In response to a Trump administration executive order, Joint Base San Antonio is getting ready to test its infrastructure against a simulated electromagnetic pulse attack.
Cybersecurity
Space Firms Put Aside Rivalries to Share Threat Data
A new clearinghouse has begun gathering and distributing information about threats to space networks, products, and services.
Cybersecurity
The Hack Roundup: State Department Cyber Office Clears Committee Amid Push for International Norms
Here are the news and updates you might have missed.
Digital Government
IG: ‘Tens of Billions’ in Fraudulent Unemployment Claims in 2020
A Labor Department Inspector General memo suggests a massive uptick in fraudulent unemployment claims brought on by COVID-19.
Digital Government
Cultural Resistance Top Challenge Slowing IT Modernization, Survey Finds
Air Force Chief Information Officer Lauren Knausenberger said she’s changing minds by demonstrating utility to the warfighter.
Cybersecurity
Report: Mobile Phishing to Steal Government Credentials Increased 67% in 2020
State and local governments are more exposed than federal agencies in the new teleworking age, but threats have increased across the board.
Digital Government