Cybersecurity
Hacked OPM and Background Check Contractors Lacked Logs, DHS Says
Hackers first penetrated OPM, USIS and KeyPoint in the fall of 2013.
Cybersecurity
Committee Grills DHS Official over EINSTEIN's Failure to Prevent OPM Attack
Representatives asked about EINSTEIN, an intrusion detection system, and why the hack occurred with this system in place.
Cybersecurity
More fed security woes, more DHS bills and a wait-and-see approach to EAGLE II
News and notes from around the federal IT community.
Cybersecurity
OPM contractors in the crosshairs
House Oversight and Government Reform targeted OPM officials and contractors alike for their roles in the massive hack.
Cybersecurity
House Homeland Security Chair: Senate Cyber-Info-Sharing Bill Has No Chance in House
Rep. Michael McCaul said he's concerned about elements of the Senate bill that could allow the NSA to collect more information on Americans.
Cybersecurity
House Oversight Chair Accuses OPM Director of Lying About Cyberattack
“It was misleading, it was a lie, and it wasn’t true,” Rep. Jason Chaffetz said.
Digital Government
State Department Visa System on the Mend After 2-Week Glitch
After a hardware problem stalled the Bureau of Consular Affairs' visa system, two-thirds of its posts are now able to issue visas, according to a press briefing Tuesday.
Digital Government
Facebook’s Algorithm Can Identify You Even When You’re Hiding Your Face
The social network presented research that shows it can identify individuals with 83 percent accuracy, according to The New Scientist.
Cybersecurity
McCaul says OPM hack should push Senate to act on cyber
The theft of information on federal employees from government systems should provide the Senate with the urgency to pass cybersecurity legislation, according to one of the bill's key House sponsors.
Cybersecurity
Joint Chiefs official blasts cultural resistance to major IT projects
Two of the Pentagon's major IT security initiatives face problems from the ranks, laments Lt. Gen. Mark Bowman.
Digital Government
Even Behind Closed Doors, Senators Aren't Getting Their OPM-Hack Questions Answered
Lawmakers say they are still in the dark about basic details of multiple data breaches that affected federal workers last year.
Cybersecurity
Rogers mum on OPM attribution, but says hack shows value of data
The country's top cyber official declined to officially attribute the OPM hack to China, but called the intrusion a reminder of how "data has value as a commodity."
Cybersecurity
Hacker Extracts Data on Purveyors of Controlled Substances
Healthcare and Public Health
Cybersecurity
How Hackers Unlocked OPM Systems and 6 Other Things We Learned about the Breach
Agency chief wants you to know she is angry about the data breach and ID theft protection customer service.
Cybersecurity
Jeb Bush: Obama Should Fire His ‘Political Hack’ OPM Director
The presidential candidate joins a handful of lawmakers in calling for the resignation of Katherine Archuleta because of her handling of a massive data breach.
Cybersecurity
IRS-OPM teamwork and a China cyber warning
News and notes from around the federal IT community.
Cybersecurity
Signs of OPM Hack at Another Federal Agency Turn Out to Be Legitimate Files (UPDATED)
The agency detected unauthorized activity on three desktops after the big breach came to light this spring.
Cybersecurity
OPM Database Storing 4 Billion Employee Health Records Needs Security Upgrades
A “data warehouse” of federal employees’ health and prescription drug claims maintained by the agency’s Office of the Inspector General contains 4 billion records.
Cybersecurity
Unions play watchdog – and roadblock? – roles in OPM disaster
Federal labor unions are holding OPM accountable and fighting for workers after breaches exposed personal data – but did union bargaining help leave government systems vulnerable in the first place?
Cybersecurity