Acquisition
HPC boosters back FITARA exemption for national labs
At a Capitol Hill conference, high-performance computer operators and vendors said the powerful machines should not be categorized as garden-variety IT for the purposes of procurement.
Modernization
Pentagon Wants Its Own Secure Messaging System
DARPA is looking for small businesses to supply that technology.
Cybersecurity
House Oversight Committee Probes Social Security’s Vulnerability to Hackers
Lawmakers want a copy of a recent penetration test of the agency’s networks.
Modernization
How the Intelligence Community’s IT Strategy Helped Link Assad to 2013 Chemical Weapons Attack
The intelligence community's IT plan been shoring up the same kinds of intelligence gaps that preceded the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
Digital Government
The Increasingly Automated Hunt for Mobile Missile Launchers
The trick is training computers to filter the normal from an ocean of imagery, alert human analysts sparingly, and learn from their feedback.
Cybersecurity
Don’t Panic (For Now) About ISIS Hacking
The group’s cyberwarriors are underfunded and poorly organized, but a recent shakeup could signal a change.
Emerging Tech
The First Drone to Complete a Delivery in the US Is On its Way to the Smithsonian
It was a “Kitty Hawk moment” for the drone industry.
Digital Government
NSA Has No Clue How Many Americans it’s Spying On
The agency is watching the electronic communications of hundreds of millions people, allegedly to find foreign threats.
Cybersecurity
Can investigators reverse engineer insider threats?
The idea is to use past insider threat incidents to stitch together profiles of future rogue employees.
Digital Government
'Service Never Ends': Join Nextgov on May 4 to Learn from Public Service Leaders and Change Makers
Speakers will share their stories as change makers on the local, national and international stage through their continued service in the armed forces, the government and the private sector.
Acquisition
DOD slammed on ENCORE III contracting
Two federal contracting groups don't like the Defense Department's selection process for its massive upcoming $17.5 billion multiple award IT contract.
People
Why OPM is prioritizing higher education for feds
A new training push might be equipping feds with skills that could help them jump to the private sector, but one leader says that's okay.
Cybersecurity
More modern IT could keep SSA from mailing out Social Security numbers
The Social Security Administration's internal watchdog said modernization would help the agency keep personally identifiable information out of mailings to beneficiaries.
Digital Government
DHS to Tap Silicon Valley for Doggie Fitbits, Facial Recognition Tech
It’s the latest DHS effort to draw new brainpower and technology.
Cybersecurity
DHS set for new wave of IT hiring
DHS is developing an IT/cybersecurity-specific hiring fair, and the agency might take the show on the road.
Digital Government
Vendors cry foul on Halvorsen's Windows 10 recommendation
DOD CIO Terry Halvorsen has said he does not formally endorse the operating system, but software vendors believe his praise amounts to an endorsement.
Digital Government
Are Agencies Drowning in Data Mandates?
There's the DATA Act, the OPEN Government Act and others. Can agencies keep up?
Emerging Tech
SpaceX Plans to Head for Mars as Soon as 2018
The Mars mission, which will take about six months, is intended to give the company data about landing heavy payloads on Mars with rocket engines—a necessity for human colonization.
Digital Government