Digital Government

Unreal ID

As everyone on the planet knows by now, all you need to attend a state dinner at the White House is either a red sari or a tuxedo -- and lot of chutzpah. But, and this is even stranger, unless something changes drastically within the next 30 days, I'm going to need a passport to take a domestic air flight.

Ideas

Metro IT Money Unspent

Washington's Metro system has spent only eight percent of the economic stimulus funds it has budgeted for information technology, according to the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority. The Recovery Act enacted last February provided the beleaguered transportation system with $10.65 million for hardware and software to improve maintenance, monitor network traffic and protect Metro systems for disaster recovery.

Ideas

Nothrop Grumman forms cyber consoritium

Federal contractor Northrop Grumman <a href="http://www.irconnect.com/noc/press/pages/news_releases.html?d=179362">announced</a> a Cybersecurity Research Consortium Tuesday morning that will combine its own research expertise with that of Carnegie Mellon, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Purdue University to develop solutions to counter cyber threats.

People

OMB survey asks who's gone green

The Office of Management and Budget wants to know more about agencies and their green purchasing and recycling habits.

People

DOD social-media policy still in limbo

Official promises the policy is very close to completion.

Cybersecurity

NARA weighs standardizing access rules for foreign vendors seeking secret data

A NARA office wants to establish a standardized process through which some highly sensitive data could be released under special agreement to foreign-owned or controlled contractors.

People

Facebook plans DC event for application developers

Facebook will hold an event to help software developers create government applications for the social networking site.

Cybersecurity

Immigration and Customs looking at performance-based software development

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is considering using performance-based contracts for software development to modernize its IT systems.

Cybersecurity

Northrop Grumman to fund university research on cybersecurity tech

Northrop Grumman plans to fund researchers at Carnegie Mellon, Purdue University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology with millions of dollars to focus on leap-ahead cybersecurity technologies.

People

HHS updates acquisition regs with new rules for transparency, green purchasing

The Health and Human Services Department is doing its first major update to its acquisition regulation since 2006.

Digital Government

Internet Explorer users face new zero-day threat

Just before Thanksgiving Day, Microsoft released a security advisory on a vulnerability affecting Internet Explorer 6 and 7 browsers, based on "new public reports."

Digital Government

Obama: 2010 Pay Raise 2 Percent

President Obama on Monday reiterated that he will limit the across-the board pay increase for federal employees to 2 percent in 2010.

Modernization

Readers offer stuffing for IT turkey

Readers suggest a few projects that could have made our Thanksgiving list of failed, or deeply troubled, government IT projects and debate the causes of such large-scale failures.

Cybersecurity

Certifications are not a panacea for cybersecurity woes

A national certification program for cybersecurity professionals won't solve our security problems, writes Daniel Castro.

People

AFCEA branches into federal energy initiatives

Newly focused chapter to facilitate collaboration between industry and government leaders in science, technology and policy.

Digital Government

Military and overseas voters to get online options

The 2010 Defense Authorization Act includes requirements to ease voting for Americans overseas.