Census

Pandemic, Privacy Rules Add to Worries over 2020 Census Accuracy

People who work with statistics know that there needs to be “good data in” in order to get “good data out.”

  • By Qian Cai, The Conversation

Census Established a Governance Group on Data Quality Amid COVID-19 Worries

A new GAO report shows the bureau continuing to struggle with privacy and data security issues.  

  • By Mariam Baksh

Census Delays Create Uncertainty for Temporary Workers

Bureau faces a series of risks as it attempts decennial count during a pandemic.

  • By Eric Katz

Census Bureau Seeks Industry Input on Cybersecurity Acquisitions Strategy for Next Decade

With data collection for the 2020 census underway, the bureau is thinking about how artificial intelligence and other capabilities might help address sore points.

  • By Mariam Baksh

States Start Hiring Battalions of Contact Tracers to Track Covid-19

As governors look to loosen coronavirus restrictions, a key benchmark will be improving the ability to track and isolate new cases. That will include more “contact tracers,” investigators who track down those who’ve come in contact with infected people.

  • By Andrea Noble

How Census Is Building a Citizenship Database Covering Everyone Living in the U.S.

By March 2021, the bureau plans to release anonymized statistics while keeping the raw data on individuals' citizenship status confidential.

  • By Aaron Boyd

Census Advocates Spread the Word on New Online Forms

March letters will kick off the decennial count.

  • By The Pew Charitable Trusts

One-Third of U.S. Residents Suspicious of Census, Survey Finds

As the political stakes become clearer, more states are trying to motivate residents to participate in the census this spring.

  • By The Pew Charitable Trusts

One Month Out, Watchdog Warns About Census IT and Cybersecurity Challenges

The Census Bureau this month switched the internet response system that respondents will use to complete the 2020 census questionnaire. The last-minute change worries the Government Accountability Office.

  • By Andrea Noble

The Census Already Started in Alaska. Native Translators Are Working to Prevent Undercount Repeat.

Across the country, tribal and non-English speaking communities are creating guidance and messages in a variety of languages to encourage Census 2020 participation.

  • By Andrea Noble

Census Fails Key Recruiting and Hiring Tests as It Gears Up for 2020 Count

Despite warnings of delays and cost overruns, agency says it's confident operations will not be interrupted.

  • By Eric Katz

GAO: Census Risks Missing Deadlines on 15 IT Systems Ahead of 2020 

With Census Day less than six months away, officials have no room for error in system development, testing and deployment.

  • By Jack Corrigan

How the U.S. Census Kickstarted America's Computing Industry

By 1880, the population count had become a mind-numbingly boring, error-prone, clerical exercise of a magnitude rarely seen.

  • By David Lindsay Roberts, The Conversation

Census is Asking the Public to Help Fight Misinformation Ahead of 2020 

The bureau launched a website for dispelling common Census rumors and created a special email address where people can report misinformation and other malicious activities.

  • By Jack Corrigan

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Census Chief Assures Lawmakers IT and Cyber Risks are Under Control

But with less than a year until the 2020 count kicks off, the bureau still has little room for error, the Government Accountability Office warns.

  • By Jack Corrigan

America is Aging and Growing More Diverse, Census Data Shows

“More than four out of every five counties were older in 2018 than in 2010," said one Census Bureau official about new population estimates.

  • By Kate Elizabeth Queram

Census’ Cybersecurity Plan is Full of Holes, Watchdog Says

The 2020 Census will be a prime target for digital adversaries, but the plans for fighting those threats are incomplete and outdated, the Government Accountability Office found.

  • By Jack Corrigan

Census Thinks a Clippy-Style AI Assistant Could Speed Up Security Authorizations

“It looks like you’re trying to get an ATO. Would you like help with that?”

  • By Aaron Boyd

6 Citizen-Focused Steps Census is Taking to Improve the 2020 Count

Officials hope improving the customer experience for citizens will boost the participation rate for the Census Bureau’s biggest undertaking.

  • By Frank Konkel

GAO Flags New Cybersecurity Issues for Upcoming Census

The bureau needs to fix vulnerabilities faster, upon hundreds of other security issues the congressional watchdog previously identified.

  • By Brandi Vincent

Census Officials Say They’re Ready, With or Without Citizenship Question

A year out, preparations are on track to allow responses online, by phone or on paper.

  • By Charles S. Clark