State

Social Media Screening Won’t Slow Down the Visa Process, State Department Says

The department wants to screen five years of social media and email from all visa applicants but doesn’t expect longer processing time “for most visa cases.”

  • By Jack Corrigan

VISA Applications May Require Five Years of Social Media Information

In the near future, Visa applications filed through the State Department may require a lot of personal info.

  • By Caitlin Fairchild

House Lawmakers Introduce Hack the State Department Bug Bounty Bill

The bill would offer cash rewards for vulnerabilities hackers discover in State Department websites.

  • By Joseph Marks

Facebook Just Blocked This Cambridge Analytica Affiliate. Why Does It Still Have a State Department Contract?

Strategic Communications Laboratories worked with Cambridge Analytica, which reportedly used social-media data to target likely Trump voters.

  • By Patrick Tucker, Defense One
Secretary of State Rex Tillerson Secretary of State Rex Tillerson

State Dept. Reverses Course, Plans to Launch Cyber and Digital Economy Bureau

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson earlier shuttered a cyber coordinator’s office with similar duties.

  • By Joseph Marks
Secretary of State Rex Tillerson Secretary of State Rex Tillerson

No, Rex Tillerson Does Not Have $1.85M To Give You

The secretary of state’s name is being used in an email scam, the FTC warns.

  • By Aaron Boyd
House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce, R-Calif. House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce, R-Calif.

House Votes to Restore Top Cyber Diplomat’s Office

The vote is a rare rift on cyber policy with the Trump administration.

  • By Joseph Marks

2017 Was Marked by Continuity and Confusion in Cyber Policy

The Kaspersky ban, WannaCry and big changes at State Department topped the news cycle.

  • By Joseph Marks

Will Ukraine Be Hit by Yet Another Holiday Power-Grid Hack?

The country has been attacked the past two years in December. A new strike could have major implications for cybersecurity in the U.S.

  • By Alyza Sebenius, The Atlantic
Secretary of State Rex Tillerson Secretary of State Rex Tillerson

As AI and Cyber Race Ahead, the State Department Is Falling Behind

Technology is reshaping the global order. America’s diplomats need to start thinking ahead.

  • By Josh Kirshner, Defense One

Hey, @Twitter, It’s Time to Talk about President Trump

The president’s amplification of the things he finds in his mentions is putting national security at risk.

  • By Mieke Eoyang, Defense One
Maj. Lisa Jaster, center, stands in formation with other Rangers during an Army Ranger school graduation ceremony, Friday, Oct. 16, 2015, in Fort Benning, Ga. Jaster, who is the first Army Reserve female to graduate the Army's Ranger School. Maj. Lisa Jaster, center, stands in formation with other Rangers during an Army Ranger school graduation ceremony, Friday, Oct. 16, 2015, in Fort Benning, Ga. Jaster, who is the first Army Reserve female to graduate the Army's Ranger School.

More Than 200 US Diplomats, Civil Servants and Servicewomen Say They’ve Been Harassed at Work

An open letter titled #metoonatsec accuses their industry of systemic discrimination and harassment.

  • By Annalisa Merelli, Quartz

The Pluses and Perils of Trump's Cyber Strategy

Continuity on most cyber policies masks a growing erosion of global cyber norms.

  • By Joseph Marks

State Department CIO to Retire

Another agency will be lead by an acting CIO.

  • By Jack Corrigan
U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson

Bill to Restore State Department Cyber Office Advances

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson shuttered the office in September.

  • By Joseph Marks

White House Discloses Rules on Weaponizing Software Vulnerabilities

The administration will publish an annual report on how it decides whether to hoard or disclose newfound cyber vulnerabilities.

  • By Joseph Marks

State Plans to Elevate Cyber Mission, Despite Shuttering Dedicated Office

The claim comes after the department downgraded its main cyber diplomacy office.

  • By Joseph Marks
House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce, R-Calif., left, and the committee's ranking member Rep. Eliot Engel, D-N.Y., House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce, R-Calif., left, and the committee's ranking member Rep. Eliot Engel, D-N.Y.,

House Foreign Affairs Leaders Push to Save State Cyber Office

A bipartisan bill would make the cyber coordinator’s office permanent and a presidential appointment.

  • By Joseph Marks

Analysts Are Quitting the State Department’s Anti-Propaganda Team

The Global Engagement Center is struggling to keep up with its missions: countering ISIS recruitment and Russian disinformation.

  • By Patrick Tucker, Defense One

Former State Cyber Coordinator Says It Was a Mistake to Close His Office

The department's former cyber coordinator Chris Painter worries the country is stepping back from its role as a global cyber leader.

  • By Joseph Marks