People

IG says law bars Cobert from leading OPM on acting basis

OPM IG Patrick McFarland said in a memo to Beth Cobert that under the Federal Vacancies Reform Act, "any actions taken by you since the date of your nomination are void and may not be subsequently ratified."

People

FITARA: Maintaining momentum

The keys to the law's success are identifying and mitigating the risks to its implementation, especially in light of the upcoming presidential transition.

People

State changes counterterrorism unit to include online focus

Deputy Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, announced a changes at the Bureau of Counterterrorism and Countering Violent Extremism to combat terrorism online and work with tech firms.

Cybersecurity

Cyberwar keeps CIA's Brennan up at night

CIA Director John Brennan said a terrorist attack on American soil is inevitable, the Paris attack resulted from a "failure of intelligence" and the growing threat of cyberwarfare is "the thing that keeps me up at night."

Cybersecurity

No slack in reforms as DHS chief's tenure winds down

DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson said he won't slack off on cybersecurity and management reforms at his agency in his last year on the job.

Acquisition

DHS cancels $675M cyber support contract

DHS pulled a two-year-old solicitation for administrative support for cyber mission offices.

Cybersecurity

Obama establishes privacy council, cyber commission

Executive orders creating an interagency privacy council and a national commission on cybersecurity kick off President Barack Obama's final year of cyber policymaking.

Cybersecurity

Obama bemoans obsolete tech in budget request

The president put the federal government's portfolio of aging IT systems front and center in his final budget request to Congress.

Cybersecurity

White House wants $19B for cyber in FY 2017

The Obama administration's proposed Cybersecurity National Action Plan for FY2017 includes $3.1B for IT modernization and a new federal chief information security officer.

Acquisition

Former PSC head launches consultancy

After 15 years at the Professional Services Council, Stan Soloway is striking out on his own.

People

State IG: Colin Powell, aides to Condoleezza Rice handled classified info in personal email

An IG review found that email messages containing classified information were sent to Colin Powell's personal account and to the personal accounts of Condoleezza Rice's immediate staff, according to Rep. Elijah Cummings.

People

Are feds missing the boat on modernization?

In a new survey, federal leaders say they're making digital progress, but most also say they're merely updating old systems, not reinventing processes for the Digital Age.

People

OPM hack looms over Cobert confirmation hearing

Acting OPM Director Beth Cobert said she is committed to working with Congress on modernizing IT, but lawmakers raised concerns about the agency's apparent inability to turn over requested documents.

Cybersecurity

Immigration agency adds new deputy CIO job

The U.S. Customs and Immigration Services created new deputy CIO slot to help balance everyday IT operations and burgeoning DevOps, agile and cloud activities.

Cybersecurity

Pentagon chief: 2017 budget includes $7B for cyber

Defense Secretary Ash Carter said the money would be used to better train cybersecurity personnel and develop more offensive tools.

People

The year of the technological hand-off

Letting go is part of the revolution agencies need to embrace in 2016, according to a new report.

People

GAO frets about ambiguity in Data Act standards

The Government Accountability Office says some data element definitions offered by Treasury and OMB are potentially unclear, inconsistent and open to interpretation.

Cybersecurity

Why DHS has no idea how much it spends on training

A new watchdog report lays out a massive governance and data problem at the Homeland Security Department.

People

Cautious enthusiasm for OMB's mobile consolidation plan

Federal CIOs and industry analysts see potential savings -- and potential problems -- with an emerging OMB policy that would compel agency IT managers to use GSA's mobile contracts.

Digital Government

Citizens losing satisfaction with feds, but web services fare OK

Online tools helped buoy sinking satisfaction levels as 2015 saw federal customers growing less and less pleased with what Uncle Sam had to offer.