Ideas

What the Rise of Digital Handouts on Venmo and Cash App Says about Our Fraying Social Safety Net

There's an uptick of people tuning to Twitter to ask for financial support during the pandemic.

Ideas

Religious Life Was Converting to Tech Before COVID

Livestreamed services, which people view from home, are the new normal.

Modernization

Most Federal Workers Expect to Telework at Least Three Days per Week in the Future, Survey Says

But securing and managing the information technology that enables work from home is a top challenge during the pandemic, respondents indicated.

Ideas

Phones in Class Don't Actually Hamper Learning

A two-year study among a large group of students shows that learning and grades are not negatively affected when the students use their mobile device in class.

Digital Government

Lawmakers: Did DHS Surveil Portland Protesters’ Phones?

Lawmakers want to know if federal agencies intercepted messages or collected cellphone data—including through commercial sources—during Portland protests.

Ideas

On TikTok, the Trump Administration Is Adopting China’s Own Vision for the Internet

Until recently, the United States has been a staunch opponent of data localization laws.

Cybersecurity

Commerce Department to Bar TikTok, WeChat from U.S. App Stores

The Commerce Department announced a list of prohibitions meant to protect U.S. national security against the two Chinese-owned apps.

Emerging Tech

Justice Wants to Add Facial Recognition to Marshals’ Smartphones

The service is looking for a software development kit to help it integrate biometrics tools with an app used to facilitate prisoner transfers.

Emerging Tech

The Air Force’s ‘Connect Everything’ Project Just Had a Big Success

The simulated cruise missile intercept harnessed widely dispersed systems — all supervised by tablets in a flight-line hangar.

Cybersecurity

The U.S. Has Lots to Lose and Little to Gain by Banning TikTok and WeChat

The bans threaten Americans’ freedom of speech, and may harm foreign investment in the U.S. and American companies’ ability to sell software abroad.

Ideas

Can the U.S. Government Really Ban TikTok?

It is nearly impossible to ban any application completely.

Cybersecurity

Tracking Robocalls Debunks Myths and Clears Up Mysteries

Researchers found that answering a robocall doesn't doom you to more.

Policy

CBP Shifts to Enterprise Approach to Manage Phone Searches at U.S. Borders

The agency uses metadata to create a system of record for electronic device searches but agents may be able to access information irrelevant to their cases. 

Ideas

Does Your Agency Pass the Telework Stress Test?

If you haven’t already, ensure your capacity and licensing are at the levels needed for sustained telework.

Ideas

A Post-Pandemic Guide to Building Resilient Business Comms

Agencies should ensure their communication systems are ready for another mass shift to telework in case the need comes up again.

Ideas

Is Telehealth as Good as In-Person Care? A Telehealth Researcher Explains How to Get the Most Out of Remote Health Care

The question of when to use telehealth must also take into account the risk and burden of getting care.

Digital Government

Contact Tracing Demonstrates Need for National Privacy Laws, Lawmaker Says

Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers said the technology being developed to aid the fight against coronavirus proves the need for a standardized privacy framework.

Ideas

Combatting Mobile Threats in a New Reality

Security starts with users understanding what types of attacks they will encounter and how to manage them.