Cybersecurity

USCIS looks go big on biometrics

The immigration agency is developing rules to more aggressively use iris, voice and rapid DNA technologies.

Cybersecurity

USCIS tech still not up to the job, IG says

A system designed to process thousands of naturalization applications still needs help to do its job effectively, according to a watchdog report.

Cybersecurity

DHS plan to collect immigrants' social media gets roasted in the comments

A proposal to update information collection on legal immigrants and naturalized citizens to include social media details is roundly criticized by privacy and immigrant advocates.

Cybersecurity

E-Verify role upped in White House plans

A new White House immigration wish list calls for 100 percent employer participation in DHS' online worker status verification system.

Cybersecurity

DHS adds social media to immigration files

A move by the Department of Homeland Security to add public facing online data to an immigration database is generating controversy and comments, but DHS says it hasn't launched a new policy.

Cybersecurity

McCaskill wants answers on immigration IT

The ranking Democrat on the Senate on Homeland Security committee wants to see acquisition and decision documentation as well as alternatives for the beleaguered DHS immigration processing system dubbed ELIS.

Digital Government

DHS updates on data mining

Analytical tools support efforts at Department of Homeland Security to detect terrorist plots, money laundering, illegal trade schemes and more.

Cybersecurity

DHS ends pursuit of rogue Twitter account

The Department of Homeland Security withdrew a bid to obtain the identities behind an "alt" USCIS Twitter account, in the face legal objections by the social media network.

Cybersecurity

Immigration modernization a work in progress

CIS making some progress on processing capabilities, but a congressional panel is still skeptical.

Cybersecurity

Watchdog: DHS social media screening lacks objectives

Two DHS components launched social media screening pilots in the wake of the San Bernardino shooting. The agency's internal watchdog wants to see improved coordination and measurable goals.

Digital Government

DHS watchdog warns agency on ELIS system

DHS Inspector General urged the Citizenship and Immigration Services to keep the struggling Electronic Immigration System unplugged.

Acquisition

5 best practices for agile procurement

As federal CIOs make the shift from managing infrastructure to managing applications, they also need to change their mindset about procurement.

Cybersecurity

DHS officials say border databases are working together

Interlocking database checks are a potent link in blocking potential terrorists from entering the U.S., DHS officials said at a Capitol Hill hearing.

Cybersecurity

Move to DevOps takes some fearlessness

As they transition to quicker, more efficient DevOps-based IT environments, agencies have to be bold, federal experts say.

Cybersecurity

Beyond the lab: Government innovation in unlikely places

Dedicated innovation shops are in vogue, but a culture of user-centered thinking can be put to work in any corner of government.

Cybersecurity

USCIS digital transformation needs work, says watchdog

An immigration agency watchdog says USCIS is making progress in digitizing forms, but still has a lot of work to do in its effort to make forms paperless.

Cybersecurity

Embracing agile at the border

DHS components are discovering that transformation is best tackled one step at a time.

Cybersecurity

Report: CBP lacks 'clear authority' to collect SSNs for system access

U.S. Customs and Border Protection derives employee and contractor IT systems passwords from user Social Security numbers. But the agency may not have the authority to collect that personally identifiable information, according to a privacy report.

Acquisition

How to approach post-award management of agile contracts

Steve Kelman talks with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services CIO Mark Schwartz about the practical matters of past performance evaluations and continued discourse.

Cybersecurity

Electronic passport required for visa program

DHS has added biometric identification requirements to Visa Waiver Program restrictions.