Ideas
No Smiles at Virginia DMV
<em>The Washington Post</em> has an interesting <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/05/27/AR2009052703627.html?nav=hcmodule">story</a> up today regarding the implementation of facial recognition software by the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles. For the system to work, the DMV has banned people from smiling in their driver's license photos:
Digital Government
IG: Weak controls jeopardize TSA's financial data
Agency's failure to limit access to computer systems to the employees who need it leaves information vulnerable, auditors say.
Ideas
FBI Fugitive Concentration
It didn't take long after the launch of <a href="http://www.data.gov">Data.gov</a> for the public to recognize the potential of the newly available data. Today we saw the first entrant to Sunlight Labs' <a href="http://sunlightlabs.com/contests/appsforamerica2/">Apps for America 2</a> contest, which challenges the public to come up with innovative uses for the site's data feeds.
Digital Government
As social media becomes a hit with agencies, GSA plans more offerings
YouTube, Twitter and Facebook have proved so popular that the agency is negotiating with iTunes, LinkedIn and others for more applications.
Modernization
Federal officials say shift to cloud computing is inevitable
Strategy will help agencies save money in the face of escalating IT maintenance costs.
Digital Government
Federal CIO plots path to transparency
Vivek Kundra says the power of technology can transform government.
Ideas
State Mobilizes for Texting Pakistan
The federal government's efforts to use social media to improve communication have officially gone global. At a press conference today to announce $110 million in humanitarian aid for displaced residents of Pakistan's Swat Valley, State Department Secretary Hillary Clinton discussed a plan to use cell phone text messages to inform local communities about the assistance efforts:
Digital Government
TSA improves program to check airline passengers against terrorist list
Secure Flight, which screens air travelers against a watch list, is more secure and has reduced the number of false positives.
Digital Government
Top Census appointee promises more active role in IT management
Robert Groves tells a Senate panel "successful hardware and software development has the user involved at the beginning, middle and end."
Ideas
Health IT -- The Musical
An editor at Government Executive came across this video today, which is apparently part of a campaign to raise public awareness about the benefits of increasing adoption of health information technology.
Cybersecurity
IT spending expected to climb during Obama administration
Precise estimates for technology investments are elusive.
Ideas
IG Throws Flag on Census
The Census Bureau's ongoing address canvassing exercises have been a topic of public interest lately, because it will be the only opportunity for the bureau to make use of the handheld computers it <a href="http://www.nextgov.com/nextgov/ng_20080925_8186.php?oref=search">spent $800 million developing</a>.
Cybersecurity
Deloitte says acquisition will expand an already fast-growing practice
BearingPoint purchase will add business in cybersecurity and systems designed to increase the transparency of financial markets, officials say
Digital Government
Technology limitations hamper SEC enforcement efforts
GAO reports outdated systems limit effectiveness of agency's enforcement division.
Digital Government
Several agencies are headed for a modest increase in IT spending
SSA, Homeland Security, USDA and others receive boosts for technology projects.
Ideas
The Downside of E-Health Records
With all the excitement surrounding <a href="http://www.nextgov.com/nextgov/ng_20090115_8220.php?oref=search">electronic health records</a> in the new administration, including the $19 billion in the stimulus bill set aside to further their adoption, it's easy to forget the potential risks of moving our health information online.
Digital Government
Security groups cautious about data security and file sharing bills
House panel hears concerns that breach notification could weaken states' privacy laws and forcing peer-to-peer companies to tighten security could stifle innovation.
Ideas
GSA Sends USA.gov to the Cloud
In February I <a href="http://www.nextgov.com/nextgov/ng_20090225_6859.php?oref=search">reported</a> that the General Services Administration planned to shift the federal government's official Web portal, <a href="http://www.usa.gov">USA.gov</a> to private servers, a strategy known as cloud computing. The move was expected to cut costs in half and serve as a model to other agencies considering making the leap to software as a service.
Ideas
Addressing USASpending Problems
Before he was elected to the White House, Sen. Barack Obama was a proponent of putting more information about government contracts, grants and loans online, teaming up with Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., to introduce the <a href="http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/1207/121407n1.htm">2006 Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act</a>, which requires full disclosure on a Web site maintained by OMB of all organizations receiving more than $25,000 in federal funds.
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