People

DHS under more scrutiny after attacks

Agencies told to hold contractors accountable for cybersecurity when they write contracts

People

VA: IT, security progress to accelerate in 2008

But GAO said the department is lagging in its reorganization and management processes.

Acquisition

Treasury awards AT&T $270 million Networx task order

The department awarded AT&T a similar contract almost three years ago.

People

Lawmakers to DHS: Investigate response to cyberattacks

The House Homeland Security Committee has requested that the Homeland Security Department's inspector general investigate cyberattacks on DHS that originated from Chinese-language Web sites and actions by Unisys that the committee called incompetent and possibly illegal and may have failed to detect the intrusions.

People

HUD’s housing locator aids victims

Online rental listings fill in the large gaps discovered after Hurricane Katrina hit

People

HUD awards $42.6M program management contract

The Housing and Urban Development Department has awarded a $42.6 million contract to G&B Solutions of McLean, Va., to provide program management services and institutionalize program management approaches departmentwide.

People

GAO: VA data still at risk

Agency officials have taken numerous steps to secure sensitive data, but those initiatives are not comprehensive or mature enough to be effective, GAO auditors say.

Digital Government

Evans: Desktop standards will make networks safer

Office of Management and Budget officials believe a standard computer desktop configuration will dramatically improve security governmentwide, said Karen Evans, OMB's administrator for e-government and information technology.

People

GAO: VA data still at risk

Agency officials have taken numerous steps to secure sensitive data, but those initiatives are not comprehensive or mature enough to be effective, GAO auditors say.

People

Agency programs performing better, PART shows

Programs saw better ratings because they have adopted more effective performance measures and improved the data gathering of those measures, an OMB official said.

People

Claims backlog, vets' transition top issues for next VA chief

The House Veterans' Affairs Committee praised outgoing VA Secretary James Nicholson for his response to data breaches.

People

USDA outsources its finances

The Agriculture Department could smooth the path for other large agencies to outsource their financial operations with its decision to award Accenture a $102.6 million financial management services contract

People

GAO: DHS is still a work in progress

Congressional auditors tell agency what it must do to improve IT management

People

Workers tested on security smarts

Agency officials explore ways to make employee security training effective

Modernization

Transportation wants to share more services with FAA

Server virtualization, for example, could enable DOT and FAA to use each other as backup for continuity of operations instead of having individual COOP sites.

People

USDA picks Accenture to modernize financial systems

During the first month of the program, the contractor will develop a draft Financial Management Modernization Project Plan.

People

NIST prepares due diligence standards for cybersecurity

As initiative moves into its second phase, some industry officials question whether improvements are real.

People

Senate passes VA spending bill in near-unanimous vote

The bill, which would give VA $4 billion more than Bush requested, includes $64.8 billion for discretionary spending and $41 billion in veterans’ disability benefits.

Digital Government

OMB to issue EA best practices to drive business value

Agencies will have to collaborate more with one another to develop and deliver the next generation of services, OMB Chief Architect Burk said.

People

GAO: DHS falls short on security, management benchmarks

Out of 171 expectations, the department did not achieve 83 of them, GAO said in a report released today.