/
DCSA Releases Insider Threat Resource App
Published on
DCSA Releases Insider Threat Resource App

The Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency (DCSA) has launched a mobile application that will work to provide users with training and educational resources on insider threats.

The Insider Threat Sentry app allows users to view graphic novels, videos, preparedness guides and infographics that discuss various insider threats from workplace violence to active shooting scenarios, DCSA said Monday. The app also features online courses, webinars, news, real-world applications of counter-insider threat education as well as multiple seasons of the Vigilance video series.

“InT Sentry allows security professionals, insider threat practitioners, and anyone with an interest in national security to easily access high-quality resources,” Rebecca Morgan, chief of the Center for Development of Security Excellence’s insider threat division, said in a report.

//
Marine Corps’ 1st Network Battalion Begins Operations
Published on
Marine Corps’ 1st Network Battalion Begins Operations

The U.S. Marine Corps (USMC) has activated its 1st Network Battalion that will serve as part of the service branch’s proposed three-battalion command-and-control (C2) segment.

The Marine Corps said Tuesday that Lt. Col. Juliet Calvin will serve as commander of the new battalion and will oversee missions aimed at ensuring the resiliency of the Department of Defense Information Network (DoDIN) as well as USMC infrastructure.

1st Network Battalion’s activation is meant to support the Marine Corps Enterprise Network (MCEN) C2 modernization program, which seeks to establish a “communications backbone” that integrates personnel, computers and devices in the USMC network ecosystem.

USMC said it envisions an overarching C2 architecture that combines the capabilities of the U.S. Cyber Command (USCYBERCOM), Marine Corps Forces Cyberspace Command (MARFORCYBER) and Marine Corps Cyberspace Operations Group (MCCOG) through three network battalions.

USMC is slated to establish two network activities in late 2020 as well as additional network battalions under MCCOG in 2021.

/
U.S. Navy Continues Tech Maturation Efforts for Large Unmanned Surface Vessel Program
Published on
U.S. Navy Continues Tech Maturation Efforts for Large Unmanned Surface Vessel Program

The U.S. Navy plans to procure its first Large Unmanned Surface Vessel (LUSV) in fiscal 2023 despite the House’s imposition of funding limits until the service proves the reliability of LUSV subsystems, USNI News reported Monday.

The House Armed Services Committee released segments of its version of the fiscal 2021 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) which mandates the Navy to ensure the maturity of LUSV components, command-and-control systems and autonomous functionalities.

Rear Adm. Casey Moton, program executive officer for unmanned and small combatants at the Navy, said at a recent virtual event that the service has begun developing prototypes for LUSV parts such as vertical launching system cells in an effort to increase technical maturity.

He noted that partnerships with allies such as NATO has helped the Navy drive research into unmanned surface and undersea vessels for operations such as anti-submarine warfare and mine countermeasures.

“We’ve also got a group that’s stood up between us that’s looking at platform integration type aspects, so I think there’s a really huge opportunity there to leverage off of each others’ work and to make sure that our systems are able to operate together," said Moton.

/
AFLCMC Directorate Updates KC-135 Aircraft with Modernized Transponder Tech
Published on
AFLCMC Directorate Updates KC-135 Aircraft with Modernized Transponder Tech

The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center's (AFLCMC) tanker directorate incorporated an updated transponder system designed to provide airspace visibility to air traffic control into the U.S. Air Force's KC-135 Stratotanker aircraft. 

The Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast Out system works to broadcast the location and position of an aircraft in real-time to provide aircrews with situational awareness capacities on nearby air vehicles, USAF said Tuesday. AFLCMC conducted "bite-size" field maintenance activities to streamline the modification of the KC-135 fleet into field-level box swap and routine flight software update efforts.

The team has already updated over 99 percent of the fleet and is slated to modify the last batch of aircraft after its return from deployment. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) required the Air Force to implement the ADS-B Out platform to allow the KC-135 fleet to travel within controlled airspace.

/
TSA Issues Report on 2022 Modernization Priorities
Published on
TSA Issues Report on 2022 Modernization Priorities

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has released a report detailing its priorities iand what the agency hopes to achieve through 2022 and ahead of its 25th anniversary in 2026.

The Administrator's Intent 2.0 report serves as a blueprint for TSA’s efforts to improve the security of the U.S. transportation system, promote agile response and improve workforce support.

TSA said in the report that it seeks to partner with industry in efforts to “raise the global baseline of aviation security” and accelerate the deployment of detection platforms, intelligence-driven technologies and other capabilities for enhanced vetting. The agency also wants to mature its organizational culture and implement decision-making based on data-driven approaches, according to the report.

Specific focus areas detailed in the report include insider threat security, checkpoint strategy, authority expansion, outcome-focused policy development, workforce support and enterprise-level cybersecurity.

TSA noted that it utilized feedback throughout the transportation systems sector as part of the report.

/
Pandemic Response Accountability Committee Provides Tool to Monitor Relief Spending
Published on
Pandemic Response Accountability Committee Provides Tool to Monitor Relief Spending

The Pandemic Response Accountability Committee (PRAC) has launched a tool designed to help the federal government track expenses related to COVID-19 relief efforts. The Track the Money tool features a dataset that allows users to analyze COVID-19 response contracts for services such as janitorial work and deliveries of personal protective equipment, PRAC said Tuesday.

PRAC seeks for the public to submit insights based on the dataset and in turn help the government manage the $2.4 trillion investment in COVID-19 response. The committee also provides the public with a map that presents data on expenses per state and local county.

The federal government created PRAC to oversee the spending of funds provided by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act.

/
DOE to Invest $100M in Hydrogen, Fuel Cell Research Consortia
Published on
DOE to Invest $100M in Hydrogen, Fuel Cell Research Consortia

The Department of Energy (DoE) plans to allot $100 million for two research consortia to pursue fuel cell and hydrogen technologies. DOE said Tuesday that its national laboratories will provide expertise and tools to support research and development under the consortia that will receive the $100 million investment over five years.

The first consortium will tackle the development of electrolyzes that extract hydrogen and oxygen from water via electricity, and the second will focus on fuel cells applicable to power heavy-duty trucks.

“Hydrogen and fuel cell technologies have the potential to enable resiliency, energy security and economic growth across multiple sectors,” said Mark Menezes, undersecretary of Energy.

This investment aligns with H2@Scale, the department's vision to produce and propagate hydrogen technologies for use in a wide range of industrial applications.

//
House’s Draft NDAA Wants Pentagon to Address Cyber Workforce, IT Asset Management Issues
Published on
House’s Draft NDAA Wants Pentagon to Address Cyber Workforce, IT Asset Management Issues

The House Armed Services Committee’s intelligence, emerging threats and capabilities subpanel has released a draft of its National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that would direct the Department of Defense (DoD) to address issues concerning cyber workforce and information technology-related assets, C4ISRNET reported Tuesday.

The proposed NDAA would ask the DoD’s office of the chief information officer to work with the CIOs of the country's service branches to come up with standardized processes to determine duplicative hardware and software licenses.

“The committee believes the Department would benefit from an established process for auditing software and hardware inventories,” according to the draft bill.

The Pentagon’s CIO office should also study a National Security Agency (NSA) program that permits employees to use up to 140 hours of paid time off to take part in NSA-backed cyber education initiatives in local communities.

“This would explicitly authorize select Department of Defense civilians who are part of the Cyber Excepted Service to utilize paid time toward wider national efforts aimed at addressing the cyber workforce shortage,” the bill summary states.

The measure would also call for the department’s CIO to submit a report on the implementation of the 21st Century IDEA Act and use of the Cyber Excepted Service system.

//
DHS Announces Details of U.S.-Israel Collab Solicitation; William Bryan Quoted
Published on
DHS Announces Details of U.S.-Israel Collab Solicitation; William Bryan Quoted

The Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Science and Technology (S&T) Directorate has identified the main focus areas of a technology solicitation in partnership with Israel, DHS said Tuesday. The Binational Industrial Research and Development or BIRD Foundation, a U.S.-Israel partnership, seeks proposals for technology projects that tackle:

  • Cyber Law Enforcement
  • Public Infrastructure Security
  • Border Protection
  • First Responder Applications
  • Unmanned Aerial Systems

“This is an important collaboration that enables both the U.S. and our Israeli colleagues to benefit from innovative new technologies that can address our common security needs,” said William Bryan, acting undersecretary for science and technology at DHS.

BIRD Foundation announced the solicitation earlier this month. Israel's public security ministry and DHS will jointly fund the projects. The effort will fund projects pursued jointly by Israeli and American entities such as businesses, research institutes and organizations.

Interested parties may submit executive summaries through Aug. 13 and will have up to Sep. 23 to deliver final proposals. BIRD Foundation will name qualifiers before the year ends.

//
GSA Raises STARS II Ceiling Value to $22B; Emily Murphy, Laura Stanton Quoted
Published on
GSA Raises STARS II Ceiling Value to $22B; Emily Murphy, Laura Stanton Quoted

The General Services Administration (GSA) has raised the ceiling of its 8(a) Streamlined Technology Application Resource for Services (STARS) II contract from $15 billion to $22 billion, the agency reported on Wednesday. 

“By raising the 8(a) STARS II ceiling, GSA continues to ensure that we meet the needs of our federal agency customers,” said GSA Administrator Emily Murphy and 2020 Wash100 Award recipient. “As agency demand for IT products and services has increased during the COVID-19 pandemic, GSA is proud that STARS II will remain available to help agencies deliver world class IT services.”

GSA STARS II is a small business set-aside Governmentwide Acquisition Contract (GWAC) that has provided flexible access to customized IT services and IT-services-based solutions. In addition, the contract has enabled long-term planning of large-scale program requirements while strengthening opportunities for small businesses. 

The agency has raised the ceiling to enhance support to the federal acquisition community by providing direct access to small business industry partners as those small businesses work to recover from the effects of COVID-19. STARS II has supported more than 50 federal agencies and provided opportunities for over one thousand 8(a). 

The STARS II industry partners will remain on the contract, and new task orders may be placed against the 8(a) STARS II GWAC through August 30, 2021. Work can continue on those new orders through June 30, 2022.

“The 8(a) STARS II GWAC has exceeded all of our expectations. We’ve raised the contract’s ceiling more than once to accommodate demand… A significant number of prior 8(a) STARS program participants have grown their businesses so much that we now see them thriving with the big companies on GSA’s Alliant 2 GWAC,” said GSA acting assistant commissioner, Office of Information Technology Category, Laura Stanton. 

About GSA

The mission of the U.S. General Services Administration is to deliver value and savings in real estate, acquisition, technology, and other mission-support services across the government. One of GSA’s four strategic goals is to improve the way agencies buy, build and use technology. 

1 … 1,408 1,409 1,410 1,411 1,412 … 2,624