The Department of Veterans Affairs maintains a process for authorizing and assessing information technology systems as part of cybersecurity efforts in VA’s telehealth program, Federal News Radio reported Wednesday.

Neil Evans, chief officer in the Office of Connected Care at the Veterans Health Administration, told the radio station in an interview the authority to operate process is intended to facilitate quality IT development efforts.

“It is imperative that VA does IT thoughtfully and that we make sure that that we are building a system that is secure and that protects the data and the information of the veterans,” he added.

The VA’s Connected Health program works to help patients receive various medical services and connect them with providers through a video communications platform.

Evans said the department also uses tools that allow veterans to book medical appointments and manage health data in their mobile devices.

Sam Musa, former chief of information technology services for the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, has joined the Government Publishing Office as its new chief information officer.

Musa’s new responsibilities include managing IT policies on the acquisition, implementation and operation of telecommunications and IT systems and ensuring the agency’s budget aligns with program plans and established financial guidelines, GPO said Monday.

He will also monitor the use of information resources for various program requirements.

The 20-year federal government IT veteran will also oversee GPO’s IT customer, infrastructure, network and telecommunication, enterprise and acquisitions and budget services branches.

As head of EEOC’s IT services, Musa administered security operations and launched various cybersecurity programs for the agency.

He also previously held leadership roles at the National Weather Service, FBI and National Guard Bureau.

A group of five senators has asked the State Department to state the actions it has implemented to address the underutilization of multifactor authentication for accounts with “elevated privileges.”

The lawmakers said Tuesday in a letter to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo that they want to know the measures adopted by the department to address the “high-risk” status the Office of Management and Budget gave to its cyber readiness efforts.

The department should also provide the Senate with statistics about attempted and successful cyber attacks against the agency’s overseas systems by Oct. 12.

The senators made the inquiry after the General Services Administration’s 2018 federal cybersecurity assessment found that only 11 percent of the State Department’s required devices were equipped with “enhanced access controls.”

The letter was signed by Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Cory Gardner (R-Colo.), Edward Markey (D-Mass.), Rand Paul (R-Ky.) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.).
 

President Donald Trump has released an executive order that aims to protect U.S. elections from potential foreign interference.

A White House fact sheet published Wednesday says the executive order would authorize sanctions and other measures against foreign individuals found to have engaged in election interference.

Possible sanctions include prohibitions to bar financial transactions with individuals involved in election intrusions, export license restrictions and exclusion of an individual’s alien corporate and principal executive officers from the U.S.

The policy would direct the administration to work with local and state officials to create a process that would help determine if an intrusion occurs and would require the generation of interagency reports of interferences after every federal election.

The fact sheet cited the efforts of the Department of Homeland Security, Office of Director of National Intelligence, Justice Department and other federal agencies to ensure the security of U.S. elections.

Those include the plan of DOJ and FBI to conduct an election day watch to track election-related activities and the inaugural National Election Cybersecurity Table Top Exercise that DHS hosted in August.
 

A congressional conference committee has proposed adding $458M more for nuclear weapons to the 2019 spending bill, with a total $44.6B allocated to the Department of Energy, Defense News reported Wednesday.

The bill will provide $11.1B to the National Nuclear Security Administration’s nuclear warhead management operations, and $1.9B to sustain U.S. nuclear warheads to comply with the Trump administration’s Nuclear Posture Review, released in February.

The compromise funding plan additionally allocates $65M for the development of a low-yield, submarine-launched ballistic missile and the modernization of a nuclear warhead for the U.S. Navy‘s Trident II D5 weapon.

The bill aligns with President Trump’s plan to refresh and expand America’s nuclear arsenal.

Congress will review the proposed nuclear weapons budget along with other government-spending bills before September ends.

Defense Innovation Unit Partner Mike Madsen has announced that the DIU will appoint a new managing director in the coming weeks, MeriTalk reported Tuesday.

Madsen said during a Professional Services Council-hosted event that the DIU is nearing the end of its six-month search for a new managing director to lead operations.

He explained that the DIU is working on coordinating with commercial entities to help address national security issues.

Madsen also disclosed that the DIU is working on rapidly awarding prototype “other transaction” authority contracts. This is meant to address the concerns of CEOs who are hesitant to enter the defense marketplace due to its complicated and slow process.