/
DHS Publishes 2025 Homeland Threat Assessment
Published on
DHS Publishes 2025 Homeland Threat Assessment

The Department of Homeland Security has released a report designed to inform the public and DHS partners about public safety and national security threats and describes a threat environment that is anticipated to “remain high” in 2025.

DHS said Wednesday the 2025 Homeland Threat Assessment, dubbed HTA, seeks to help federal, state, and local agency partners prevent, prepare and respond to an evolving threat environment.

Key findings include the domestic and foreign threats facing the U.S. critical infrastructure and the use of coercive economic tools and economic espionage and illicit purchase of technologies and intellectual property to undermine U.S. competitiveness.

The assessment also covers public safety and security, border and immigration security, influence operations and transnational repression and illegal drugs.

DHS said it has initiated several measures to combat such threats, including expanding information-sharing agreements with international partners to improve the ability to detect and investigate trafficking and other crimes and addressing illicit fentanyl both in the U.S. and abroad.

According to the department, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency has performed over 1,000 physical security assessments and 700 cyber evaluations since the start of 2023.

Register now for the Potomac Officers Club’s 2024 Homeland Security Summit on Nov. 13 to learn more about technology initiatives to protect the country amid the evolving geopolitical landscape.

POC - 2024 Homeland Security Summit
//
Army SBIR, xTech Programs Working With PM IS&A to Scale AI Tools
Published on
Army SBIR, xTech Programs Working With PM IS&A to Scale AI Tools

The U.S. Army’s Small Business Innovation Research and xTech programs have partnered with Project Manager Intelligence Systems and Analytics, a.k.a. PM IS&A, to build trusted infrastructure, operational data and policies to facilitate the deployment of artificial intelligence applications through Project Linchpin, the service reported Wednesday.

“Through the Army SBIR and xTech Programs, Project Linchpin serves as a cornerstone for the Army’s efforts to harness AI at scale, ensuring that the solutions are secure, trusted and effectively integrated into military applications,” said Col. Chris Anderson, project manager, PM IS&A.

Project Linchpin builds on the capabilities of the two Army programs to speed up research and development work on new AI tools for defense applications.

In fiscal year 2024, Army SBIR invested nearly $10 million in five small businesses aligned with Project Linchpin’s thrust areas.

Among the xTechPrime winners for the Project Linchpin topic area are Latent AI and Enveil, which worked with their respective technology integrators Booz Allen Hamilton and RTX.

“Project Linchpin plays a pivotal role in the Army’s efforts to scale AI capabilities, particularly through the collaboration with the Army SBIR and xTech Programs,” Anderson added.

The military branch expects SBIR to make contract awards worth $45 million under Project Linchpin by FY 2025.

/
USS Beloit Delivered to Navy
Published on
USS Beloit Delivered to Navy

The U.S. Navy has accepted the delivery of the USS Beloit, or LCS 29, from Lockheed Martin at the Fincantieri Marinette Marine shipyard in Marinette, Wisconsin on Sept. 30.

The Naval Sea Systems Command said Tuesday the USS Beloit, named after the city of Beloit, Wisconsin, completed its acceptance trials in August, which involved testing its combat and electrical systems, main propulsion and auxiliaries.

The LCS 29 will undergo post-delivery certifications and qualifications to ensure its readiness in actual fleet operations. Commissioning will be conducted later this year and then homeported in Mayport, Florida.

The Beloit, the 15th Freedom-variant Littoral Combat Ship, is equipped with the Freedom-class combining gear correction, which addresses a class-wide issue and enables unrestricted operations.

Capt. Matthew Lehmann, program manager of the Littoral Combat Ship program office, commended the prompt delivery, saying, “Beloit is another shining example of what it means to finish strong. Our industry partners stood up to the challenge to deliver this ship on an aggressive schedule.”

The future USS Cleveland, or LCS 31, is nearing completion and is expected to be delivered in 2025.

/
NIST Releases 3rd Entry in 5G Cybersecurity White Paper Series for Public Comment
Published on
NIST Releases 3rd Entry in 5G Cybersecurity White Paper Series for Public Comment

The National Institute of Standards and Technology‘s National Cybersecurity Center of Excellence has released the initial public draft version of the third white paper in its “Applying 5G Cybersecurity and Privacy Capabilities” series and is calling for public comments on the document.

The white paper series is meant for professionals in technology, cybersecurity and privacy tasked with securing 5G even as its usage and deployment evolve, the NIST Computer Security Resource Center said Monday.

The third paper in the series is titled “Using Hardware-Enabled Security to Ensure 5G System Platform Integrity” and tackles the fostering of trust in a 5G server infrastructure through the use of hardware-enabled security capabilities. According to the initial public draft, the paper aims to address the problem arising from threat actors increasingly targeting a server’s firmware and hardware amid greater security focus on the system’s software layers.

Interested parties have until Oct. 30 to comment on the document.

//
NASA Awards Contracts for Space Comms & Exploration Tech
Published on
NASA Awards Contracts for Space Comms & Exploration Tech

Intuitive Machines and Aalyria Technologies have received contracts from NASA to conduct studies aimed at advancing space communications and exploration technologies. 

NASA said Tuesday the firm fixed-price, milestone-based contracts, under the Next Space Technologies for Exploration Partnerships-2 Broad Agency Announcement Appendix Q, are intended to provide NASA insights into capabilities and technologies commercial communications and navigation providers can offer.

Intuitive Machines has been awarded $647,600 to conduct a study on lunar user terminals and network orchestration. This potential moon surface terminal will be used for exploration and to ensure compatibility with LunaNet service providers.

Aalyria received $393,004 to study the potential of a network orchestration and management system, which is intended to integrate commercial and government service providers into the Near Space Network.

Greg Heckler, new capability lead for the Space Communications and Navigation program, pointed out that the awards are part of NASA’s efforts to build commercial partnerships for high-demand space missions. “Seamless interoperability across networks, from here on Earth to cislunar space, is an essential element of SCaN’s emerging ‘one network’ approach. These awards will move us one step closer to realizing that future.”

/
US Partners With Allies on Operational Technology Cybersecurity Guidebook
Published on
US Partners With Allies on Operational Technology Cybersecurity Guidebook

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, National Security Agency, the FBI and the Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center have collaborated with counterparts in Australia, the United Kingdom, Germany, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Japan and South Korea to establish guidelines on creating and maintaining a safe and secure environment for operational technology. 

The 14-page document titled “Principles of Operational Technology Cybersecurity” outlines six principles to help organizations pinpoint business decisions with potential adverse impact on OT cybersecurity, according to CISA, which announced the guidebook’s release on Monday.

One of the principles cited in the guidance covers the supply chain and suggests that it has to be subject to an assurance program encompassing large and small suppliers of equipment and software, vendors and managed service providers.

Another guidebook principle focuses on expanding the internal segmentation and segregation of OT networks from the internet and from IT networks to include connections with outside organizations. 

The Australian Signals Directorate’s Australian Cyber Security Centre authored the guidance, with the co-seals of the U.S. agencies and other partners from the six allied countries.

Join the Potomac Officers Club’s 2024 Homeland Security Summit on Nov. 13 to learn more about technology initiatives and advancements to protect the United States amid the evolving geopolitical landscape.

US Partners With Allies on Operational Technology Cybersecurity Guidebook
/
BAE Systems Awarded DARPA Contract for Autonomous Software Communications
Published on
BAE Systems Awarded DARPA Contract for Autonomous Software Communications

BAE Systems has received a $6 million contract from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency to produce autonomous software capabilities for military communications.

Under Phase 2 of the Mission-Integrated Network Control, or MINC, program, BAE Systems’ Fast Labs research and development unit aims to improve algorithms and software that predict and align network services, the aerospace and security company announced Wednesday.

Brian Decleene, chief scientist at FAST Labs, said, “The technology we are maturing will act as the brains of this highly complex and mission-critical networked communications system.”

MINC is designed to create a system that fosters a secure communication apparatus to aid multi-domain operations. 

“This award allows us to continue our work to deliver the right information to the right user at the right time across multiple domains,” Decleene added. 

BAE Systems will perform the work in Burlington, Massachusetts, and Arlington, Virginia.

//
OIG Report Calls on FAS to Scrutinize Pricing When Consolidating MAS Contracts
Published on
OIG Report Calls on FAS to Scrutinize Pricing When Consolidating MAS Contracts

The Federal Acquisition Service should closely scrutinize pricing when consolidating multiple award schedule contracts to secure the lowest cost for government agencies, according to the General Services Administration’s Office of Inspector General.

FAS did not always use the government’s buying power when performing price analyses for MAS contract consolidation processes, the OIG said in a Monday audit report.

After studying 19 consolidated contracts from fiscal year 2022, the office found that FAS’ contract consolidating practice contradicts GSA policy and discourages contracting personnel from fully exercising their responsibilities.

Notably, FAS contracting personnel resorted to pricing comparisons with other government contracts instead of using transactional data reporting when performing price analyses.

The OIG report observed that FAS’ price analyses are inconsistent and ineffective, thus restricting the government’s target of establishing reasonable pricing for products and services under consolidated contracts.

The audit concluded that FAS failed to fully comply with the GSA guidance and federal regulations when carrying out its contract consolidation initiative.

To address the problem, the OIG called on FAS to establish an oversight process for contract consolidation to ensure that agency personnel adhere to GSA policy and assess all supporting contract documents.

The report also urged FAS to revisit previously consolidated MAS contracts to check if their products and services met federal regulations and GSA policy requirements.

/
Kathleen Hicks Announces Launch of Defense Security Cooperation Service
Published on
Kathleen Hicks Announces Launch of Defense Security Cooperation Service

Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks said the establishment of the Defense Security Cooperation Service is one of the results of a tiger-team review aimed at improving the foreign military sales process and other security cooperation efforts.

“Now, the launch of the Defense Security Cooperation Service comes at a pivotal moment for America’s security cooperation enterprise. Because the assistance you provide our allies and partners is more in-demand than ever before,” Hicks said Tuesday during her speech at the Pentagon.

“Why so much demand? It’s because like-minded nations and democracies around the world, from Eastern Europe to the western Pacific, are worried about naked aggression in their own backyards, to an extent that they haven’t contemplated in a long time,” added the 2024 Wash100 awardee.

Federal News Network reported that DSCS will help ensure that security cooperation officers are better prepared to work with allies and partners during the foreign arms transfer process and will provide a range of services, including human resources training, budgeting, policy support and family care.

“Launching the DSCS has been a priority for two reasons. First, it’s a critical pathway to strengthen relationships with allies and partners, which is a key component of our national defense strategy. And second, DSCS will develop a workforce that can adapt to the dynamic geopolitical environment while simultaneously bringing expertise into the security cooperation environment,” said Amanda Dory, acting under secretary of defense for policy.

Register now to attend the Potomac Officers Club’s GovCon International Summit on Oct. 10. Listen to speakers as they discuss how international partnerships, emerging technologies and coalition warfare are reshaping the defense landscape and how the U.S. can stay ahead of the curve.

POC - GovCon International Summit
/
PEO EIS Changes Name to PEO Enterprise
Published on
PEO EIS Changes Name to PEO Enterprise

The U.S. Army’s Program Executive Office Enterprise Information Systems has changed its name to Program Executive Office Enterprise.

PEO Enterprise said the change became official on Tuesday and was approved on Sept. 4 by Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics and Technology Douglas Bush, a 2023 Wash100 Award winner.

The name change aligns with the PEO’s mission of delivering enterprise business offerings that drive U.S. Army dominance. The new name and modernized branding coincide with the organization’s digital transformation initiative.

The rebranding follows the PEO Optimization in October 2023 when the PEO EIS network portfolios were transitioned to other PEOs. This enabled the PEO EIS to focus on mission-critical Army software and new enterprise requirements, including the United Data Reference Architecture.

The new name was first previewed during AFCEA TechNet Augusta in August 2024.

Bill Hepworth, program executive officer of the PEO, noted that simplicity is one of the core pillars of the organization, said, “The new PEO Enterprise branding has been simplified to reflect a more modern, agile organization with a mission that’s broad and flexible enough to include enterprise software and technology services, both now and in the future.”

The organization, known as the Program Executive Office, Standard Army Management Information System when it was established in 1987, changed its name to PEO EIS in 2001.

1 … 207 208 209 210 211 … 2,630