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DHS Establishes Initiative to Address Encryption Challenges
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DHS Establishes Initiative to Address Encryption Challenges


DHS Establishes Initiative to Address Encryption ChallengesThe Department of Homeland Security has launched an effort to collaborate with the technology community, law enforcement agencies and other stakeholders to stop terrorist abuse of encryption tools.

DHS took action after House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Michael McCaul (R-Texas) asked the department to establish an advisory board that will help address security risks from widely available encryption platforms, the committee said Tuesday.

He urged DHS to enlist experts from both the public and private sectors to develop methods to prevent terrorists from exploiting encrypted communications.

“I am pleased the department is taking action to bring together the key players to address this and related security issues so we can find ways to improve cooperation between law enforcement, national security communities, private industry and others,” McCaul noted.

The committee said in a 2016 report that encryption technologies could hinder lawful access to electronic information and evidence deemed vital to the government’s national security efforts.

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Thomas Bossert: North Korea Behind ‘WannaCry’ Ransomware Attack
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Thomas Bossert: North Korea Behind ‘WannaCry’ Ransomware Attack


Thomas Bossert: North Korea Behind ‘WannaCry’ Ransomware AttackThomas Bossert, homeland security adviser to President Donald Trump, has said the U.S. has determined that North Korea was responsible for a ransomware attack that disrupted computer systems worldwide in May.

Bossert said Tuesday in a press briefing the attribution of the ransomware, dubbed WannaCry, to the East Asian country is based on “careful investigation” in collaboration with private companies and other international governments such as the U.K., Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Japan.

“We do not make this allegation lightly,” he said during a press briefing at the White House.

“We do so with evidence, and we do so with partners.”

Europol discovered in May that the ransomware attack compromised computers of at least 200,000 individuals in over 150 countries.

Bossert cited the efforts of technology firms such as Microsoft and Facebook to patch computer networks and disable accounts of North Korea-backed threat actors.

He also called on the private sector to advance accountability and information sharing in support of the U.S. cyber defense efforts.

Jeanette Manfra, assistant secretary for cybersecurity and communications at the Department of Homeland Security, discussed DHS’ cyber initiatives in response to the WannaCry attack during the press briefing.

She also cited the need for public-private collaboration and efforts to build up partnerships with cybersecurity centers worldwide.

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Congress Passes Tax Reform Bill
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Congress Passes Tax Reform Bill


Congress Passes Tax Reform BillA tax reform bill is now headed to the White House for President Donald Trump’s signature after Congress passed the measure Wednesday, Reuters reported Wednesday.

The House voted 224-201 and the upper chamber voted 51-48 to approve the measure that would reduce the corporate tax rate from 35 percent to 21 percent and authorize a 20 percent cut on business income.

The legislation would lower the tax rate for high-income earners, introduce changes to the estate tax on inheritances and eliminate a tax penalty on individuals who lack health insurance under the Obamacare law.

The report noted the bill would contribute $1.5 trillion to the $20 trillion national debt over the next 10 years.

Gary Cohn, White House economic adviser, said Trump could sign the measure by Friday if Congress passes this week a spending resolution that would include a waiver on automatic spending cuts that could be prompted by the tax bill.

“If not, most likely we’ll sign it in the first week of the new year,” Cohn added.

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Marine Corps Completes Final Flight of AAI-Built RQ-7B Shadow UAS Platform
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Marine Corps Completes Final Flight of AAI-Built RQ-7B Shadow UAS Platform


Marine Corps Completes Final Flight of AAI-Built RQ-7B Shadow UAS PlatformMembers of the U.S. Marine Corps Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Squadron 4 has launched the final flight of an AAI-built unmanned aircraft system during the Exercise Steel Knight event in Twentynine Palms, California.

The Marine Corps said Wednesday the RQ-7B Shadow UAS, which has been in service for more than five years, will be phased out and succeeded by the RQ-21A Blackjack system.

“The flight was our last of the evolution for Steel Knight and also our last Shadow flight in the Marine Corps,” said Capt. Shanna Ream, operations officer for VMU-4 within the Marine Aircraft Group 41 of the Marine Forces Reserve’s 4th Marine Aircraft Wing.

The annual Steel Knight exercise showcases the combined capacities of air and ground assets which will demonstrate various military strategies for ground fires, command and control as well as maneuver warfare tactics.

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NASA to Fund Concept Devt of Comet Sample Return Mission, Saturn Moon Exploration
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NASA to Fund Concept Devt of Comet Sample Return Mission, Saturn Moon Exploration


NASA to Fund Concept Devt of Comet Sample Return Mission, Saturn Moon ExplorationNASA has chosen two proposed space exploration concepts as finalists for a robotic mission scheduled to launch in the mid-2020s.

The space agency said Thursday it will fund the concept development of the finalists, which include a comet sample return mission and a rotorcraft that would seek potential landing sites on Saturn’s moon, Titan.

NASA selected the concepts following a competitive peer review of 12 proposals submitted in April through the agency’s New Frontiers program.

The Comet Astrobiology Exploration Sample Return mission, or CAESAR, aims to collect a sample from the 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko comet to help define its origin and history.

CAESAR is led by Steve Squyres of Cornell University and would be managed by NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center.

The second concept is the Dragonfly drone-like rotorcraft that would study the prebiotic chemistry and habitability of multiple sites on Saturn’s largest moon Titan.

Elizabeth Turtle of the Johns Hopkins University’s Applied Physics Laboratory will serve as lead investigator of Dragonfly and APL will provide project management for the mission.

NASA plans to fund the concept development of CAESAR and Dragonfly through the end of 2018, then select one mission in 2019 to move to the next program phases.

The winning concept will be the fourth mission under the New Frontiers program, which funds principal investigator-led planetary science explorations that cost only up to $850 million to develop.

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Air Force Completes Accuracy Tests on F-35 Weapon System
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Air Force Completes Accuracy Tests on F-35 Weapon System


Air Force Completes Accuracy Tests on F-35 Weapon SystemU.S. Air Force testers have completed weapons delivery accuracy flight tests on the F-35 Lightning II aircraft which evaluated the platform’s weapon system as well as the Block 3F software it uses to support lethal air-to-air and air-to-ground strike missions.

The service branch said Wednesday members of the 461st Flight Test Squadron and F-35 Integrated Test Force conducted the flight tests as part of the F-35 developmental test and evaluation effort.

Lt. Col. Tucker Hamilton, 461st FLTS commander and F-35 ITF director, said the F-35 platform performed how the service branch wanted it to and the aircraft completed various test missions throughout the WDA evaluation.

The ITF evaluated all three F-35 variants and integrated them with air-to-air and air-to-ground missiles such as the AIM-120, AIM-9X, Paveway IV laser-guided bomb, GBU-39 small diameter bomb, GBU-12, GBU-31 joint direct attack munition as well as the AGM-154 joint standoff weapon.

ITF conducts developmental flight tests on behalf of the Defense Department‘s F-35 Joint Program Office including mission effectiveness testing, enemy air defense suppression, maritime interdiction, offensive and defensive air-to-air combat testing activities.

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Report: DOE-Backed National Labs License 19 Cybersecurity Tools to Private Sector
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Report: DOE-Backed National Labs License 19 Cybersecurity Tools to Private Sector


Report: DOE-Backed National Labs License 19 Cybersecurity Tools to Private SectorEnergy Department-funded national laboratories have so far licensed 19 cybersecurity technology platforms through the Transition to Practice program managed by the  Department of Homeland Security, FCW reported Wednesday.

DHS established the TTP program in 2012 as part of efforts to help transfer innovations from a laboratory into the commercial marketplace.

The report said DOE’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory has licensed five technologies via the program to date and allows interested companies to determine if a PNNL-developed tool could be applied into their product or service offerings through an exploratory licensing agreement with the lab.

IP Group-based startup company Cynash obtained licensing rights for PNNL’s Digital Ants and MLSTONES  security platforms.

Cynash aims to incorporate both technologies into a portfolio of products and services intended to help public and private sector organizations defend against cyber threats.

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Jens Stoltenberg: NATO & EU Should Cooperate to Boost Collective Defense, Regional Stability
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Jens Stoltenberg: NATO & EU Should Cooperate to Boost Collective Defense, Regional Stability


Jens Stoltenberg: NATO & EU Should Cooperate to Boost Collective Defense, Regional Stability
Jens Stoltenberg

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has said that the alliance should work with the European Union to optimize collective defense and achieve regional stability, DoD News reported Wednesday.

Stoltenberg told students at the Ecole Militaire military academy in Paris that NATO and EU are engaging in talks and the alliances have increased cooperation on cyber defense, maritime security, counterterrorism and countering hybrid warfare, among others.

“I am convinced a strong European defense is good for the European Union, it is good for Europe and it is good for NATO, as long as it respects three key principles,” Stoltenberg said.

The first principle is to increase spending on interoperable defense systems that can help member nations achieve cost savings.

The secretary general added that a stronger European defense requires cooperation with non-EU allies while “respecting the autonomy and integrity of the European Union.”

The third key principle is for EU to carry out defense efforts that complement, and not duplicate, NATO’s defense activities, according to Stoltenberg.

He noted that the two alliances should work together instead of competing since they share 22 member countries.

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House Eyes Another Stopgap Bill to Fund Govt Through Jan. 19
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House Eyes Another Stopgap Bill to Fund Govt Through Jan. 19


House Eyes Another Stopgap Bill to Fund Govt Through Jan. 19House lawmakers plan to pass another continuing resolution Thursday in an effort to avoid a government shutdown and fund federal agencies through Jan. 19, Bloomberg reported Thursday.

Congress passed Dec. 7 a two-week CR that is set to expire Friday.

The four-week stopgap bill would include a provisional fix to the Children’s Health Insurance Program to address declining funds and extend through Jan. 19 a section of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act that approaches expiration on Dec. 31.

Some lawmakers said they expect the House to vote on a proposed bill that would authorize $81 billion in hurricane and wildfire relief funds as a separate package.

The House Rules Committee is set to meet Thursday morning to prepare the short-term funding measure for a floor vote.

Politico also reported that some Republican members of the House Armed Services Committee expressed objections to the proposed CR without full-year funding for the Defense Department at a closed-door conference meeting.

Some members said they voted for the two-week CR after House leaders said they would advance a yearlong spending measure for DoD before the Friday deadline.

Republican leaders told the conference that they do not have 217 votes to clear the original DoD spending plan under the two-week stopgap bill.

House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wisconsin) said at the conference that Defense Secretary James Mattis had given his consent to the proposed CR, the report added.

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GAO: DoD’s Contract Awards to Minority-, Women-Owned Businesses Hit $230B in FY 2010-2016
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GAO: DoD’s Contract Awards to Minority-, Women-Owned Businesses Hit $230B in FY 2010-2016


GAO: DoD’s Contract Awards to Minority-, Women-Owned Businesses Hit $230B in FY 2010-2016The Government Accountability Office has found that the Defense Department awarded approximately 444,500 contracts valued at more than $230 billion to women- and minority-owned businesses between fiscal years 2010 and 2016.

GAO said in a report published Monday fixed-price contracts for goods and services represented at least 80 percent, or approximately $184 billion, of the total obligated funds over the six-year period.

The study showed that DoD’s spending on contracts awarded to such businesses dropped by 12 percent from FY 2010 to FY 2016.

The Pentagon awarded approximately $14 billion in technical and professional engineering contracts and over $3 billion worth of software contracts to minority- and women-owned companies during the period, according to the report.

GAO used data from the Federal Procurement Data System-Next Generation platform to examine the department’s acquisition trends in compliance with a provision of the fiscal 2017 National Defense Authorization Act.

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