/
SEC Seeks Chief Risk Officer to Help Manage Commission’s Cybersecurity
Published on
SEC Seeks Chief Risk Officer to Help Manage Commission’s Cybersecurity


SEC Seeks Chief Risk Officer to Help Manage Commission's CybersecurityThe Securities and Exchange Commission wants to recruit a chief risk officer to help boost the agency’s cyber defense measures, Federal News Radio reported Monday.

SEC Commissioner Michael Piwowar said during a Data Coalition-hosted forum in Washington that SEC Chairman Jay Clayton suggested the creation of the chief risk officer position.

“We’re having discussions right now with folks in the industry in terms of what types of qualities we would like to have in someone in that particular role,” Piwowar told his audience at the event.

The report noted that Clayton oversees the agency’s response to a breach that happened in 2016 and affected its Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis and Retrieval system that processes approximately 1.7 million electronic filings a year.

SEC has reviewed the types of data the agency collects as part of an ongoing investigation into the cyber attack, Piwowar noted.

//
NOAA Weather Satellite Arrives in Geostationary Orbit
Published on
NOAA Weather Satellite Arrives in Geostationary Orbit


NOAA Weather Satellite Arrives in Geostationary OrbitA National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration weather satellite on Monday reached geostationary orbit and is set to carry out the second deployment phase for solar array components Tuesday.

The Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite-S officially adopted the name GOES-17 following its arrival at the geostationary orbit and is scheduled to enter the post-launch calibration and testing phase on March 26, NOAA said Monday.

GOES-17 took off on March 1 aboard a United Launch Alliance-built Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

NOAA said it expects the Lockheed Martin-built satellite to undergo on-orbit checkout phase for its instruments for a period of six months and deliver its first imagery in mid-May to help monitor storm systems, wildfires, lightning and other environmental and weather hazards across the Western Hemisphere.

The launch of GOES-17 came nearly two years after GOES-16 lifted off aboard the Lockheed-Boeing joint venture’s rocket as the first of NOAA’s four GOES-R Series satellites.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2lOUkJzhfXM&feature=youtu.be

/
Reports: House Intell Panel Concludes Investigation Into Russia’s Election Interference
Published on
Reports: House Intell Panel Concludes Investigation Into Russia’s Election Interference


Reports: House Intell Panel Concludes Investigation Into Russia’s Election InterferenceThe House Intelligence Committee has decided to end its investigation into Russia’s involvement in the 2016 presidential election, The Hill reported Monday.

Rep. Mike Conaway (R-Texas) told reporters Monday the House panel did not find any evidence of collusion between Russia and President Donald Trump’s election campaign and will no longer interview witnesses.

Conaway said the committee has started work on its final report and will hand over a 150-page draft document to Democrat members Tuesday for evaluation.

Lawmakers interviewed 73 witnesses and assessed at least 300,000 documents as part of the investigation that started in January 2017.

The New York Times reported the draft report includes over 25 recommendations associated with cybersecurity and elections, campaign finance regulations and counterintelligence practices.

Conaway noted he aims to accelerate work with U.S. intelligence agencies to declassify the draft document for public access.

The Senate Intelligence Committee is set to conduct a public hearing and release a report on election security in the next few weeks, the report added.

/
Senate Committee to Hold Infrastructure Modernization Hearing
Published on
Senate Committee to Hold Infrastructure Modernization Hearing


Senate Committee to Hold Infrastructure Modernization HearingSen. John Thune (R-South Dakota), chairman of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, has announced that secretaries of five U.S. federal departments will participate in a congressional hearing about infrastructure modernization efforts.

Thune’s office said Monday leaders at the departments of Agriculture, Commerce, Energy, Labor and Transportation are scheduled to testify Wednesday at the meeting, themed “Rebuilding Infrastructure in America: Administration Perspectives.”

The committee will live-stream the hearing on its website.

“Testimony from these five cabinet secretaries will support a comprehensive public discussion with senators about the White House proposal for aligning federal resources with local infrastructure needs and helping complete projects faster,” said Thune.

He and fellow Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Florida) and Thune have expressed intent to jointly draft a bill to modernize  the country’s transportation and communication networks.

//
DOT Awards $500M in Federal TIGER Grants to 41 Transport Infrastructure Projects
Published on
DOT Awards $500M in Federal TIGER Grants to 41 Transport Infrastructure Projects


DOT Awards $500M in Federal TIGER Grants to 41 Transport Infrastructure ProjectsThe Transportation Department has selected 41 road, transit, maritime and rail projects to receive nearly $500 million in total fiscal 2017 discretionary funds through the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery program.

DOT said Friday the FY 2017 TIGER program considered communities in the countryside, with more than 64 percent of the grants awarded to rural transportation access and safety enhancement projects.

The department awarded $39.2 million to tribal projects.

DOT chose the latest round of TIGER grant recipients after a competitive process and noted that the Consolidated Appropriations Act sets aside funds to fully cover the National Infrastructure Investments through Sept. 30, 2020.

Criteria for the selection are safety, state of good repair, economic competitiveness, quality of life, environmental sustainability, innovation, partnership and alignment with the administration’s infrastructure principles.

The program may offer discretionary grants from $5 million to $25 million and a minimum of $1 million for rural projects.

To date, DOT has invested $5.6 billion in surface transportation infrastructure projects over nine competitive rounds through the program.

Click here to view the department’s full list of FY 2017 TIGER awardees.

//
Maj. Gen. Michael Brewer Appointed to Lead Air Force Operational Test & Evaluation Center
Published on
Maj. Gen. Michael Brewer Appointed to Lead Air Force Operational Test & Evaluation Center


Maj. Gen. Michael Brewer Appointed to Lead Air Force Operational Test & Evaluation Center
Michael Brewer

Maj. Gen. Michael Brewer, director for strategic plans, programs and analyses at the Air Force Materiel Command, has been assigned as commander of the Air Force Operational Test and Evaluation Center.

Gen. David Goldfein, Air Force chief of staff, announced Brewer’s new assignment in a Defense Department press release published Friday

In his current role, Brewer oversees the Program Objective Memorandum process for AFMC’s agile combat support function and weapon systems sustainment components.

He also oversees work to update the ACS Service Core Function Master Plan annually as well as strategic basing, lessons learned, enterprise analyses and transformational efforts across the command.

His previous assignments included roles as commander of the 412th Test Wing at Edwards Air Force Base; assistant for global positioning system and navigation warfare at the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Networks and Information Integration; and commander of the Arnold Engineering Development Center.

Brewer has logged more than 3,200 flying hours with the F-111, F-15E and F-16 platforms.

He also flew F-111 and F-15E in combat missions.

//
Lt. Gen. Samuel Greaves: MDA Eyes Space-Based Sensors Against Hypersonic Threats
Published on
Lt. Gen. Samuel Greaves: MDA Eyes Space-Based Sensors Against Hypersonic Threats


Lt. Gen. Samuel Greaves: MDA Eyes Space-Based Sensors Against Hypersonic Threats
Samuel Greaves

Lt. Gen. Samuel Greaves, director of the Missile Defense Agency, has said MDA needs space-based sensors to detect and monitor hypersonic threats, Breaking Defense reported Friday.

Greaves said Tuesday at the McAleese/Credit Suisse conference that hypersonics need close monitoring because they are unpredictable.

“What we are looking towards is to move the sensor architecture to space and use that advantage of space, in coordination with our ground assets, to remove the gaps,” he said at the event.

He noted that continuous monitoring is needed amid the rising use of countermeasure systems by adversaries on ballistic missiles in addition to hypersonic threats.

Greaves, a 2018 Wash100 recipient, said MDA aims to work with the U.S. Air Force on a space-based sensor system that can be pushed to achieve technology readiness level 6.

/
White House Considers Christopher Liddell for NEC Director Post
Published on
White House Considers Christopher Liddell for NEC Director Post


White House Considers Christopher Liddell for NEC Director Post
Christopher Liddell

Christopher Liddell, director of strategic initiatives at the White House, has emerged as a front-runner to succeed former National Economic Council Director Gary Cohn, the New York Times reported Saturday.

The report said Cohn resigned as NEC head and President Donald Trump’s top economic adviser due to differences of opinion over new import tariffs.

Liddell has worked with Jared Kushner, senior adviser to President Trump, in efforts to simplify government functions such as technology procurement and digital service delivery.

Before he joined the government last year, Liddell served as chief financial officer at Microsoft and General Motors.

/
Lawmakers Move to Expand DHS Cybersecurity Role
Published on
Lawmakers Move to Expand DHS Cybersecurity Role


Lawmakers Move to Expand DHS Cybersecurity RoleHouse and Senate lawmakers advanced two bills last Wednesday that would expand the Department of Homeland Security‘s cybersecurity mission.

The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee passed a DHS reauthorization bill that would reorganize the department’s National Protection and Programs Directorate; secure personally identifiable information; and support cybersecurity research, Covington & Burling‘s government contracts unit said Friday.

The Senate version of the bill includes an amendment that would rename NPPD as the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency and elevate the organization’s cybersecurity role.

The legislation would also direct Customs and Border Protection to remove PII such as social security numbers, passport numbers and residential addresses from manifests prior to public disclosure.

A third amendment seeks to support cybersecurity technology research, development, testing, evaluation and transition in partnership with other federal agencies, industry and academia.

The House Homeland Security Committee approved the Cyber Incident Response Teams Act, which would authorize DHS’ National Cybersecurity and Communications Integration Center to form cyber hunt and incident response teams.

The teams will help asset owners and operators restore services after a cyber incident; identify potential cybersecurity risks and unauthorized cyber activities; offer measures to address vulnerabilities; and recommend ways to optimize network and systems security.

The Act permits NCCIC to fill the Cyber Incident Response Teams with cybersecurity specialists from the government and private sector.

/
DARPA Seeks $255M in FY 2019 Space Program Funds
Published on
DARPA Seeks $255M in FY 2019 Space Program Funds


DARPA Seeks $255M in FY 2019 Space Program FundsThe Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency‘s fiscal year 2019 budget request includes $254.7 million to fund various space programs such as an experimental space plane, a launch competition and an on-orbit satellite servicing platform, Parabolic Arc reported Friday.

DARPA seeks $62 million for the Experimental Spaceplane One program to fund Boeing‘s ongoing efforts to build a launch vehicle that can be flown 10 times in 10 days.

The agency also requested $5 million for the DARPA Launch Challenge, which aims to test the capacity to launch satellites quickly, switch sites and then lift off again.

Under the budget request, the Robotic Servicing of Geosynchronous Satellites program will receive $109 million to support the development, test and integration of a robotic system that will work to sustain spacecraft in the geosynchronous orbit.

DARPA also wants $42 million for the Radar Net project that will work to develop lightweight, low-power, wideband capability for radio frequency communications and remote sensing for a space-based platform.

The request allocates a total of $37 million to four space technology programs including Blackjack, Planar Imager, Hallmark and Advanced Space Technology Concepts.

1 … 2,160 2,161 2,162 2,163 2,164 … 2,704