/
David DeVries to Depart OPM CIO Post
Published on
David DeVries to Depart OPM CIO Post


David DeVries to Depart OPM CIO Post
David DeVries

David DeVries, chief information officer at the Office of Personnel Management, will step down from his current role and leave the government in the coming weeks, FedScoop reported Tuesday.

The report said Rob Leahy, deputy chief information officer at OPM, will serve as an interim replacement to DeVries upon his resignation.

DeVries assumed the position in August 2016 and helped modernize the agency’s information technology infrastructure and business systems, consolidated data centers and supported the development of the agency’s cybersecurity posture.

Before OPM, he held the roles of principal deputy CIO, acting CIO and deputy CIO for information enterprise at the Defense Department.

/
NASA to Install Equipment on Orbital ATK Spacecraft as Part of TESS Explorer Mission
Published on
NASA to Install Equipment on Orbital ATK Spacecraft as Part of TESS Explorer Mission


NASA to Install Equipment on Orbital ATK Spacecraft as Part of TESS Explorer MissionNASA will install cameras and science data processing computers for the Massachusetts Institute of Technology-built Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite onto an Orbital ATK spacecraft in the coming weeks following the platform’s completion of a systems integration review.

The space agency said Saturday that independent technical and scientific experts reviewed the TESS platform which will be launched aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket in March 2018 to search for exoplanets that orbit stars outside the solar system.

TESS will use four wide-field cameras to scan the sky and monitor transit events as well as survey stars approximately 100 times brighter than the ones observed during NASA’s Kepler mission.

NASA noted that TESS will also observe areas that overlap with the future James Webb Space Telescope‘s optimal viewing zone to help locate potential exoplanet candidates that will be studied for detailed characterization.

The Astrophysics division at NASA HQ oversees the TESS Explorer-class mission which the space agency will conduct alongside MIT’s Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, the Goddard Space Flight Center, the Ames Research Center, Orbital ATK, the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory and the Space Telescope Science Institute.

/
Danny Toler to Retire as DHS Deputy Assistant Secretary for Cyber, Communications
Published on
Danny Toler to Retire as DHS Deputy Assistant Secretary for Cyber, Communications


Danny Toler to Retire as DHS Deputy Assistant Secretary for Cyber, Communications
Danny Toler

Danny Toler, deputy assistant secretary at the Department of Homeland Security’s cybersecurity and communications office, will retire by the end of August after nearly four decades in government service, Federal News Radio reported Tuesday.

Jeanette Manfra will take over as assistant secretary at the cyber and communications office on a full-time basis, Toler said in an email obtained by the station.

He joined DHS in 2012 as deputy chief of federal network resilience and became director for network security deployment in 2014 before assuming the role of deputy assistant secretary at the cyber office in 2016.

Prior to DHS, he spent 13 years at the State Department where he held the roles of division chief of network engineering and design and director of the enterprise network management office.

He worked at the now defunct U.S. Information Agency for seven years as branch chief for networks.

/
GAO: DoD Should Address Biometric & Forensic Systems Planning, Acquisition Mgmt Challenges
Published on
GAO: DoD Should Address Biometric & Forensic Systems Planning, Acquisition Mgmt Challenges


GAO: DoD Should Address Biometric & Forensic Systems Planning, Acquisition Mgmt ChallengesThe Government Accountability Office has urged the Defense Department to address gaps in the department’s efforts to institutionalize its biometric and forensic systems.

GAO said in a report published Monday that DoD has taken steps to meet long-term requirements for deployable biometric and forensic platforms but the department continues to face strategic planning and acquisition management challenges.

Auditors found that DoD has established a forensic strategic plan but does not have one for biometric systems since the department has yet to assign an entity to develop such plan.

GAO also found that the U.S. Army did not comply with DoD’s acquisition protocols in the development of a key biometric platform, which may have prevented the service branch from using existing, viable and cheaper alternatives.

The report added DoD’s biometric database that helps the department identify adversaries and terrorists does not have a remotely located backup to support the database’s availability and mitigate threats such as natural hazards.

GAO recommended DoD to refresh its biometric enterprise strategic plan; establish a geographically dispersed biometric database back-up; and improve the management of biometric systems acquisition.

/
Report: DHS Names Stephen Rice Acting CIO
Published on
Report: DHS Names Stephen Rice Acting CIO


Report: DHS Names Stephen Rice Acting CIO
Stephen Rice

Stephen Rice, deputy chief information officer at the Department of Homeland Security, will assume the role of acting DHS CIO on Sept. 1, FCW reported Monday.

He will succeed Richard Staropoli, who will leave DHS after three months in the CIO position.

Rice previously served as assistant administrator for the Transportation Security Administration‘s Office of Information Technology and Chief Information Officer.

Before that, he was deputy CIO and assistant administrator at TSA for more than four years.

He also spent nearly 10 years at the U.S. Secret Service, then left the federal law enforcement agency for a stint as a network consultant in the private sector.

Rice then returned to the federal government as a Commerce Department security program manager and later joined TSA.

/
Report: Navy Extends Deadline for Contractor Biometric ID Transition
Published on
Report: Navy Extends Deadline for Contractor Biometric ID Transition


Report: Navy Extends Deadline for Contractor Biometric ID TransitionThe U.S. Navy has extended its Aug. 15 deadline for the military branch’s contractors to obtain a Defense Biometric Identification System pass to access naval bases, Federal News Radio reported Monday.

Sean Stackley, formerly acting U.S. Navy secretary, told Congress in a letter he ordered the extension as the service branch reviews DBIDS as well as the Navy Commercial Access Control System and other base access management variations in an effort to ensure the systems’ compliance with Defense Department and Navy standards.

The Navy began to transition contractors, service providers, subcontractors, suppliers and vendors who hold an NCACS card to a DBIDS credential in April.

DBIDS is designed to strengthen base security and communications through continuous vetting anytime the platform scans a card at an installation entry point.

/
Pentagon Issues Guidance on Unauthorized Drone Operations Near Military Installations
Published on
Pentagon Issues Guidance on Unauthorized Drone Operations Near Military Installations


Pentagon Issues Guidance on Unauthorized Drone Operations Near Military InstallationsThe Defense Department has released a set of guidelines for U.S. military services and installations to address “unauthorized” activity of civilian unmanned aircraft systems near base facilities, DoD News reported Monday.

Navy Capt. Jeff Davis, a Pentagon spokesman, told reporters Monday the new guidance details how DoD should coordinate with local communities on UAS restrictions.

He added the guidance allows department personnel to stop unauthorized drone flight over and near military installations by tracking, disabling or destroying UAS platforms.

DoD also collaborated with the Federal Aviation Administration and interagency partners to establish a classified policy on how to mitigate drone threats.

Davis said the policy was sent to military services and installations in July.

/
Arizona State University to Lead DHS CoE for Operational Efficiency
Published on
Arizona State University to Lead DHS CoE for Operational Efficiency


Arizona State University to Lead DHS CoE for Operational EfficiencyThe Department of Homeland Security has selected Arizona State University to lead a consortium of academic, industry, government and laboratory partners that aims to optimize DHS’ operational efficiency.

DHS said Monday the new Center of Excellence for Accelerating Operational Efficiency’s will receive $3.9 million to fund its first year of operations in a 10-year grant period.

“As lead institution, Arizona State University will spearhead a consortium of academic, industry, government, and laboratory partners throughout the country to develop advanced analytic tools and technologies,” said Matthew Clark, director of DHS science and technology directorate’s office of university programs.

William Bryan, DHS acting under secretary for science and technology, said CAOE will use analytical tools to help DHS components and other security practitioners boost their operational efficiency.

The center’s research efforts will focus on data analytics; economics; homeland security risk analysis; and operations research and systems analysis.

CAOE will also assist DHS leaders in policy analysis and work with DHS components in the development of tools and technologies that can help achieve measurable efficiency improvements.

DHS COEs are led by U.S. academic institutions and are comprised of researchers and educators that work with DHS agencies to address homeland security challenges.

/
Report: DoN CIO Robert Foster to Step Down
Published on
Report: DoN CIO Robert Foster to Step Down


Report: DoN CIO Robert Foster to Step Down
Robert Foster

Robert Foster, chief information officer of the Department of the Navy, will resign from his post on Aug. 19, Federal News Radio reported Monday.

He will move to the National Credit Union Administration as deputy CIO and oversee the delivery of information technology services.

Foster has spearheaded various programs since his appointment as the department’s CIO in 2015 such as the launch of the Data and Analytics Consortium that seeks to facilitate data users’ access to analytics services through the development of a service management construct.

He previously served as deputy CIO at the Department of Health and Human Services before he moved to the Department of the Navy.

The 21-year U.S. Navy veteran held assignments in the areas of software development, IT operations and security during his military career.

Foster also worked at the Department of Homeland Security’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement as deputy CIO after he retired from the Navy in 2007.

/
Congress Seeks to Advance US Missile Defense Tech Devt Via Fiscal 2018 NDAA
Published on
Congress Seeks to Advance US Missile Defense Tech Devt Via Fiscal 2018 NDAA


Congress Seeks to Advance US Missile Defense Tech Devt Via Fiscal 2018 NDAAThe House and Senate aim to advance the development and modernization of ground- and space-based missile defense platforms designed to counter ballistic missile threats through defense spending bills for fiscal 2018, Defense News reported Monday.

The efforts by both chambers of Congress come as the Defense Department works on the Ballistic Missile Defense Review.

A provision in the Senate Armed Services Committee’s proposed fiscal 2018 National Defense Authorization Act would require a report on options to raise the Ground-Based Midcourse Defense System’s capacity by up to 100 ground-based interceptors.

The Senate panel’s NDAA would also direct the DoD secretary to consider efforts to accelerate the development of several capabilities cited in the review such as the Multi-Object Kill Vehicle, Redesigned Kill Vehicle, Configuration-3 booster and additional GBIs.

The House’s NDAA version would require DoD to develop a space-based missile defense strategy that details plans on how the U.S. Air Force, Missile Defense Agency and other agencies will build a space-based sensor layer for ballistic missile defense.

The House measure also proposed the creation of a test bed for space-based ballistic missile intercept, the report added.

1 … 2,269 2,270 2,271 2,272 2,273 … 2,703