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House Lawmakers Renew Push for Email Privacy Bill
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House Lawmakers Renew Push for Email Privacy Bill


House Lawmakers Renew Push for Email Privacy BillA bipartisan group of House lawmakers has reintroduced a bill that would require law enforcement officials to secure a warrant to access emails.

The Email Privacy Act aims to update the 1986 Electronic Communications Privacy Act and would allow law enforcement to access emails older than 180 days through third-party providers without a warrant, Rep. Suzan DelBene’s (D-Washington) office said Monday.

Delbene joined Reps. Kevin Yoder (R-Kansas) and Jared Polis (D-Colorado) to push for the adoption of the bill, which passed the House last year through a 419-0 vote but was not acted on by the Senate.

The Email Privacy Act will remove the “180-day” rule; require a warrant to obtain content from providers; authorize companies to notify customers when the government requests their data; and allow government to request a judge-ordered delay of notification in certain circumstances.

DelBene said the legislation seeks to protect civil liberties in the digital age and that she will work to address other ECPA-related matters such as geolocation information and data stored overseas.

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DoD Advisory Board OKs Weapon Vulnerability Assessment, Machine Learning Advancement
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DoD Advisory Board OKs Weapon Vulnerability Assessment, Machine Learning Advancement


DoD Advisory Board OKs Weapon Vulnerability Assessment, Machine Learning AdvancementThe Defense Innovation Advisory Board on Monday cleared a dozen recommendations that seek to help the Defense Department maintain its technological edge as well as manage its operations, culture and processes, DoD News reported Monday.

Some of the recommendations approved by the 15-member advisory board during its second meeting at the Pentagon include the appointment a chief innovation officer at DoD, assessment of cyber vulnerabilities in weapons systems and advancement of innovation in machine learning and artificial intelligence, Lisa Ferdinando writes.

The board also called for DoD to expand adoption of acquisition exemptions and waivers, increase code access, set up software development groups at every major command as well as implement computer science as a core competency through training and recruitment, Ferdinando reports.

Board members also tackled a recommendation to create a global repository that will work to facilitate data collection, analysis and exchange.

Eric Schmidt, executive chairman at Google parent company Alphabet and chair of the board, told reporters he believes the defense innovation board will continue its efforts under the next administration, the report added.

The board approved the recommendations months after it held its initial meeting in October.

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Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Names New CIO, CFO in Series of Exec Moves
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Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Names New CIO, CFO in Series of Exec Moves


Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Names New CIO, CFO in Series of Exec MovesThe Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has appointed Jerry Horton, former chief information officer at the U.S. Agency for International Development, as the bureau’s CIO and promoted deputy chief financial officer Elizabeth “Eli” Reilly to CFO in a series of leadership changes.

Horton previously worked at the State Department as head of the office of chief architect for the agency’s global information presence before he joined the bureau, CFPB said Friday.

He also served as CIO at the U.S. Mint within the Treasury Department and spent two decades in the private sector where he held technical and business leadership functions.

Prior to the bureau, Reilly served as a program examiner and acting branch head at the Office of Management and Budget and a Peace Corps volunteer in West Africa.

Leandra English, formerly principal deputy chief of staff at the Office of Personnel Management, has returned to the bureau to serve as the agency’s chief of staff.

Paul Kantwill, former director at the office of legal policy under the defense undersecretary for personnel and readiness at the Defense Department, has been named assistant director for servicemember affairs at the bureau.

CFPB also named John McNamara, former debt collection program manager at the agency, as assistant director of consumer lending, reporting and collections markets.

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Sen. Mark Warner Seeks Cybersecurity, Wireless Comm Updates From Washington Metro Transit Agency
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Sen. Mark Warner Seeks Cybersecurity, Wireless Comm Updates From Washington Metro Transit Agency


Sen. Mark Warner Seeks Cybersecurity, Wireless Comm Updates From Washington Metro Transit AgencySen. Mark Warner (D-Virginia) has asked the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority about its cybersecurity operations, wireless communication deployment efforts and measures to address interoperability issues related to its communications systems for first responders.

Warner, co-founder of the Senate Cybersecurity Caucus, raised the three areas of concern in a letter to Paul Wiedefeld, general manager of WMATA, in response to the Jan. 12, 2015 smoke incident at L’Enfant Plaza wherein radio problems prevented emergency response communications, the lawmaker’s office said Monday.

The letter also mentioned reports of a ransomware attack on the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency in November that left SFMTA’s computer networks inoperable and forced the agency to “forgo thousands of dollars in collected fares.”

Warner asked WMTA to respond by Feb. 15 to several questions about its computer networks, such as the presence of backup systems in the event of a computer system outage, adoption of network segmentation measures, and availability of a comprehensive plan to address ransomware attacks.

He also requested updates on the agency’s plans to expand its wireless communications network and deploy a public access Wi-Fi at its underground stations.

LaVerne Council Highlights VA IT Transformation Achievements
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LaVerne Council Highlights VA IT Transformation Achievements


LaVerne Council Highlights VA IT Transformation Achievements
LaVerne Council

LaVerne Council, chief information officer at the Department of Veterans Affairs, discussed three key objectives that guide VA’s information technology transformation efforts in a blog entry posted Monday

She said that VA’s office of information and technology has worked to stabilize and streamline core processes and platforms; address material weaknesses; and institutionalize new functions to boost outcomes.

VA established its office of development and engagement to support employees through new career tracks; targeted and flexible training modules; and events that sought to provide direct contact between employees and OI&T leadership, Council added.

VA’s OI&T ranked fifth out of 24 federal agencies in the Office of Management and Budget‘s 2016 Benchmarks for Customer Satisfaction survey — up from 19th in the previous year.

Council noted OI&T formed the enterprise program management office to transition more than 200 projects into a new “veteran-focused” process designed to create a project management approach that required fewer artifacts and a shorter delivery cycle.

OI&T also created four new functions such as IT account management, strategic sourcing, data management and quality and compliance.

VA currently tests a mobile application for veterans that will work to send appointment reminders, receive progress reports and urge veterans to track and upload basic health data and readings.

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Pakistan Puts Submarine-Launched Babur-3 Cruise Missile Through 1st Fire Test
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Pakistan Puts Submarine-Launched Babur-3 Cruise Missile Through 1st Fire Test


Pakistan Puts Submarine-Launched Babur-3 Cruise Missile Through 1st Fire TestPakistan has performed an initial fire test of a nuclear-capable cruise missile launched from a submarine at an undisclosed site in the Indian Ocean, Hindustan Times reported Tuesday.

The Pakistani military said in a statement that it test-fired the Babur-3 missile with a range of up to 280 miles and that it expects the weapon system to provide the country with a “second strike capability.”

Babur-3 is a maritime-based variant of the Babur-2 ground-launched cruise missile and has guidance and navigation tools, underwater controlled propulsion systems and stealth platforms that work to help the missile evade aerial and radar defenses.

Pakistan’s naval force has configured its Agosta 90B-class submarines to launch cruise missiles, the report added.

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Defense Innovation Board Vows Continued Support for Pentagon Under Trump Administration
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Defense Innovation Board Vows Continued Support for Pentagon Under Trump Administration


Defense Innovation Board Vows Continued Support for Pentagon Under Trump AdministrationA majority of Defense Innovation Board members have pledged to stay within the organization and continue to assist the Defense Department under President-elect Donald Trump’s incoming administration, Defense News reported Monday.

Aaron Mehta reports Eric Schmidt, chairman of the Defense Innovation Board, said at a public event Monday that none of the current board members have announced plans to depart from the organization.

“I have indicated I would be very happy to serve under [the new administration], and I believe all, or everyone but maybe one, will continue,” added Schmidt, who is also the executive chairman of Alphabet.

Outgoing Defense Secretary Ashton Carter established the Defense Innovation Board to offer suggestions on how the Pentagon should use technology with the help of input gathered from leaders of the commercial technology sector.

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DoD’s Strategic Capabilities Office Demos Perdix Micro-Drones
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DoD’s Strategic Capabilities Office Demos Perdix Micro-Drones


DoD’s Strategic Capabilities Office Demos Perdix Micro-DronesThe Defense Department’s strategic capabilities office demonstrated a swarm of 103 autonomous micro-drones in October at China Lake in California.

SCO teamed up with the Naval Air Systems Command to deploy the Perdix micro-drones from three Boeing-built F/A-18 Super Hornet fighter jets, DoD said in a news release published Monday.

According to SCO, the swarm of drones exhibited adaptive formation flying, collective decision-making and self-healing during the flight demonstration.

“Because every Perdix communicates and collaborates with every other Perdix, the swarm has no leader and can gracefully adapt to drones entering or exiting the team,” said William Roper, director of SCO.

Perdix is a low-altitude unmanned vehicle designed to perform intelligence, surveillance and reconnaisance missions.

Engineers and scientists at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Lincoln Laboratory modified the unmanned system, which is currently on its sixth generation, in 2013 for military use.

SCO has also collaborated with the Defense Industrial Unit-Experimental to look for companies that could use the design from MIT Lincoln Laboratory to replicate and mass produce the drones in batches of up to 1,000.

The flight demonstration was documented on CBS News program “60 Minutes” Sunday.

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NASA Modifies Flood Impact Analysis Tool to Assist Resource Mgmt at Joint Base Langley-Eustis
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NASA Modifies Flood Impact Analysis Tool to Assist Resource Mgmt at Joint Base Langley-Eustis


NASA Modifies Flood Impact Analysis Tool to Assist Resource Mgmt at Joint Base Langley-EustisNASA has updated an analysis tool that works to help the 63rd Civil Engineer Squadron at Joint Base Langley-Eustis measure the impact of tidal storm flooding in order to manage resource deployment.

The U.S. Air Force said Friday NASA modified the geographic information system office-developed Flood Impact Analysis Tool in a push to expand the dissemination of data and drive streamline the mapping and planning during flooding incidents.

“The intended purpose of the tool was so we would know where the water was going; however, it has allowed our team to focus on being more productive with our resources,” said Freddie Torres, 633rd CES geospatial information officer.

He added the impact analysis tool NASA created 20 years ago for the Air Force has also evolved into a construction planning tool that works to determine the correct elevation for buildings at the base.

William Ball, NASA geospatial information system team leader, said researchers also developed a widget application for the tool to help facility personnel manage equipment, space, spill response and environmental tasks.

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HHS Issues Estimated $50M to Fund 75 Health Centers Across US, Puerto Rico, Micronesia
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HHS Issues Estimated $50M to Fund 75 Health Centers Across US, Puerto Rico, Micronesia


HHS Issues Estimated $50M to Fund 75 Health Centers Across US, Puerto Rico, MicronesiaThe Department of Health and Human Services has awarded more than $50 million in funds to 75 community-based and patient-directed health centers across the U.S., Puerto Rico and Micronesia in an effort to expand healthcare services to citizens.

HHS said Dec. 15 the money will fund the delivery of pharmaceutical, mental health, substance abuse treatment and oral health services in areas where there are limited affordable healthcare programs.

Mary Wakefield, HHS acting deputy secretary, said the grant under the New Access Point program aims to extend healthcare coverage to more than 240,000 additional people.

“One in 13 people nationwide rely on a [Health Resources and Services Administration]-funded health center for their preventive and primary health care needs,” noted Jim Macrae, acting administrator of HRSA.

HHS added approximately 1,400 health centers at more than 9,800 locations serve more than 24 million people across the U.S. and its territories.

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