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NIST Addresses Use of Syncable Authenticators via Supplement to Digital Identity Guidelines
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NIST Addresses Use of Syncable Authenticators via Supplement to Digital Identity Guidelines

The National Institute of Standards and Technology has published a supplement to an existing NIST Special Publication to provide interim guidance for agencies that intend to use syncable authenticators in public-facing and enterprise-facing use cases.

NIST said Tuesday the document is the first supplement to its SP 800-63B Digital Identity Guidelines: Authentication and Lifecycle Management.

According to the supplement, syncable authenticators are cryptographic authenticators or FIDO passkeys that use multiple protocols and standards and allow for the private key to be cloned and stored separate of the authenticator to back use of the key across devices.

“When implemented correctly, they provide a phishing-resistant authenticator with many benefits, such as simplified recovery, cross device support, and consumer friendly platform authentication support (for example, native biometrics),” the document states.

NIST said the supplement provides agencies direction on how to use syncable authenticators in support of the federal zero trust strategy.

The agency will accept feedback on syncable authenticators and the supplement’s content during the second round of public comments for Revision 4 of the guidelines, which will open later in 2024.

POC - 2024 Cyber Summit

Register here to attend the Potomac Officers Club’s 2024 Cyber Summit on June 6 and listen to experts and industry and government leaders as they talk about the role of cyber in the public sector.

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Zepher Flight Labs, NovaSpark Energy to Prototype Hydrogen Generators for Austere Environments
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Zepher Flight Labs, NovaSpark Energy to Prototype Hydrogen Generators for Austere Environments

Zepher Flight Labs and NovaSpark Energy have secured contracts from the Defense Innovation Unit to build prototype technologies designed to generate hydrogen in austere and isolated environments to power unmanned aerial systems, small unit equipment and tactical vehicles.

DIU said Monday the companies will build their hydrogen generation prototypes under the Hydrogen at the Tactical Edge of Contested logistics, or HyTEC, project in 2024 in preparation for testing and field experimentation in early 2025.

“With this new capability and by generating hydrogen power at the tactical edge, small units will be better able to self-sustain operations in remote locations and will be less reliant on fuel supply chains,” said Andrew Mawdsley, HyTEC program manager at DIU.

U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, the Naval Research Laboratory, the Marine Corps Expeditionary Energy Office, the Naval Information Warfare Center Pacific, the U.S. Army Ground Vehicle Systems Center and the Department of Energy will serve as project collaborators and evaluators under the HyTEC project.

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NASA Awards SBIR Phase II Contracts to 95 Small Businesses; Jenn Gustetic Quoted
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NASA Awards SBIR Phase II Contracts to 95 Small Businesses; Jenn Gustetic Quoted

NASA has awarded $93.5 million in Small Business Innovation Research Phase II contracts to 95 small companies to help further develop 107 space technology ideas.

The space agency said Monday the awardees have 24 months to implement their plans and bring their technologies to market.

According to NASA, 21 percent of the small businesses are first-time Phase II awardees and each vendor can apply for up to $50,000 in funding under the Technical and Business Assistance program to seek market opportunities for their proposed tech platforms.

Each Phase II contract is worth up to $850,000.

“We are thrilled to support this diverse set of companies as they work diligently to bring their technologies to market,” said Jenn Gustetic, director of early stage innovation and partnerships with NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate.

“Inclusive innovation is integral to mission success at NASA, and we’re excited to see that 29% of the awardees are from underrepresented groups, including 11% women-owned businesses,” added Gustetic.

Phase II awardees include nou Systems, which is working on a genetic testing instrument, and PickNik, which has developed software designed to improve robotic missions on the lunar surface and Mars.

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GSA Appoints Mehul Parekh, Jetta Wong in Series of Exec Moves
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GSA Appoints Mehul Parekh, Jetta Wong in Series of Exec Moves

Mehul Parekh, former chief financial officer of the Federal Student Aid Office at the Department of Education, will serve as acting associate administrator for government-wide policy at the General Services Administration.

He will temporarily take over the responsibilities of Krystal Brumfield, who is departing from GSA on May 4, the agency said Monday.

Prior to his time at the Education Department, Parekh was with GSA for over five years. He initially served as director of budget in April 2018 and eventually transitioned to deputy chief financial officer role at GSA in March 2022.

The agency also announced other appointees, including Jetta Wong‘s move to assume a new role as deputy chief of staff for policy, responsible for overseeing policies that cover sustainability and other high-priority areas requiring agency-wide policy development, direction and coordination and oversight.

She was a senior adviser to the administrator for climate at GSA over the last two years, supporting agency and government-wide efforts to implement the $3.4 billion provided in the Inflation Reduction Act, which is the largest climate law in U.S. history.

Aside from Parekh and Wong, GSA also named Christine Simpson as senior adviser to the deputy administrator and Kusai Merchant as senior adviser to the Federal Acquisition Service.

Army Christens 1st Production Model of M10 Booker Combat Vehicle
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Army Christens 1st Production Model of M10 Booker Combat Vehicle

The U.S. Army has christened the first production model of its M10 Booker combat vehicle, manufactured by General Dynamics’ land systems division, during a ceremony held at Aberdeen Proving Ground.

Over the next several months, the vehicle will undergo operational tests with the 82nd Airborne Division in preparation for the fielding of the first operational company of M10 Booker combat vehicles in 2025, the Army said Thursday.

“The Army is undertaking its most significant transformation in several decades to dominate in large-scale combat operations in a multidomain environment, and the M10 Booker is a crucial part of that transformation,” said Doug Bush, the assistant secretary of the Army for acquisition, logistics and technology and a previous Wash100 awardee.

Prior to its deployment, the M10 Booker will undergo testing to evaluate the vehicle’s reliability and maintainability in the field.

“We will also put the vehicle through production qualification and testing in desert, arctic, temperate and tropical conditions, challenging it with obstacles like gaps and walls to scale, and engaging it with real word threats to ensure its survivability,” said Maj. Gen. Glenn Dean, program executive officer for ground combat systems.

POC - 9th Annual Army Summit

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DOD Awards Funding for Hypersonic Materials & Processing Technologies Development
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DOD Awards Funding for Hypersonic Materials & Processing Technologies Development

Nine performers have been awarded $26.6 million in total by the Manufacturing Technology office within the Office of the Secretary of Defense for the Joint Acceleration of Hypersonic Vehicle Aerostructure Alternatives program, which seeks to develop materials and processing technologies for hypersonic systems.

Under JAHVAA, the awardees will work to develop and test non-carbon/carbon thermal protection systems materials with the aim of establishing trusted design allowable data, the Department of Defense Manufacturing Technology Program website said Monday.

JAHVAA will feature a 36-month period of performance split into three phases, each of which will pose a challenge problem that the awardees will have to address using the material and processing capabilities they have proposed.

The program was awarded through the Strategic & Spectrum Missions Advanced Resilient Trusted Systems other transaction authority contract vehicle, which is managed by the National Security Technology Accelerator.

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Anne Marie Schumann Begins Role as DON Principal Cyber Adviser
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Anne Marie Schumann Begins Role as DON Principal Cyber Adviser

Anne Marie Schumann, a cybersecurity professional, took oath Monday as the Department of the Navy’s principal cyber adviser.

In this capacity, she will advise the secretary of the Navy, chief of naval operations and the commandant of the U.S. Marine Corps on all matters related to cybersecurity while working in close coordination with DON’s chief information officer and the Department of Defense’s CIO and principal cyber adviser, the Navy said Monday.

Schumann has over 20 years of experience in the military, public service and industry as a national security and cybersecurity professional.

She most recently served as the senior cyberthreat adviser to the director for command, control, communications and computers/cyber and CIO, Joint Staff J6.

According to her LinkedIn profile, Schumann joined the Defense Intelligence Agency in 2010 as a senior analyst focused on cyber intelligence after spending three years as a program manager at BAE Systems.

POC - 2024 Cyber Summit

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Alpha Omega Spotlights Partnership With USDA
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Alpha Omega Spotlights Partnership With USDA

Alpha Omega reflected on its work with the U.S. Department of Agriculture in a Sunday blog post acknowledging Earth Day.

The company highlighted its partnership with the Forest Service, which began in 2019. While collaborating with the agency, Alpha Omega has assisted with a variety of initiatives ranging from emergency response execution to research and development endeavors.

Supporting systems such as iNAP, OIS and FAMAuth, which help firefighters and other responders execute their missions, is one of Alpha Omega’s contributions to the Forest Service’s emergency response mission. The company’s R&D assistance has provided the Forest Service with greater access to information relevant to decision-making and land management.

Public engagement is another element of Alpha Omega’s ongoing collaboration with the Forest Service, under which the company manages the agency’s website.

Alpha Omega has recently taken several steps to deepen its relationships with environment-focused federal organizations. On Tuesday, the enterprise appointed Joanne Gladden as vice president of climate science.

Earlier this year, Alpha Omega secured a potential $43 million award from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Centers for Environmental Information to deliver data stewardship services for the agency’s Environmental Satellite, Data and Information Services organization.

In June 2023, Alpha Omega and partner Dynamo Technologies received a five-year, $70 million contract from the USDA Office of the Chief Information Officer to provide cybersecurity services for agencies across the department.

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High-Growth Friday Saved GovCon Index From Continuing Downward Trend
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High-Growth Friday Saved GovCon Index From Continuing Downward Trend

GovCon Index recovered from a streak of losses last week, growing by 0.13% overall and averaging at $4,786.97.

GovCon Index is an aggregate index that tracks real-time data from 30 major government contracting enterprises. With this information, users are empowered to evaluate not only the success of each individual company but also the current trends shaping the GovCon marketplace.

Last week’s top performer was V2X, which grew by a notable 7.13%. Lockheed Martin followed with an increase of 2.90%, and AeroVironment achieved the third spot in the ranks, rising by 1.93%. Fourth and fifth place were taken by Maximus (+1.77%) and RTX (+1.44%), respectively.

GovCon Index began the week with a decline of 0.69%. An upward shift occurred on Tuesday, but the GovCon Index dropped again on Wednesday and Thursday. An increase of 1.08% on Friday brought GovCon Index back to an upward direction.

Check out last week’s market reports to get a closer look at daily GovCon Index performance. Click here to access the full list of tracked organizations.

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FEMA’s Charles Armstrong Discusses Strategies to Complete Cloud Migration
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FEMA’s Charles Armstrong Discusses Strategies to Complete Cloud Migration

According to Federal Emergency Management Agency Chief Information Officer Charles Armstrong, agency applications that are not yet ready for cloud migration will first have to undergo re-platforming — the process of upgrading them to become cloud-native — Federal News Network reported Friday.

Armstrong said during an interview on the Ask the CIO program that five to six workloads, including the agency’s training system, are expected to have completed the process by the end of the calendar year.

Re-platforming is one of the methods that FEMA plans to implement to deal with the applications that have yet to be moved out from the agency’s data center, which Armstrong says he hopes to eventually decommission.

The FEMA CIO said that 60 percent of the applications previously housed by the data center have already been moved to the cloud.

As for the remainder that would be too costly to re-platform and would likely be shut down following modernization, one option is their transfer from the data center to a co-location facility.

“It’s more cost efficient to move to a co-location facility so that we can shut down an aging facility and not have to recapitalize things like the power and heating and cooling, and things like that,” Armstrong explained.

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