Senate Bill to Use USPS Authentication Services to Combat Identity Fraud
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Senate Bill to Use USPS Authentication Services to Combat Identity Fraud

Sens. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Bill Cassidy, R-La., have introduced legislation that would allow the U.S. Postal Service to provide identity verification and related services to the commercial sector to combat identity fraud stemming from artificial intelligence-generated deepfakes.

The Post Office Services for Trustworthy Identity Act of 2023 would enable the USPS to offer in-person identity proofing services and charge fees as necessary to cover such services, Wyden’s office said Monday.

The POST ID Act would also allow USPS to issue authenticators such as physical security keys to verified individuals for future interactions and enroll them in digital accounts or systems.

In-person proofing is resistant to many forms of fraud and abuse as it requires authenticators to verify an individual’s identity using physical credentials.

“The Postal Service already provides in-person identity proofing services when Americans need to get a passport, and it’s only natural that the private sector also be able to leverage those services when companies need a way to verify someone’s identity in person,” said Jeremy Grant, coordinator of the Better Identity Coalition.

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Space Force Takes Over Responsibility for Joint Tactical Ground Station Mission
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Space Force Takes Over Responsibility for Joint Tactical Ground Station Mission

The U.S. Space Force officially assumed responsibility for the U.S. Army’s Joint Tactical Ground Station missile warning system mission on Sunday, Oct. 1.

Space Delta 4 at Buckley Space Force Base in Aurora, Colorado, will oversee the JTAGS mission until Space Operations Command formally establishes the 5th Space Warning Squadron, SpOC said Monday.

JTAGS are space ground systems designed to receive, process and transmit infrared data derived from overhead sensors and satellite data to warfighters and combatant commanders, providing them with real-time warning on ballistic missile launches.

In August 2022, the Army transferred the military satellite communications mission to the Space Force, marking the consolidation of all Department of Defense’s satcom functions under a single service branch.

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DHS S&T Undersecretary Dimitri Kusnezov Discusses Initiatives to Commemorate Cybersecurity Awareness Month
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DHS S&T Undersecretary Dimitri Kusnezov Discusses Initiatives to Commemorate Cybersecurity Awareness Month

The Department of Homeland Security Science and Technology Directorate is working with the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency on multiple projects to protect the country’s cyber systems and networks, S&T Undersecretary Dimitri Kusnezov said.

The directorate is marking the beginning of Cybersecurity Awareness Month with initiatives on shared intelligence resilience, identity proofing technologies and training tools for identifying malicious activity and actors.

According to Kusnezov, S&T’s Cybersecurity Threats Technology Center is leading the Shared Intelligence Resilience project, which will use artificial intelligence and machine learning to help organizations and distributed systems identify and address IT vulnerabilities. The institute is working on another AI study aimed at leveraging human-machine teaming to deter the adversarial use of AI in zero trust platforms.

The directorate’s Biometric and Identity Technology Center is investigating the effectiveness and security of smartphone-based identity proofing technologies in distinguishing legitimate users from impostors. BITC is collaborating with several agencies including the Transportation Security Administration, the National Institute of Standards and Technology and the Homeland Security Investigations Forensic Laboratory,

On Feb. 28, 2024, the Potomac Officers Club will host its fifth Annual Artificial Intelligence Summit to showcase the latest technologies and bring together experts and vendors in the field of AI. Register as early as now to take part in the event.

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Agencies Push for Federal Acquisition Regulation Amendment to Include New SBA Contract Protest Rules
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Agencies Push for Federal Acquisition Regulation Amendment to Include New SBA Contract Protest Rules

A proposed amendment to the Federal Acquisition Regulation would reflect policy changes made by the Small Business Administration regarding protest submission requirements for multiple-award contract set-asides and reserves.

The Department of Defense, NASA and the General Services Administration are pushing for the amendment, which would include SBA’s new rules to specify the size or socioeconomic status protests for such contracts, according to a notice posted Tuesday on Federal Register.

SBA recently revised its 13 Code of Federal Regulations to clarify the thresholds of size protests. Aside from multi-award indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity set asides and reserves, the regulatory changes also affect multiple-award task order contracts

SBA’s rule does not apply to task orders or blanket purchase agreements that were booked under a Federal Supply Schedule.

The agencies are accepting comments to the proposed FAR amendment until Dec. 4.

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NASCIO-Accenture Study Says Majority of State CIOs Expedite Cloud Adoption Efforts
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NASCIO-Accenture Study Says Majority of State CIOs Expedite Cloud Adoption Efforts

A study by the National Association of State Chief Information Officers and Accenture has found that 88 percent of state CIOs are accelerating their adoption of cloud services across operational domains.

NASCIO and Accenture surveyed 43 state CIOs and conducted in-depth interviews with a subset of state information technology leaders in April for the study and found that 74 percent of respondents said they consider security as the cloud’s most important benefit, according to a joint release published Tuesday.

The report showed that 30 percent of state CIOs have completed a cloud roadmap and 70 percent of respondents are developing strategies for cloud adoption.

Sixty percent of organizations have integrated cloud adoption into their process for enterprise IT governance.

According to the study, the adoption of hybrid and multicloud environments has become common among state governments and 53 percent of state CIOs said lack of personnel and workforce skill shortages are preventing their organizations from implementing cloud platforms.

Accenture and NASCIO revisited a 2021 study on state agencies’ cloud migration efforts, enabling the two organizations to establish a baseline for assessing the maturity of state governments’ cloud adoption.

“This report looks at progress that states have made in the past two years and recommendations for further progress,” said Doug Robinson, executive director at NASCIO. “It’s clear cloud services have become a critical component of the state CIO operational portfolio.”

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DIU Awards 3 Contracts for Long Duration Energy Storage System Prototypes
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DIU Awards 3 Contracts for Long Duration Energy Storage System Prototypes

Three companies — CellCube, Dannar and Redflow — have secured contracts from the Defense Innovation Unit to install and test long-duration energy storage system prototypes at U.S. military installations.

The contracts were awarded under the Extended Duration for Storage Installations project to build resilient backup power systems designed to increase minimum power threshold and uptime for Department of Defense installations and operational energy platforms, DIU said Tuesday.

CellCube is slated to deliver its megawatt-scale vanadium redox flow battery technology to connect and balance base energy systems for the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps.

Dannar will install four models of distribution-class mobile power systems at two U.S. Air Force installations to support energy needs for electric vertical takeoff and landing vehicle operations.

The Air Force plans to trial Redflow’s megawatt-scale zinc-bromine flow battery and control system at a site where extended storage hardware will link with microgrid software to enable multiple onsite systems integration.

Navy Names Future Nuclear-Powered Attack Submarine After San Francisco; Carlos Del Toro Quoted
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Navy Names Future Nuclear-Powered Attack Submarine After San Francisco; Carlos Del Toro Quoted

The U.S. Navy has named its newest Virginia-class nuclear-powered fast-attack submarine after the city of San Francisco.

Carlos Del Toro, secretary of the Navy and a 2023 Wash100 awardee, announced the name of SSN 810 during Fleet Week in San Francisco, the service branch said Tuesday.

“The future USS San Francisco, once commissioned, will be our nation’s newest Virginia-class nuclear-powered fast-attack submarine. USS San Francisco will build upon the legacy of her namesakes, and will no doubt represent the people of this city and our nation with honor wherever she may sail,” Del Toro declared.

SSN 810 is the fourth naval vessel to be named for San Francisco. San Francisco I was a steel-protected cruiser that blockaded Havana, Cuba, during the Spanish-American War and was designated as a mine planter in the North Sea during World War I.

The second San Francisco was a heavy cruiser that participated in World War II operations and engagements at Cape Esperance, Guadalcanal, Guam, the Marshall Islands and Okinawa.

The USS San Francisco (SSN-711), a Los Angeles-class nuclear submarine, was the third vessel to bear the name.

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Raytheon Lands USAF Contract to Develop Prototype Air Base Defense System Powered by BMC2 Software
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Raytheon Lands USAF Contract to Develop Prototype Air Base Defense System Powered by BMC2 Software

RTX business Raytheon has received a $39 million contract from the U.S. Air Force that calls for the development of the service’s battle management command and control software.

Raytheon said Tuesday that, under the contract, it will also integrate the BMC2 software into a prototype air defense capability for U.S. air bases.

The company demonstrated a comparable capability during a 2022 experiment carried out in collaboration with Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace and the Air Force Research Laboratory.

The air defense capability involved the National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System defeating cruise missile threats using appropriate countermeasures. A command and control capability called the Battle Space Command and Control Center fed key data from radars to a fire distribution center, which evaluated the threat and assigned the appropriate weapon.

Lessons learned from that experiment will be incorporated into the forthcoming work for the Air Force.

Paul Ferraro, Raytheon’s president of air power, said the prototype will be “ready to meet current threats and has the ability to easily integrate with the best sensors, effectors and algorithms as technology advances”.

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USSOCOM Begins Market Research for Future Global Logistics Support Requirement
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USSOCOM Begins Market Research for Future Global Logistics Support Requirement

U.S. Special Operations Command has started soliciting information on potential industry sources that could provide future support similar to services being provided under the current Special Operations Forces Global Logistics Support Services contract.

The program executive office for special operations forces support activity will hold installation tours and briefing on Nov. 1 and Nov. 8 at Bluegrass Station in Lexington, Kentucky, to provide participants with information regarding the future GLSS requirement’s scope and magnitude, according to a request for information published Sept. 26.

USSOCOM expects the future contract to provide rapid response worldwide through the delivery of full range of contractor logistics services.

According to the RFI, there are 10 capabilities that are key to providing logistics support to SOF warfighters, including aviation, repair, modification and research, development, testing and evaluation; storage and distribution services; lifecycle sustainment management; and supply chain automation.

Respondents that completed the BGS installation tour and briefing can submit questions through Nov. 28.

Interested stakeholders should submit white papers detailing their proposed concepts, best practices, recommendations and other ideas for executing the future GLSS requirement.

White papers are due Jan. 9.

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CISA Implements Machine-Readable Format for Industrial Control Systems Security Advisories
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CISA Implements Machine-Readable Format for Industrial Control Systems Security Advisories

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency has implemented the updated version of the OASIS Common Security Advisory Framework standard for its security advisories for industrial control systems, operational technology and medical devices.

CISA said Friday the CSAF Version 2.0 standard enables organizations to automate the production and distribution of machine-readable security advisories to enable rapid response to system vulnerabilities.

The agency also anticipates its shift to the CSAF format will expedite the automation of the drafting and publication process for its other vulnerability response and coordination initiatives.

The ICS CSAF advisories will be available directly via CSA’s GitHub CSAF repository and alongside human-readable advisories including those released in 2017.

In November 2022, Eric Goldstein, executive assistant director for cybersecurity at CISA, said that CSAF is one of the components of the agency’s strategy to help improve defenses against software and hardware weaknesses.

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