US Navy, General Dynamics Electric Boat Inaugurate USS Iowa Submarine
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US Navy, General Dynamics Electric Boat Inaugurate USS Iowa Submarine

General Dynamics’ Electric Boat subsidiary hosted the ceremonial ship launching of the USS Iowa nuclear submarine in Groton, Connecticut.

The company was joined on Saturday by the U.S. Navy and Christie Vilsack, sponsor of the vessel’s pre-commissioning unit and wife of Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack.

The USS Iowa, also known as SSN 797, is a Virginia-class attack submarine designed for anti-submarine, anti-surface ship and strike warfare.

SSN 797 is the first submarine and fourth Navy vessel to be named after the state of Iowa. It will operate under Submarine Squadron 4 upon commissioning, which is expected later this year.

The christening of the USS Iowa submarine was attended by officials including Undersecretary of the Navy Erik Raven; Vice Adm. Frank Morley, principal military deputy to the assistant secretary of the Navy; General Dynamics Electric Boat President Kevin Graney; and Bryan Caccavale, vice president of Huntington Ingalls’ Newport News Shipbuilding division.

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CrowdStrike CSO & Former FBI Exec Joins CLEAR’s Board of Directors
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CrowdStrike CSO & Former FBI Exec Joins CLEAR’s Board of Directors

CrowdStrike Chief Security Officer Shawn Henry has been appointed to CLEAR’s board of directors.

As a board member, Henry will bring decades of experience in both public and private sector security-focused roles to the company, CLEAR announced from its New York, New York headquarters last week.

Caryn Seidman Becker, CEO and chairman of CLEAR, highlighted security as the organization’s foundational element and top priority.

“Shawn has decades of experience in security and technology and a proven track record of leadership and strategic management skills. We are thrilled to welcome Shawn to CLEAR’s Board of Directors – his expertise will be an invaluable asset,” she said.

Henry joined CrowdStrike in 2012 in his current role. Before joining the private sector, Henry spent 24 years with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, during which he climbed upward through multiple roles before assuming his final position as executive assistant director.

While holding the role, Henry supervised half of all FBI investigative operations, including global criminal and cyber investigations, international operations and critical incident response to significant investigations and disasters as well as worldwide computer crime investigations. Henry also created the National Cyber Investigative Joint Task Force and was recognized with the Presidential Rank Award for Meritorious Executive for his work to advance FBI cyber capabilities.

Currently, Henry is a director at ShoulderUp Technology Acquisition Corp., for which he serves as chairman of the board and a member of the audit committee. His other current roles include director of the Global Cyber Alliance board, advisory board member at DoControl and faculty member of the National Association of Corporate Directors.

From 2015 to 2020, Henry was a cybersecurity and national security analyst, contributor and consultant for NBC News, where he advised on national, homeland and cybersecurity issues while making regular on-air appearances.

“I have been a fan of CLEAR for many years, and the company’s visionary public sector-private sector partnerships have been a game-changer for secure air travel. I am honored to be elected to CLEAR’s Board, and look forward to supporting the company’s mission to build faster, more secure and friction-free experiences,” Henry commented.

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NCCOE Seeks Public Input on Cybersecurity Framework Profile for Genomic Data
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NCCOE Seeks Public Input on Cybersecurity Framework Profile for Genomic Data

The National Cybersecurity Center of Excellence is soliciting public feedback on its first draft of the Cybersecurity Framework Profile for Genomic Data.

The report aims to supplement existing cybersecurity standards to protect the privacy of human genomic information processed by the government, industry and the academia, the National Institute of Standards and Technology said Thursday.

The CSF Profile for Genomic Data is a follow-on to NIST’s internal report on genomic data cybersecurity, which was published in March. It lists 12 mission objectives targeting low-cost gene sequencing technologies, which are utilized in commerce, research and government.

NCCOE’s draft is designed to aid cybersecurity and privacy risk management practices among organizations that process data on how genes behave. It is also meant to help them develop a system to categorize current and target genomic profiles.

Interested respondents may submit their opinion on the draft report until July 17.

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DARPA Selects Southwest Research Institute to Develop High-Frequency Measurement Nodes Under Cancun Program
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DARPA Selects Southwest Research Institute to Develop High-Frequency Measurement Nodes Under Cancun Program

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency awarded Texas-based Southwest Research Institute a contract to deliver distributable nodes that will be used to measure high frequency radio band in military applications.

The cost-plus-fixed-fee contract is part of the Cancun program, which aims to improve warfighter situational awareness through scalable and secure communications, the Department of Defense said Friday.

DARPA is looking for nodes with low cost, size, weight and power that can support devices deployed more than 1,000 kilometers apart. Vendors may propose a wired or wireless technology that can record and communicate portions of the HF radio band. They must be designed for remote maintenance and software updates.

Southwest Research Institute was chosen to perform work for the first phase of the Cancun program, which is expected to be completed in Dec. 2024. The organization will carry out the tasks at its headquarters in San Antonio, as well as in New York, Washington and North Carolina.

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NATO Eyes ‘Innovation Engine’ for Dual-Use Tech via DIANA Initiative
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NATO Eyes ‘Innovation Engine’ for Dual-Use Tech via DIANA Initiative

A NATO official said the military alliance expects the development of dual-use technologies backed by a new defense innovation accelerator to result in the creation of an “innovation engine” to keep ahead of potential adversaries’ technological advancements, Breaking Defense reported Friday.

In 2022, NATO established a $1 billion innovation fund, which seeks to support tech development efforts of startups, and the Defense Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic, which will transition to a full operational phase in June.

“We’re aiming to support the best and brightest innovators to develop dual-use technologies to solve security and defense problems,” said Deeph Chana, managing director of NATO’s DIANA initiative.

DIANA will collaborate with 30 startups focused on three areas: sensing and surveillance; energy and resilience; and secure information sharing.

Chana said the alliance is “very explicitly encouraging startups to have applications in the more traditional tactical military domain, as well as…in a sort of civil space, such that they have a diverse opportunity for revenue which we think builds more resilient, more investable companies in this space.”

FedRAMP Says Cloud Service Providers Must Review Latest CISA Directive
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FedRAMP Says Cloud Service Providers Must Review Latest CISA Directive

The Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program has recommended that cloud service providers review the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency’s latest binding operational directive to mitigate risks from misconfigured management interfaces.

BOD 23-02, titled “Mitigating the Risk from Internet-Exposed Management Interfaces,” requires agencies to reduce vulnerabilities of federal devices to cyberattacks caused by improperly configured network devices, FedRAMP said Friday.

The CISA directive applies to devices that reside on or support federal information systems and networks or “devices for which the management interfaces are using network protocols for remote management over public internet.”

While the directive does not apply to web applications and interfaces used for managing CSP offerings, FedRAMP recommends that cloud companies follow the best practices outlined in the directive.

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House Lawmakers Propose NDAA Measure to Boost Nuclear Weapon Cybersecurity
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House Lawmakers Propose NDAA Measure to Boost Nuclear Weapon Cybersecurity

Reps. Salud Carbajal, D-Calif.; Don Bacon, R-Neb.; and Mike Gallagher, R-Wis. have proposed including a bipartisan measure in the 2024 National Defense Authorization Act that aims to safeguard nuclear weapons systems from cyberattacks.

The proposed language would establish a new working group within the Department of Defense to inventory nuclear weapon systems that are potentially at risk and implement mitigation actions, Carbajal’s office said Thursday.

The Cybersecurity Risk Inventory, Assessment, and Mitigation Working Group would be required to develop a strategy that must incorporate cybersecurity risk management strategies outlined in a September 2022 Government Accountability Office report.

According to GAO, an effective cyber risk management strategy must incorporate goals and performance measures, organizational roles and responsibilities, detailed milestones and schedules for completion of tasks and necessary resources needed to implement the strategy.

If passed, the legislation would require the working group to brief Congress within 120 days of its enactment and submit a strategy to the Armed Services committees by April 1, 2025.

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Deltek Analysis: Army Cybersecurity-Related OTA Spending Totaled $862M Over 3-Year Period
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Deltek Analysis: Army Cybersecurity-Related OTA Spending Totaled $862M Over 3-Year Period

A new article published by Deltek shows that the Department of the Army spent $862 million on other transaction agreements for cybersecurity-related initiatives from fiscal year 2020 through FY 2022.

The Army’s spending on cybersecurity efforts using OTAs rose by nearly 21 percent from $255 million in FY 2020 to $308 million in FY 2021 but dropped by 3 percent to $299 million in FY 2022, John Slye, senior advisory research analyst at Deltek, wrote in the market analysis piece published Friday.

Combat Capabilities Development Command accounted for 42 percent of cyber-related OTA spending over the past three fiscal years, reporting $365 million in spending.

The Program Executive Office for Enterprise Information Systems represented 27 percent of the total cyber OTA spending at $232 million, followed by PEO for Simulation, Training and Instrumentation at $143 million, accounting for approximately 17 percent of the aggregate OTA spending over the three-year period.

“While the Army’s use of OTA contracts for cybersecurity-related efforts receded slightly from FY 2021 to FY 2022, the spending level remained strong and well above the FY 2020 level,” Slye noted.

“Further, the strong use of OTA contracts for these needs indicates the Army’s appetite for innovation as well as the urgency they place on bringing cybersecurity capabilities to bear on wide-ranging mission requirements,” he added.

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Commerce Department Issues Final Rule on ICTS Transaction Review Process
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Commerce Department Issues Final Rule on ICTS Transaction Review Process

The Department of Commerce has issued a final rule amending the department’s authority to determine whether certain transactions involving information and communications technology and services pose risks to national security.

Based on feedback received from the public, the Commerce Department has ruled to revise its interim rule to include potential risk indicators related to connected software applications, according to a notice published in the Federal Register.

Among the indicators are a lack of thorough and reliable third-party auditing of connected software applications, the scope and sensitivity of data collected by connected such applications and the use of these applications to conduct surveillance that enables espionage.

The final rule also specifies “end-point computing devices” and “via the internet” to clarify the terminology of connected software applications.

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Pentagon Issues GHG Emissions Reduction Plan
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Pentagon Issues GHG Emissions Reduction Plan

The Department of Defense has released its inaugural plan meant to reduce greenhouse gas emissions across the enterprise.

The plan outlines ways to lower GHG emissions from installation energy use, such as reducing DOD’s dependence on offsite energy sources by focusing on increasing energy measures and on-site clean energy generation and storage and leveraging available data to inform decisions and evaluate progress.

The document also details measures to mitigate emissions associated with the use of operational energy.

These include reducing OE demand by strengthening platform efficiency; exploring new operating concepts and deploying new equipment; advancing technology innovation and adoption; and substituting current fuels with sustainable liquid fuels.

The plan also offers information on DOD’s tech innovation efforts, such as the Environmental Security Certification and Technology Program.

According to the document, ESTCP supports initiatives that seek to enhance energy efficiency by adapting commercial lighting, heating/ventilation/air conditioning; building envelope and energy management and controls; prototyping low carbon-footprint building materials; and improving control systems cybersecurity.

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