Kelly Fletcher: Partnerships, Tech Investments Essential for DOD’s Electromagnetic Spectrum Operations
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Kelly Fletcher: Partnerships, Tech Investments Essential for DOD’s Electromagnetic Spectrum Operations

Kelly Fletcher, acting chief information officer at the Defense Department, said the U.S. military must work with other government agencies, the commercial sector and international bodies to create an operational advantage in the spectrum, DOD News reported Wednesday.

She called for a whole-of-nation approach to ensure the military’s electromagnetic superiority during her speech at the annual Association of Old Crows conference Wednesday.

Fletcher noted that China and Russia are moving to gain spectrum dominance through investments in technology such as sensors and jammers.

“What really makes me concerned most, frankly, is that there are probably vulnerabilities that we don’t know about and that our adversaries are trying to find,” she added.

The acting DOD CIO cited national and international partnerships, 5G network and battle management capability development and workforce training efforts as among the key forces that could drive superiority in the spectrum.

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William Lietzau Authorizes DCSA Program Executive Office
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William Lietzau Authorizes DCSA Program Executive Office

The Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency (DCSA) has formed a program executive office (PEO) that will oversee information technology system procurement efforts. 

DCSA said Wednesday Director William Lietzau formally authorized Terry Carpenter as the inaugural lead for the new PEO during a ceremony that took place Tuesday in Quantico, Virginia. 

Carpenter will be responsible for overseeing the agency’s portfolio of IT acquisition programs in areas such as background investigation enterprise services, biometrics, cloud computing, data management and robotics process automation.

At the same event, Lietzau also recognized Jeffrey Smith, a DCSA official since August 2020, as executive program manager for an organization that provides personnel vetting services to the federal government.

Smith will manage the National Background Investigation Services, which transferred from the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) to DCSA in October last year.

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White House Issues Space Priorities Framework
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White House Issues Space Priorities Framework

The Biden administration has launched a framework outlining the country’s space policy priorities.

The United States Space Priorities Framework classifies the priorities into two categories: maintaining a robust and responsible U.S. space enterprise and preserving space for current and future generations.

To advance the first priority, the U.S. will maintain its edge in space science and space exploration, pursue the development and use of space-based Earth observation capabilities to help address climate change, promote policy and regulatory environment that enables a competitive commercial space sector, defend national security interests from counterspace threats, invest in STEM education and strengthen the security of the space industrial base.

For the second category, the U.S. will improve space situational awareness sharing and space traffic coordination, strengthen governance of space activities globally and prioritize space sustainability and planetary protection.

SpaceNews reported that Vice President Kamala Harris was scheduled Wednesday to chair the National Space Council’s first meeting under the current administration.

“The Framework will guide the Council’s efforts to develop and implement national space policy and strategy going forward,” a White House official said ahead of the council meeting. 

“It maintains focus on advancing and synchronizing our civil, commercial and national security space activities, and adds emphasis in support of the administration’s agenda, including promoting peaceful exploration of space and reducing the risk of miscalculation or conflict in space; addressing the climate crisis; and enhancing STEM education.” 

Space Acquisition Forum

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HHS Unveils 405(d) Program Website to Help Health Care Sector Build Up Cyber Resiliency
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HHS Unveils 405(d) Program Website to Help Health Care Sector Build Up Cyber Resiliency

The Department of Health and Human Services has introduced a website for a program that seeks to provide health care practitioners with videos, products, tools and resources related to cybersecurity practices.

The HHS 405(d) Aligning Health Care Industry Security Approaches Program was created in compliance with the Cybersecurity Act of 2015 to help advance behavioral change to mitigate cyberthreats facing the health care sector, HHS said Wednesday

“The new 405(d) Program website is a step forward for HHS to help build cybersecurity resiliency across the Healthcare and Public Health Sector,” said Christopher Bollerer, acting chief information security officer at HHS.

The HHS 405(d) Task Group, which is composed of more than 150 federal government and industry professionals, helped develop the website, which features cybersecurity infographics and postures,  405(d) Spotlight Webinar recordings and other resources.

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CTERA to Support Peraton’s Modernization of VA File Storage Infrastructure
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CTERA to Support Peraton’s Modernization of VA File Storage Infrastructure

CTERA Networks will help Peraton modernize the storage and computing infrastructure facilities of the Department of Veterans Affairs under a $497 million contract previously awarded to the Chantilly, Virginia-based company.

CTERA said Wednesday it will provide Peraton with distributed cloud file storage services to connect over 300 VA sites across the world to the VA Enterprise Cloud.

The services, based on the on-site CTERA Edge Filers, are intended to enable the department to consolidate its legacy network-attached systems and reduce its application-specific infrastructure silos while duplicating data to Amazon Web Services’ GovCloud environment for safe storage.

“Legacy data center NAS infrastructure lacks native cloud support and cannot meet the scale and elasticity requirements of modern data workloads,” noted Emil Velasquez, vice president of federal sales at CTERA.

Eric Watson, senior program manager at Peraton, said the subcontracting work is aimed at allowing department officials to adopt an edge-to-cloud file services strategy without foregoing data security.

In August, Peraton won the potential seven-year, $497 million VA modernization contract that called for an infrastructure-as-a-managed service to migrate the department’s health information system and technology architecture to the cloud.

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NIST Unveils Final Version of IoT Cybersecurity Guidance, Capabilities Catalog
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NIST Unveils Final Version of IoT Cybersecurity Guidance, Capabilities Catalog

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has released the final guidance on how federal agencies and organizations can develop a risk management framework for protecting internet of things-based devices from cyber threats. 

The NIST Special Publication 800-213 establishes cybersecurity requirements for IoT devices and outlines recommendations to help government agencies consider how an IoT device can integrate into a federal information system, NIST said Monday.

The agency also unveiled the final version of the SP 800-213A that includes a catalog of IoT device cybersecurity capabilities that federal agencies can use when establishing requirements for safeguarding internet-connected platforms.

NIST said the revised version of the guidance incorporates feedback it received from the public throughout 2021.

The guidance is pursuant to the IoT Cybersecurity Act of 2020 that requires NIST to provide a framework for the appropriate use and management of IoT devices connected to federal information systems.

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BigBear.ai Wins NAVWAR’s Artificial Intelligence Prize Challenge; CTO Brian Frutchey Quoted
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BigBear.ai Wins NAVWAR’s Artificial Intelligence Prize Challenge; CTO Brian Frutchey Quoted

BigBear.ai announced on Wednesday that the company placed first in the Artificial Intelligence and Networks Advanced Naval Technology Exercise (“AINetANTX”) Artificial Intelligence (“AI”) Prize Challenge hosted by the Naval Information Warfare Systems Command (NAVWAR). 

“This challenge allowed us to demonstrate how our automated course of action assessment AI can assist the Navy in enabling warfighters to make critical decisions quickly in operationally relevant maritime environments,” said BigBear.ai Chief Technology Officer Brian Frutchey. “We are thrilled that our solution was awarded first prize among a great group of fellow participants across commercial, government and academic fields.”

Project Overmatch is considered a top priority of the U.S. Navy to modernize Naval warfighting, connecting platforms, weapons and sensors in a robust Naval Operational Architecture (NOA) that integrates with Joint All-Domain Command and Control (“JADC2”) for enhanced Distributed Maritime Operations. The AINetANTX AI Prize Challenge focused on leveraging the latest AI-enabled technologies to address current and future warfighting gaps. 

“Overmatch is unleashing the power of the platform with AINetANTX,” said NAVWAR Science and Technology Director Carly Jackson. “The participants had less than three months but the results we are seeing are quite compelling. By quickly leveraging the lab infrastructure and expertise resident across the Naval Research and Development Establishment, this new type of digital platform-powered ANTX enables us to identify and field technologies, components, or algorithms at the speed of the threat.”

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Ramzi Musallam: Veritas Capital to Buy Finalsite from Bridge Growth Partners
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Ramzi Musallam: Veritas Capital to Buy Finalsite from Bridge Growth Partners

A Veritas Capital affiliate has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Finalsite, a digital communications software company for schools and universities, from Bridge Growth Partners.

Currently, the Glastonbury, Connecticut-based software-as-a-service company serves more than 8,000 customers in the education communications market with its comprehensive “digital campus,” which features capabilities including virtual tours, live-streamed events, parent communications, online enrollment and other services, Finalsite said Wednesday.

Six-time Wash100 Award winner Ramzi Musallam, CEO and managing partner of Veritas Capital, said that as an investor, Veritas will scale the Finalsite platform to meet evolving needs across the growing K-12 marketing and communications market.

“We’re eager to partner with Finalsite and Bridge Growth as we accelerate the company’s growth profile and mission-critical education tools,” Musallam commented.

Jon Moser, founder and CEO of Finalsite, said Veritas’ resources and “significant industry experience” will help the company build on its recent significant growth as it moves into its next phase of development.

The transaction, whose financial terms have not been disclosed, is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2021.

This announcement comes less than two months after Guidehouse, a Veritas Capital portfolio company, completed its acquisition of Dovel Technologies to create an enterprise expected to generate over $2 billion in annual revenue.

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Navy Vet Christopher Serow Named VP, Operations for Kana Systems
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Navy Vet Christopher Serow Named VP, Operations for Kana Systems

Christopher Serow, retired U.S. Navy Flight Officer, has been appointed vice president of operations for Kana Systems. 

In his new role, Serow will leverage his 25 years of experience in military and operational leadership to oversee business development and contract execution for the Lincoln, Nebraska-based defense technology company. His work will also focus on scaling Kana Systems’ infrastructure to manage growth.

“Chris knows firsthand the military’s technology pain points; he has the operational expertise to lead Kana Systems as we partner with the U.S. government in its digital transformation goals,” said Mailani Veney, CEO of Kana Systems.

Veney added that Serow’s appointment marks a “huge win” for the company and its military customers.

Prior to joining Kana Systems, Serow served as chief of plans support for the U.S. Strategic Command, where he developed concepts and requirements for Conventional-Nuclear Integration and led the integration of Nuclear Command, Control and Communications with the Department of Defense’s Joint All-Domain Command and Control initiative.

During his military career, Serow held multiple leadership roles including base commanding officer at the Naval Support Activity in Panama City, Florida. Additionally, Serow served as a maritime and aviation operations officer directing anti-submarine warfare efforts in the Indo-Pacific region for the U.S. Navy’s 7th Fleet.

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Report: President Biden Considers Richard Cordray for Federal Reserve’s Top Regulatory Role
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Report: President Biden Considers Richard Cordray for Federal Reserve’s Top Regulatory Role

President Biden is considering nominating Richard Cordray, former director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, to serve as vice-chairman of banking supervision at the Federal Reserve, The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday.

The publication cited sources that say Cordray would succeed Randal Quarles and oversee the U.S. banking system once he is nominated and confirmed by the Senate for the role.

Cordray is a chief operating officer of Federal Student Aid and responsible for the Department of Education’s $1.6 trillion student loan program. He entered politics in 1991 as an Ohio state representative and served as attorney general of Ohio between 2008 and 2011.

Senate Banking Committee Chairman Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, said Cordray was one of the candidates the White House considers for the position.

The latest development came a week after Biden nominated Jerome Powell, chair of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, for a second term as head of the central bank.

POC - Digital Currency and National Security Forum

The Potomac Officers Club will host a virtual forum on Jan. 27 to offer the GovCon community an insight into the national security aspect of digital currencies. Click here to register.

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