Cybersecurity

Political Leaders (Sort of) Address Changing Face of Government Business

Last month, I had the pleasure of attending a Tech Town Hall hosted by the Northern Virginia Technology Council (NVTC) and Microsoft. The event brought together Virginia U.S. Senate candidates George Allen and Tim Kaine, along with a number of business leaders like Jim Sheaffer, President, North American Sector, CSC; Dendy Young, Managing Partner, McLeanRead… Read more »

Illegal Software Export to China, More Efficient Robots, and More

Here is today’s federal cybersecurity and information technology news: A federal investigation showed that illegal software exports helped China develop its first attack helicopter. More here. Of the 2,189 federal and state wiretaps last year, only 12 were on encrypted communications, none of which interfered with the intercept. More here. The Defense Advanced Research ProjectsRead… Read more »

Attacks on Industrial Control Systems Spike, Air Force Smartphone Games for New Recruits, and More

Here is today’s federal cybersecurity and information technology news: The Industrial Control Systems Cyber Emergency Response Team within the Department of Homeland Security reports a a 20-fold leap in the number of incidents since the team was created in 2009. More here. The Homeland Security Infrastructure Program gave Colorado authorities fighting deadly wildfires access toRead… Read more »

SINET helps address cybersecurity by increasing collaboration

Cybersecurity is a big deal, especially after the revelations of the role of the United States behind Stuxnet and the Flame virus. We’ve learned that cyber-infrastructure isn’t particularly well protected, and the Security Innovation Network (SINET) is looking to change that through collaboration. Robert Rodriguez of SINET spoke with Chris Dorobek of the DorobekINSIDER aboutRead… Read more »

“Mobile Armour” for Smartphones, Crowdsourcing Military Debugging with Games, and More

Here is today’s federal cybersecurity and information technology news: The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and the U.S. Army Research Laboratory have awarded Invincea a contract to expand their Mobile Armour mobile device security project. More here. The Library of Congress has issued a request for information on a mobile application for Federal Library procurement.Read… Read more »

Potentially Fatal Software Flaws in Medical Devices, DARPA’s Gigapixel Camera, and More

Here is today’s federal cybersecurity and information technology news: The Food and Drug Administration’s Office of Science and Engineering Laboratories has found widespread software flaws in medical devices which could cause patient harm or death. More here. The Transportation Security Administration is looking for software to monitor employee online activity including emails and keystrokes forRead… Read more »

USAID Cybersecurity Challenges, Mobile Security Guidance, and More

Here is today’s federal cybersecurity and information technology news: The U.S. Agency for International Development has plans to improve its Federal Information Security Management Act cybersecurity score, which fell from an ‘A’ to an ‘F’ last year. More here. The National Institute of Standards and Technology and the Department of Homeland Security will release twoRead… Read more »

Daedalus, a cyber-attack alert visualization system (incredible video)

Daedalus is a cyber-attack alert system developed by the Japanese National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT). It provides awe-inspiring visualizations of cyber information. Security professionals will be quick to remind us that any visualization is only as good as the data that feeds it, but this visualization is so cool you have toRead… Read more »

Educating Children About The Pitfalls Of Social Media On Mobile Devices

Dean Halstead (Chevy Chase, MD) — The number of dangers for children on the Internet is continually multiplying, making parenting harder — and increasingly requiring a parent to be tech-savvy. The latest tech category to present a danger to children is sometimes nicknamed “mobile social” — in other words, mobile device-based social media, games, andRead… Read more »

New Energy Chief Information Officer, A New Cybersecurity National Lab, and More

Here is today’s federal cybersecurity and information technology news: The Department of Energy has named its former Deputy Chief Information Officer Bob Brese as the new CIO. More here. The National Security Agency will not reveal how many Americans had their communications monitored to senators out of privacy concerns. More here. The U.S. Computer EmergencyRead… Read more »