Tech

The Great Cloud Migration

When it comes to cloud systems, government agencies tend to be more risk averse than those in the private sector. The move to the cloud can be especially difficult for less adaptable staffs. Fortunately, there are many great examples of agencies in government taking the risk to migrate to cloud services. At the conclusion ofRead… Read more »

Defending the Future

Time keeps on slippin’…at least that’s how it feels when you look at how fast technology is advancing. The speed at which the private sector is developing and implementing new technology has left government agencies like the Department of Defense scrambling to keep pace. In the recently released GovLoop guide, “The DoD of Tomorrow,” weRead… Read more »

3 Municipal Broadband Success Stories

Over the course of 10 years, Seattle has studied the possibility of creating a municipal-run broadband network seven times, most recently this year. Although it was determined in June that the cost would be lower than expected (somewhere in the range of $463 million to $630 million), city officials again rejected the idea, citing barriersRead… Read more »

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What the CIO Wants

What do the government’s tech bosses want? George DelPrete, a principal with the professional services network Grant Thornton, has the answers. For the 25th consecutive year, Grant Thornton and the Professional Services Council released their annual federal CIO survey, revealing the issues that concern the government’s CIOs the most. In an interview with Chris DorobekRead… Read more »

What HTTPS Everywhere Means for Federal Agencies

On Monday, June 8, the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) released a final memorandum mandating that all Federal websites implement HTTPS (Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure). By December of 2016, all Federal websites will need to implement HTTPS for all communications. Why the Mandate? Privacy, web communications, and encryption are certainly in theRead… Read more »

The OPM Hack Is Bad News For Federal Customer Experience Efforts

It’s been a rough nine months for federal cybersecurity. The huge Office of Personnel Management (OPM) hack is just the latest in a series of incidents that make people skeptical of Washington’s ability to protect their personal information. Since last fall, we’ve witnessed hacks of the: OPM. Last week’s cybersecurity failure at OPM wasn’t its firstRead… Read more »

The Visibility Problem

The bridge between the IT world and the “real” world seems to be widening. IT folks are tackling complex technology issues of today without fully understanding how minor errors can majorly impact the everyday user. Meanwhile, us common folk don’t even understand what makes the Internet work. The two worlds can’t seem to collide, oneRead… Read more »

7 Ways You Might Not Know You’re Putting Your Agency at Risk

>> Want even more information about the OPM breach? Read our recent post, 12 Things You Should Know About the OPM Breach The recent Office of Personnel Management (OPM) data breach has everyone on edge. The personal information of approximately 4 million current and former federal employees may have been compromised by hackers. The OPM will be contactingRead… Read more »

Hacking for Good, One Community at a Time

On June 6, 2015 thousands of people from 106 communities took part in the National Day of Civic Hacking. Organized by Code for America, the annual event helps people come together and collaborate to make their communities stronger. The locally organized events welcome more than just those who crunch code. Around the country, organizers engaged people of all backgrounds, including tech experts, government employees, students, entrepreneurs,Read… Read more »

DorobekINSIDER: Why Government Fails – a List

Why do government systems fail? That is essentially the question raised by MSNBC Morning Joe host Joe Scarborough following word that IRS data got hacked. MSNBC’s Morning Joe on government IT problems The short but exceedingly provocative discussion that followed spurred me to think: How would I answer that question? What are the big obstaclesRead… Read more »