The Fed Mission Success Round Up: Cybersecurity, Modernization, Procurement and More in Federal Agencies
Welcome to the Fed Mission Success News Round Up brought to you by Makpar. Each week, we will provide a summary of actionable news and insights to help aid in overall mission success for Federal agency IT decision-makers and influencers.
NIST, CISA Finalizing Guidance for Identity and Access Management Post-SolarWinds
As agencies look to avoid a repeat of incidents like SolarWinds—where adversaries used access to the IT management contractor and took advantage of poor identity management to compromise at least nine Federal agencies—authentication vendors in the space are getting more attention, but implementers will still need to be heavily involved.
New Bill Would Unlock Cybersecurity Funding for Small Businesses
New legislation would provide more Federal funding to help small businesses safeguard against cyberattacks as ransomware hacks remain a critical threat for all organizations. Introduced on Thursday, the Small Business Cybersecurity Act would give more Federal funding to Small Business Development Centers nationwide. This comes as experts warn that malicious cyber attackers are liable to target smaller entities as well as large infrastructure organizations. Funding included in the bill would help small businesses install stronger cybersecurity technology into their networks and provide employee and staff training.
Health Experts Seek Separation of IT And Policy Contracts at National Organ Transplant Network
Senior health experts have called for the Federal government to separate the technology and policy arms of the nonprofit responsible for operating the U.S. national organ transplant network, citing concerns over its failure to modernize IT systems, including a key software component called DonorNet.
TMF Board Allocates Funding for Three New IT Modernization Projects
The Technology Modernization Fund on Wednesday announced new investments to improve the customer experience and bolster cybersecurity within three public-facing agencies: the Labor Department, AmeriCorps, and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).
The Future of Identity Management is Continuous Verification, HHS OIG Says
The Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of the Inspector General considers sustainability and continuous authentication as the keys to a robust identity management strategy.
GSA Expanding Use of COMET Blanket Purchase Agreement: CIO Shive
The General Services Administration is expanding its use of a major blanket purchase agreement for digital transformations of backend procurement systems.
IRS Looks to Boost Security of Federal Tax Information Through Computer Reviews
The IRS Office of Safeguards seeks a contractor to support computer security reviews ensuring outside agencies are protecting the Federal tax information provided them. The forthcoming task order, expected in the first quarter of fiscal 2023, will cover preparatory agency outreach, pre-review analysis of areas of concern, automated and manual computer security scans, reporting of results and findings, and responding to agencies’ submissions.
Senate Committee Approves AGILE Procurement Act for IT And Communications Tech
The Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs advanced the AGILE Act of 2022 in an effort to help improve the Federal government’s IT procurement process.
GSA’s Ascend Cloud RFI Emphasizes Baseline Requirements for Vendors
The General Services Administration took another step closer toward its goal of launching the Federal government's one-stop shop for secure cloud commercial products and services. GSA released a request for information (RFI) on Friday about its plans to launch a multi-purpose, multi-award blanket purchase agreement for cloud technologies, officially outlining its vision for the highly anticipated initiative that will serve all Federal agencies seeking cloud solutions.
From the Makpar Blog …
In case you missed it, here are our latest blog posts:
Identity and Access Management (IAM) Taking Hold in the Government Arena
INFOGRAPHIC: The Ten Steps for Developing a Machine Learning Solution for Government
In the Wake of the Polaris Pause: Are GWACs the Best Way to Help Government? (Opinion)
Makpar Innovation Lab Embodies World Creativity and Innovation Day 2022
How To Agile Series: “Are Daily Stand-Ups Effective or Not?”
How Makpar Enables 508 Compliance Testing for Federal Agencies
Insights Into Federal Agile Transformation Q&A: How to be an Agile DevOps Leader
Privacy Versus Security: How Government Leadership can Strike the Right Balance
Data Privacy Day 2022: Cyber Trends to Look out for this Year
Insights Into Federal Agile Transformation Q&A: Deliver Value by Turning Epics Into User Stories
Makpar Insights Into Federal Agile Transformation: Multi-Team Cross Platform Integration
President Biden Executive Order (EO) Aims to Enhance Customers Experience
Makpar Cybersecurity Forum Video Podcast: “How to Prevent Being the Victim of the Next Attack”
Makpar Cybersecurity Forum Video Podcast: “What’s My Attack Surface?”
Data, Cybersecurity and Digital Services Next Phase for IRS IT Modernization
FDA Enhancing IT Modernization Efforts with New Office of Digital Transformation
Internal Revenue Services Enhances Compute Power to Bolster Fraud Detection Efforts
The 5 “Whys” for Stronger Cyber Security Governance at Federal Agencies
Makpar’s Pragmatic Agile Approach to Developing Its Fraud Detection Analytics Dashboard
OPINION: Mentor-Protégé Programs Bring Further Value to Government
PODCAST: A Deeper Look at Makpar’s Fraud Detection Analytics Dashboard
How Data Virtualization Saves Agencies Significant Resources
Beyond Passwords: Identity Access Management in the Digital Age
Celebrating Asian Pacific American Heritage Month with Asian Immigrant Contributions to Tech
Tips for Remote Agile Scrum Ceremonies: How to Optimize for Success
Increasing Federal IT Efficiency: How to Streamline the ATO Process Leveraging DevSecOps
How Agencies Can Score Quick Technology Modernization Fund (TMF) Victories
PODCAST: How the Federal Government can Overcome Barriers to Agile Transformation
CIO-SP4 BPA, BIC MAC, and POLARIS Contracts to Drive Further Government Innovation
Makpar Applauds Appointment of First Native American U.S. Cabinet Member
Data Security Win: Virginia is Second State in U.S. to Pass Data Protection Legislation
How Decentralized Decision Making Can Help Federal Agencies Adopt a More Agile Practice
4 Ways to Migrate a Workload to the Cloud for Federal Government Agencies
PODCAST: The SolarWinds Breach Points to Need for Cyber Fundamentals
In Response to The SolarWinds Breach: The Need to Return to Cybersecurity Fundamentals.
Is the Product Owner the Most Important Role in Government Agile Development?
Breaking Down Cultural Barriers to Cloud Adoption for Federal Government Agencies
Cybersecurity Best Practices for Federal Agencies, Small/Medium Businesses, and Individuals
Makpar has over a decade of experience providing high-level strategic and project management services, focused on cybersecurity and cutting-edge technologies. Please contact us here for more information about how we can enhance mission success for your agency.