The Fed Mission Success Round Up: Regulating Digital Currency, Unemployment Aid and Technology, Fiscal Year 2022 Budget, Data Optimization, and Innovation in Health IT and Cybersecurity

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.

Markets are Evolving Faster Than the SEC

Surging growth in Initial public offerings (IPOs) and Special-purpose acquisition companies (SPACs), as well as challenges associated with regulating cryptocurrencies, fintech and private equity will prove too much for an underfunded — and understaffed — Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to police.

US SEC Wants to Work with Congress to Regulate Crypto Exchanges

The United States Securities and Exchange Commission is looking to cooperate with Congress and other regulators to increase its oversight of cryptocurrency exchanges.

The Emerging Biden Administration Cyber Strategy

The recent surge in high profile cyber-attacks has correlated with a similar surge in cybersecurity policies and announcements from the Biden Administration. 

Colonial Pipeline CEO: Cybersecurity Mandates From TSA Might Help

Hackers breached the company after gaining access to a virtual private network not protected by multifactor authentication.

Centralizing Cyber Ops Necessary as Cyberattacks Escalate

Cyber leaders say Federal agencies should break down information silos, centralize their cyber operations, and use data to drive security decisions in order to barricade their networks against hackers.

FY22 Budget Request: National Institute of Standards and Technology

The National Institute of Standards and Technology’s budget would rise by nearly 50% under President Biden’s fiscal year 2022 request, with across-the-board increases proposed for the agency’s research and advanced manufacturing programs.

CISA Highlights 5G Risks as Federal Agencies Pursue 5G Adoption

The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is eager to transition to 5G infrastructure to improve mission delivery, but the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) warned against hasty 5G adoption citing 5G supply chain security concerns during an FCW Network Modernization event this week.

FedScoop announces the Best Bosses in Federal IT 2021

FedScoop is honors the Best Bosses in Federal IT, this year with an emphasis on celebrating the decision-makers and champions of Federal technology who rose to the occasion to lead their organizations in light of the continuing challenges of the COVID-19 crisis.

From the Makpar Blog …

In case you missed it, here are our latest blog posts:

• Celebrating Asian Pacific American Heritage Month with Asian Immigrant Contributions to Tech

• Tips for Remote Agile Scrum Ceremonies: How to Optimize for Success

• Agile Transformation

• Increasing Federal IT Efficiency: How to Streamline the ATO Process Leveraging DevSecOps

• Tackling the Challenges of Big Data for Federal Agencies

• 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

• The Cybersecurity Framework That Keeps You and Your Family Safe as You Access Your IRS Records for Stimulus Checks

• 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?

• Cloud Migration Primer for Federal Agencies

• 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.