U.S. President-elect Donald Trump has selected John Ratcliffe as the next director of the Central Intelligence Agency, Reuters reported Tuesday. Former Director of National Intelligence Ratcliffe had served as representative of the 4th Congressional District of Texas during the 114th, 115th and 116th Congress. In 2020, he resigned to serve as director of national intelligence, a position he would hold until 2021, when Trump’s first term ended. Ratcliffe’s nomination by Trump in 2020 for DNI was his second. Trump had sought to appoint him to the position in 2019 but members of Congress expressed concern regarding his relative inexperience. At
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Yesterday's Posts
Ann Lewis Steps Down as Division Director at GSA
Ann Lewis is stepping down as director of the Technology Transformation Services and deputy commissioner of the Federal Acquisition Service at the General Services Administration. The agency said Tuesday Lewis will leave on Nov. 22 and Mukunda Penugonde, TTS deputy director, will assume the role of acting director of the division. Lewis first joined GSA in December 2022 as director of TTS. She oversaw the agency’s digital services ensuring the delivery of technical services across multiple government agencies nationwide. Ann Lewis’ Pre-GSA Career The executive’s career spans two decades beginning with stints as a software engineer for Amazon, EcoInteractive, Rosetta Stone and
US, Allies Warn Against Zero-Day Vulnerability Exploits
Enterprise networks with zero-day vulnerabilities were the main targets of malicious cyber actors in 2023, according to a joint cybersecurity advisory from U.S., Australian, British and New Zealand government agencies. The advisory listed the top 15 common vulnerabilities and exposures, or CVEs, from last year and noted that 11 of them were initially exploited as a zero day, a system vulnerability unknown to its owner, developer and the general public, the National Security Agency said Tuesday. Cybersecurity Best Practices Jeffrey Dickerson, NSA’s cybersecurity technical director, warned network defenders that the malicious actors may continue to exploit such vulnerabilities until 2025.
DOD Approves Private 5G Network Deployment Strategy
The Department of Defense has signed a strategy covering the deployment of private 5G networks at military installations. Private 5G is expected to augment or supplement commercial 5G, the DOD said Tuesday. Objectives of the Strategy The strategy, titled DOD Private 5G Deployment Strategy, seeks to address three agency objectives. The first involves the DOD seeking to align private 5G infrastructure with the missions of each installation. The 2nd objective involves DOD seeking to accelerate the secure deployment of 5G, both commercial and private. The third objective involves the expansion of an open radio access network ecosystem. Enabling DOD Modernization
VA Issues RFI for Product Development Support Services
The Department of Veterans Affairs is seeking industry input on potential organizations to provide product development support for critical and non-critical applications and products in the department’s Vendor Resource Management, or VRM, product line that are meant to enhance new and existing veteran experience services. According to the request for information posted on SAM.gov, the support services covers software development, product security management and information technology operations and maintenance services. The contracting party will also provide product and delivery management, systems architecture design, user research and feedback and user experience strategy. Further more, the potential contract will also include interaction design,
DLA Testing Tech to Address Data Interoperability Needs
The Defense Logistics Agency is testing artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies to determine how they can address data interoperability challenges among agencies as part of its efforts to improve logistics operations in contested environments. In partnership with the U.S. Transportation Command and the U.S. Army, a research and development initiative has begun to test the integration of legacy systems and new technologies such as blockchain networks, and their applications in various use cases, including data sharing capabilities and shipment tracking, DLA said Tuesday. Senior leaders from TRANSCOM and DLA met at the McNamara Headquarters Complex on Thursday to discuss
SSC Certifies Military GPS Receiver for Naval Field Testing
The Space Systems Command has certified the Military GPS User Equipment increment receiver card for the Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, reportedly marking an acquisition program baseline, or APB, milestone for the MGUE. The Program Executive Officer for Military Communications and Positioning, Navigation and Timing cleared the MGUE aviation and maritime receiver card for naval field testing after its integration into the Navy’s GPS-based PNTS system and the resolution of testing identified in deficiency reports, the SSC said Tuesday. MGUE Receiver Ready for Operational Fielding Col. Matt Spencer, commander of PNT Systems Delta at SSC, said the PEO certification prepares the MGUE
NASA Awards 5 Institutions to Boost Sustainable Aviation
NASA has awarded a total of $11.5 million to five organizations to develop sustainable aircraft designs. The agency said Tuesday it will fund studies by four companies and one university through its Advanced Aircraft Concepts for Environmental Sustainability, or AACES, 2050 initiative. The commissioned studies involve aircraft concepts, technologies and designs with the potential to boost sustainable commercial aviation by 2050. NASA-Funded Sustainable Aircraft Studies The institutions that will receive funding from NASA have until mid-2026 to finish their studies. The five awardees and their plans are: Aurora Flight Sciences, a Boeing Company, will focus on alternative fuels, propulsion systems, aerodynamic
NIST Readies Post-Quantum Cryptography Roadmap
The National Institute of Standards and Technology is soliciting public comments on the first draft of its report describing how the agency will manage and guide the transition to cryptography standards less vulnerable to attacks from a quantum computer. The 22-page draft report, titled “Transition to Post-Quantum Cryptography Standards,” pinpoints the current quantum-vulnerable cryptographic standards and existing quantum-resistant algorithms proposed for deployment in the migration, NIST said Tuesday. The report is designed to serve as a roadmap for federal agencies, industry and standards organizations for migrating IT products, services and networks to post-quantum cryptography, or PQC. Digital Signature Candidates Among
OSC Seeks Support for Traffic Coordination System for Space
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Office of Space Commerce is conducting market research to identify sources that can provide cloud infrastructure and provisioning services for the Traffic Coordination System for Space. The potential vendor must demonstrate space situational awareness—or SSA—experience, be able to operate high-impact IT operations and maintain an authority to operate while integrating third-party data and services, OSC said Tuesday. Support for Spaceflight Safety TraCSS is an enterprise solution enabling the Department of Commerce to coordinate space traffic and promote spaceflight safety. The system ingests, archives, processes and disseminates SSA data and products. It features a modular