Wednesday federal headlines – June 10, 2015

The Federal Headlines is a daily compilation of the stories you hear discussed on the Federal Drive and In Depth radio shows each day. Our headlines are updated twice per day — once in the morning and once in the afternoon — with the latest news affecting federal employees and contractors.

• Federal employees are upset that data on 4 million of them was stolen from an Office of Personnel Management database. Eight out of 10 responding to a Federal News Radio survey said they are worried about the possibility of their identities being stolen. They said they’ll take advantage of free credit monitoring offered by OPM. Comments to the survey also show a lot of anger. One person said, “I’m not worried. I’m furious.” Another vows to leave federal service at the first opportunity. (Federal News Radio)
• Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says he’ll add cybersecurity legislation to the Defense Authorization bill for 2016. The Wall Street Journal reports, the Select Committee on Intelligence approved the bill in March. But it’s languished since then. The House has already passed a similar bill. The Senate bill provides liability protection to companies that share cyber threat information. Privacy advocates, such as Oregon Democrat Ron Wyden, vow to amend it so the government can’t easily gather data on individuals. (Wall Street Journal)
• The Drug Enforcement Administration Western Lab wins an award for its electronics recycling. The award is part of the Environmental Protection Agency’s Federal Green Challenge. Last year, the DEA lab increased its electronics recycling more than any other agency. It recycled and donated more than 8,000 pounds of electronics. That’s a 10 percent increase from 2013. The lab uses a certified recycler to collect and recycle the equipment. It also donates lab instruments to universities and holds collection events and activities to raise awareness among staff. (EPA)
• The director of the U.S. Marshals Service is retiring. Stacia Hylton had been on the job since January 2011. A spokesman said Hylton will live at least part time in South Carolina. She plans to work on community policing and other law enforcement issues. The Marshals Service has come under fire in Congress over allegations of nepotism and whistleblower retaliation. Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) called the agency’s leadership into question, also citing possible mishandling of forfeited assets. The Justice Department inspector general is looking into the charges. (Federal News Radio)
• The Defense Department has updated its equal opportunity program for service members. Officials said they’ve extended it to protect against discrimination because of sexual orientation. Defense Secretary Ash Carter made the announcement at Pentagon ceremonies observing Pride Month. The new policy gives uniformed members the same protections as civilian Defense employees. Service members can now use their command channels, the DoD Inspector General’s Office and the military equal opportunity process to resolve discrimination complaints based on sexual orientation. (DoD)
• The government’s Einstein system is getting lots of criticism, even before it’s fully implemented. The system is designed to protect sensitive data and repel cyber attacks. But the Hill reports that critics say it’s a multi-billion dollar boondoggle. Some agencies have 10-year-old technology and security systems, but they have to wait for a review period before they can do an upgrade. Chris Cummiskey, a former acting undersecretary for management at DHS, said Einstein isn’t agile enough and agencies will always be behind the curve. (Federal News Radio)
• The Transportation Security Administration is close to fixing a flaw in a personnel screening system. That’s according to Homeland Security inspector general John Roth. An audit found TSA let 73 people with terrorism codes in federal databases obtain permission to work in secure airport areas or for airlines. Roth tells a Senate committee, he believes the vulnerability has been closed. But he said the TSA still lacks access to a database maintained by the National Counter-terrorism Center, which is part of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. T-S-A sought permission to use the database last year. (Federal News Radio )
• The Syrian Electronic Army is taking responsibility for a hack on the U.S. Army’s website. GovExec reports the cyber attack put army.mil offline on Monday afternoon. The Pentagon said a hack happened, but didn’t confirm a source. The Army ensured that there was no breach of Army data. The Syrian group made its announcement on Twitter. Army.mil is back online. (GovExec)

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