On DoD

  • The same company that performed National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden's background investigation also performed a check of Aaron Alexis, the IT contractor who shot and killed 12 people at the Washington Navy Yard Monday. The Office of Personnel Management said it believes Alexis' background check was complete and that the Defense Department signed off on the results of the background check.

    September 20, 2013
  • Most of the Washington Navy Yard reopened this morning, with an increased security presence at the gates and in the facility. The Navy's goal is to provide whatever counseling and support is necessary to its employees to return the base to normalcy.

    September 19, 2013
  • Thirteen people were killed when 34-year-old Aaron Alexis opened fire at the Washington Navy Yard on Monday, Sept. 16. The shooter himself was killed in a gun battle with the police. These are the stories of the victims.

    September 19, 2013
  • DoD still is working to implement dozens of recommendations that followed the 2009 Fort Hood shooting. The Pentagon wants to create a system that notifies security managers about potential problems with clearance holders ahead of time.

    September 19, 2013
  • Dr. Richard Carlin, director of the Navy's Sea Warfare and Weapons Department in the Office of Naval Research, outlines his organization's energy goals and the Navy's increasing investments in its Energy Excelerator program.

    September 18, 2013
  • Key senators on the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee are seeking answers into how the contractor employee responsible for the mass shooting at the Washington Navy Yard that killed 12 people obtained his security clearance. In a Sept. 18 letter, Sens. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) and Jon Tester (D-Mont.), requested the Office of Personnel Management's inspector general look into what type of clearance the shooter, identified as 34-year-old Aaron Alexis, held as well as what federal agency conducted his background investigation.

    September 18, 2013
  • Senior uniformed Air Force leaders have agreed it's time to give more authority to the service's chief information officer. The CIO is drafting plans that will give it more say-so over planning the overall IT environment and the dollars targeted toward individual projects.

    September 18, 2013
  • Ed Cannon, the Navy's director of fleet and family readiness program, said the service deployed its special psychiatric rapid intervention team to provide assistance to employees who survived the tragedy at the Navy Yard.

    September 18, 2013
  • In the wake of the shooting in which 12 civilian and contract employees were gunned down at the Washington Navy Yard Monday, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel has ordered a review of security procedures at all Defense Department bases worldwide.

    September 17, 2013
  • In an effort to reduce costs, officials at the Navy put in place a system for granting contractors access to installations that ended up allowing as many as 52 convicted felons access to bases, according to a Defense Department inspector general report released Tuesday. The IG found the system, called Rapidgate, failed to comply with federal standards and that background checks were conducted using only publicly accessible databases. The security of Navy installations was thrown into the spotlight Monday after 34-year-old contractor Aaron Alexis entered the Washington Navy Yard Monday morning where he shot and killed 12 people.

    September 17, 2013
  • A profile is emerging of Aaron Alexis, the man identified as the lone gunman in the mass shooting at the Washington Navy Yard in Washington, D.C., that left 13 people dead Monday, including the shooter himself. Alexis was a former Navy reservist, a Defense Department contractor, a convert to Buddhism and a student of aeronautics. But he also had flashes of temper that led to run-ins with police in Fort Worth, Texas, and Seattle.

    September 17, 2013
  • The Federal Bureau of Investigation said that 34-year-old Aaron Alexis used a valid pass to enter the Navy Yard premises Monday. Alexis worked for The Experts, a subcontractor on an HP Enterprise Services contract to refresh equipment used on the Navy Marine Corps Intranet network. He was able to obtain a valid pass to the Navy Yard through his work as a contractor.

    September 17, 2013
  • The Air Force Association brings together agency leadership, industry experts, academia and current event specialists from around the world to discuss the issues and challenges facing America and the aerospace community at the 2013 Air and Space Conference.

    September 16, 2013
  • Thirteen people are dead and more are injured after a shooting at the Washington Navy Yard Monday morning. The shooter, who was killed during the incident, has been identified as Aaron Alexis of Texas.

    September 16, 2013