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There is now more cyber guidance than ever for the companies that do business with the government. You can also expect even more when it comes to other new technologies, like artificial intelligence. Congress seems to be back up and running, and there is business to attend to. To start with, reauthorizing a major component of the Homeland Security Department, and also funding the rest of the government. For analysis, Federal Drive Executive Eric White spoke with Stephanie Kostro, Executive Vice President at the Professional Services Council.
In the endless quest for talent, federal contractors sometimes use foreign employees. A long-running program called E-verify lets employers confirm such potential employees are eligible to work in the United States. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has found that agencies are not consistent in checking the E-verify system, as part of their contractor oversight.
DHS wants to make sure employees at the Counter Weapons Office of Mass Destruction stay feds, even if Congress lets the office's authority terminate.
Agencies are supposed to protect their data systems from cybersecurity threats, especially those known as high value asset systems. The Homeland Security Department office of inspector general looked at a high value asset system operated by the Transportation Security Administration.
Defense and national security community officials, speaking Wednesday at the Institute for Critical Infrastructure Technology (ICIT)’s AI DC conference in Arlington, Virginia, said their agencies see AI as an essential way to maintain an information advantage against malicious actors.
"The employees are upset that they're going into this again." Staff at TSA and other DHS components are preparing to go to work without pay."
The departments of Commerce and Homeland Security are among the agencies that emailed employees today telling them a government shutdown was expected and they should plan accordingly.
A shutdown would potentially leave CISA with a skeleton crew to respond to cyber attacks on the networks of federal agencies and critical infrastructure.
The Office of Intelligence and Analysis has come under criticism for both overreaching in its authorities, while failing to heed information about the 2021 Capitol riot.
DHS' recommendations come amid a growing patchwork of cyber incident reporting rules and regulations.
In today's Federal Newscast: After three crashes, two of them deadly, the Marines halt aviation for two days. A DHS threat assessment warns of "likely" cyber-attacks on America's 2024 elections. And GAO has given its employees several hybrid and remote work options.
The Oversight hearing comes after months of pressure from committee leaders for agencies to share more granular data on federal telework and productivity of employees.
DHS has a new AI policy, while Chief Information Officer Eric Hysen has been named as the department's first-ever "chief AI officer."
Agencies have until Oct. 13 to submit requests to OPM for new special salary rate approvals. But bigger budget concerns may discourage agencies from requesting or even implementing them.