Security measure stirs defense contractors

A provision in the defense spending bill give military agencies the power to exclude contractors due to security risks, upsetting some big-name tech companies, Wall...

Big-name tech companies are pushing against a defense spending bill provision that gives each military agency the power to force technology vendors to exclude subcontractors that the government thinks could pose a security risk, The Wall Street Journal reports.

Most upsetting to these tech companies — including Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Cisco Systems and Hewlett-Packard — is that the government would not be required to disclose any reason for excluding a subcontractor.

IT companies and their industry groups have been meeting with officials in Congress and the Defense Department in an effort to soften the provision, according to the article.

This story is part of Federal News Radio’s daily DoD Report brought to you by Dell. For more defense news, click here.

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