The Fed Mission Success Round Up: Cybersecurity, Modernization, Procurement and More in Federal Agencies

Weekly News Round Up
Written By Elle Newman

Welcome to the Fed Mission Success News Round Up brought to you by Makpar. Each week, we will provide a summary of actionable news and insights to help aid in overall mission success for Federal agency IT decision-makers and influencers. 

NIST, CISA Finalizing Guidance for Identity and Access Management Post-SolarWinds 

As agencies look to avoid a repeat of incidents like SolarWinds—where adversaries used access to the IT management contractor and took advantage of poor identity management to compromise at least nine Federal agencies—authentication vendors in the space are getting more attention, but implementers will still need to be heavily involved. 

New Bill Would Unlock Cybersecurity Funding for Small Businesses 

New legislation would provide more Federal funding to help small businesses safeguard against cyberattacks as ransomware hacks remain a critical threat for all organizations. Introduced on Thursday, the Small Business Cybersecurity Act would give more Federal funding to Small Business Development Centers nationwide. This comes as experts warn that malicious cyber attackers are liable to target smaller entities as well as large infrastructure organizations. Funding included in the bill would help small businesses install stronger cybersecurity technology into their networks and provide employee and staff training. 

Health Experts Seek Separation of IT And Policy Contracts at National Organ Transplant Network 

Senior health experts have called for the Federal government to separate the technology and policy arms of the nonprofit responsible for operating the U.S. national organ transplant network, citing concerns over its failure to modernize IT systems, including a key software component called DonorNet. 

TMF Board Allocates Funding for Three New IT Modernization Projects 

The Technology Modernization Fund on Wednesday announced new investments to improve the customer experience and bolster cybersecurity within three public-facing agencies: the Labor Department, AmeriCorps, and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). 

The Future of Identity Management is Continuous Verification, HHS OIG Says 

The Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of the Inspector General considers sustainability and continuous authentication as the keys to a robust identity management strategy. 

GSA Expanding Use of COMET Blanket Purchase Agreement: CIO Shive 

The General Services Administration is expanding its use of a major blanket purchase agreement for digital transformations of backend procurement systems. 

IRS Looks to Boost Security of Federal Tax Information Through Computer Reviews 

The IRS Office of Safeguards seeks a contractor to support computer security reviews ensuring outside agencies are protecting the Federal tax information provided them. The forthcoming task order, expected in the first quarter of fiscal 2023, will cover preparatory agency outreach, pre-review analysis of areas of concern, automated and manual computer security scans, reporting of results and findings, and responding to agencies’ submissions. 

Senate Committee Approves AGILE Procurement Act for IT And Communications Tech 

The Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs advanced the AGILE Act of 2022 in an effort to help improve the Federal government’s IT procurement process. 

GSA’s Ascend Cloud RFI Emphasizes Baseline Requirements for Vendors 

The General Services Administration took another step closer toward its goal of launching the Federal government's one-stop shop for secure cloud commercial products and services. GSA released a request for information (RFI) on Friday about its plans to launch a multi-purpose, multi-award blanket purchase agreement for cloud technologies, officially outlining its vision for the highly anticipated initiative that will serve all Federal agencies seeking cloud solutions. 

From the Makpar Blog … 

In case you missed it, here are our latest blog posts: 

Identity and Access Management (IAM) Taking Hold in the Government Arena 

Makpar has over a decade of experience providing high-level strategic and project management services, focused on cybersecurity and cutting-edge technologies. Please contact us here for more information about how we can enhance mission success for your agency.

Elle Newman
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