The Washington Post is reporting that a flash drive containing malicious code was the source behind a major breach of U.S. military computers in 2008. The drive was “inserted into a U.S. military laptop on a post in the Middle East,” according to the article. Revelations of the breach’s root cause further underscore the challenges facing federal government to identify vulnerabilities and defend against cyberattacks. On November 3-5, experts from government, industry and academia are set to discuss these issues, and more, during the 2010 Cyber Security Readiness Summit. Attendees will learn best practices for: Cultivating a complete approach to…
Browsing: Defense
One of the most frustrating parts of living in the Washington area is trying to drive into the nation’s capital during rush hour. And if the Defense Department follows through with its current relocation plans, commuting might get worse. Rep. Jim Moran, D-Va., said in an Aug. 6 letter to Defense Secretary Robert Gates that the department’s “ill-advised” plans to move 6,409 employees to the Mark Center complex in Alexandria, Va., will cause catastrophic traffic jams on roads — including Interstate -395, the main corridor Virginians take to commute into Washington. The Pentagon’s Base Realignment and Closure committee originally recommended…
The Pentagon has posted updated statistics on the drawdown of the National Security Personnel System. As of Aug. 1, 110,313 NSPS employees have been returned to the General Schedule system. Of those, almost 80,000 have been bumped up to the next highest step and received pay raises averaging $1,450. But more than 22,000 employees — 20 percent of those transferred — have been placed on retained pay status because they earn more than their GS grade’s step 10 allows. They will receive half of the normal GS pay raise each year until their grade catches up with their salaries. The…
Our story Friday breaking the news that the Pentagon has abandoned the pay-for-performance elements of the Defense Civilian Intelligence Personnel System has generated a lot of interest, both on our main website and our blog. Responses ranged from exuberant and exclamation point-y (“THERE IS A GOD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!11”) to regretful (“Unbelievable… back to the old way where you get paid for doing only as much as needed to not be fired?”). Federal Times is working on a follow up story this week, and we’d like to hear from people who have worked under DCIPS. Where do you think it went wrong? What…
The Pentagon just posted an action plan online that discusses how it will wind down the pay-for-performance elements of the the Defense Civilian Intelligence Personnel System. Interestingly enough, the report says there were three leading factors that caused Defense Secretary Robert Gates to scratch pay-for-performance, even though a NAPA report advised against it: First, the operational tempo in Defense’s intelligence agencies is so high that making such a major change — especially when employees are so concerned about it — could distract employees from their mission. Second, “congressional support necessary to undertake and support such a change at this time…
If you thought Hellfire-armed Predator drones were something, just wait until you see Taranis. This prototype unmanned stealth bomber, developed by BAE Systems for Britain’s Ministry of Defence, is said to be capable of operating autonomously and thinking for itself, as well as striking targets deep inside enemy airspace. It won’t ever go into service, but will allow BAE and Britain to test technologies for future aircraft. BAE stresses that despite the computer programs allowing Taranis to think for itself, ground crews would be in control of it at all times. But isn’t that what they all say? What’s really…
Corruption in the Afghanistan government is a well-worn topic, and Afghan subcontractors were singled out by a House subcommittee recently for extortion and corruption. But according to a New York Times article published this week, U.S. contractors deserve a share of the blame as well. The story says Afghan companies are accusing American contractors of not paying them for supplies and services, and leaving the country with unpaid bills of hundreds of thousands or even millions of dollars. An unnamed military official with the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan told the Times that “American contractors are contributing to fueling…
Stan Soloway and Alan Chvotkin over at the Professional Services Council expressed their displeasure with Defense Department insourcing efforts in a May letter to Defense Secretary Robert Gates. Recent congressional attention to the issue hasn’t done much to assuage their concerns. In a conference call with reporters this morning to discuss the Senate and House versions of the 2011 defense authorization bill, Soloway and Chvotkin said PSC supports an amendment by Rep. Jim Langevin that would prohibit DoD from setting quotas for its insourcing efforts. However, two other amendments passed by the House seem to conflict with the Langevin amendment,…
Call it “Halo: Kandahar.” The Army is looking for ideas from the private sector on how to build a “virtual world” for training soldiers. But the requirements the Army’s Research, Development and Engineering Command outlined in its June 2 request for information don’t sound that different from many popular Playstation or Xbox video games. The Army wants the game to contain highly complex, interactive environments that precisely recreate real-world terrain “on a 1:1 scale,” changing weather conditions, basic physics and collision detection, and realistic vehicles and weapons. And the virtual world should be able to handle 10,000 players and in-game…
Enjoy your Memorial Day weekend, but take some time in between cookouts to remember our nation’s veterans, both of past wars and of the current conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. And for those of you in the Washington area, there’s no shortage of great events this weekend: The Rolling Thunder motorcycle run technically begins this Sunday at noon at the Pentagon’s north parking lot. But there also will be motorcycles streaming up 395 to get to the staging area for hours beforehand, and I’ve had fun watching them from the Arlington bridges that span the highway. Veterans from all over…