The Fed Mission Success Round Up: Cloud Products, GAO Recommendations, and Data in Federal Agencies

July 26, 2021

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.

Agency Reuse of FedRAMP-Approved Cloud Products Climbs with Automation

Agency reuse of cloud products authorized by the Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP) continues to increase, with the program management office (PMO) automating parts of the process in fiscal 2021.

GAO Gives 3 Priority Recommendations to White House on Science and Tech Issues

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) provided its first-ever priority recommendation letter to Office of Science and Technology Policy(OSTP) urging the office to work with agencies to establish common outcomes, joint strategies, and roles and responsibilities; address needs using their resources; and develop a way to monitor, evaluate and report results.

Lack of Controls over Facial Recognition Technology Creates Risks for Agencies, Says GAO

Many Federal law enforcement agencies are at risk of violating privacy laws and of improperly disclosing details of investigations by failing to track their employees’ use of facial recognition technology owned by third parties, GAO has said.

VA Will Pause EHR Deployments Through at Least 2021, Department Says

The Department of Veterans Affairs will not deploy its new electronic health record to additional sites over the next six months, after a recent strategic review found a wide array of problems at the first go-live site in Spokane, Washington.

The State of Data Security in the Federal Government

Most agencies don’t have a solid grasp of what data they have or where it is located.

How Federal Agencies Can Make the Most of Unstructured Data

Dell PowerScale storage technology enables better analysis of vast troves of unstructured government data.

Augmented, Virtual Realities Hold Promise for Government

From firefighting and social services to increased accessibility, public-sector agencies are using virtual and augmented reality to improve how staff train to interact with citizens — and it’s only the beginning.

How Can the IRS Improve its Operations for the Next Filing Season?

In terms of customer service, the IRS is in a difficult spot of late. Filing season extra duties piled on by Congress and some enduring technology issues – No wonder taxpayers could hardly get through with a phone call. National Taxpayer Advocate, Erin Collins, explains how the agency might be improving things for the next filing season.

GSA 8(a) STARS III Contract Gets New Designation

The 8(a) STARS III Governmentwide Acquisition Contract (GWAC) has achieved the designation of “Best In Class” (BIC) by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). 

From the Makpar Blog …

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

• How Data Virtualization Saves Agencies Significant Resources

• Beyond Passwords: Identity Access Management in the Digital Age

• Celebrating Asian Pacific American Heritage Month with Asian Immigrant Contributions to Tech

• Tips for Remote Agile Scrum Ceremonies: How to Optimize for Success

• Agile Transformation

• Increasing Federal IT Efficiency: How to Streamline the ATO Process Leveraging DevSecOps

• Tackling the Challenges of Big Data for Federal Agencies

• How Agencies Can Score Quick Technology Modernization Fund (TMF) Victories

• PODCAST: How the Federal Government can Overcome Barriers to Agile Transformation

• CIO-SP4 BPA, BIC MAC, and POLARIS Contracts to Drive Further Government Innovation

• Makpar Applauds Appointment of First Native American U.S. Cabinet Member

• The Cybersecurity Framework That Keeps You and Your Family Safe as You Access Your IRS Records for Stimulus Checks

• Data Security Win: Virginia is Second State in U.S. to Pass Data Protection Legislation

• How Decentralized Decision Making Can Help Federal Agencies Adopt a More Agile Practice

• 4 Ways to Migrate a Workload to the Cloud for Federal Government Agencies

• PODCAST: The SolarWinds Breach Points to Need for Cyber Fundamentals

• In Response to The SolarWinds Breach: The Need to Return to Cybersecurity Fundamentals.

• Is the Product Owner the Most Important Role in Government Agile Development?

• Cloud Migration Primer for Federal Agencies

• Breaking Down Cultural Barriers to Cloud Adoption for Federal Government Agencies

• Cybersecurity Best Practices for Federal Agencies, Small/Medium Businesses, and Individuals

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.