Technically News - 6/24

Technically News scans thousands of industry articles to present you with a weekly source of IT news, information, and ideas that impact the public sector.

Civic Hackers (the good kind) Help Local Governments

USA Today has an article up about the kind of hackers you won’t see associated with cybersecurity and threats to our nation’s security: civic hackers. These IT professionals (and amateurs), use their expertise in programming to create online and mobile apps for citizens. Click here to read how “the good kind” of hackers are helping local governments.

Agencies Hot for Big Data, But Plans, Resources Are Lacking

At this point, most IT professionals in the private and public sectors agree: big data is here to stay. A recent MeriTalk survey recently found that big data analytics could save the federal government an estimated $500 billion. As noteworthy, the survey found that only 31% of agencies say they have a strategy in place to handle analytics at this scale. GCN has the full scoop.

NIST, DHS Push Security Automation to the Next Stage

One of the criticisms leveled at the government’s cybersecurity is a lack of standards. With agencies deploying different solutions to their network securities, the ecosystem weakens. Government experts are hoping to change that through the Security Content Automation Protocol (SCAP), developed at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). This GCN article gives you the breakdown.

Amazon’s Invasion of the CIA is a Seismic Shift in Cloud Computing

Stories about Amazon deploying a CIA cloud aren’t new. What is new is how Amazon and the CIA plan on rolling out this solution. Thanks to recently released documents through the GAO ruling, we now understand that at least a portion of the deal includes a private cloud that will be hosted within the CIA’s data center. Wired has an excellent article about what this means for Amazon and why they are shifting strategies.

Google & Red Hat Collaborate on App Engine in Private Clouds

The Google Cloud Platform team and Red Hat’s JBoss Application Server team are working together to run Google App Engine on top of JBoss. Google is using this partnership to increase the portability of their hosted apps. To read more about this partnership and what they hope to accomplish, check out this PC World article.

DLT Solutions & Oracle to Save Navy $60 Million

The Department of the Navy (DON) recently awarded DLT Solutions and Oracle a software enterprise license agreement (ELA) which is estimated to save the Navy $60 million over the next five years. The ELA will consolidate the DON’s procurement process across its organizations. Defense Systems has the full story including additional benefits.