3 Ways Artificial Intelligence is Producing Real Solutions for Government

Artificial Intelligence (AI) allows tasks that typically require human intelligence to be completed at machine speed. For government agencies, this means that they can make better use of the troves of data they hold for daily decision making, strategic planning, and citizen service.

Protecting the Bat Population

Bats are a critical part of the natural ecosystems as pollinators and in their role of natural insect extermination. However, many bats are at risk due to habitat loss. When they lose their natural habitat, many take to bridges as a new home, causing potential damage and even posing health hazards.

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Five Steps Toward Digital Transformation at the Department of Veterans Affairs

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is keenly focused on improving the healthcare and general services that support our military veterans. Incumbent on these improvements is the integration of leading edge technologies that digitize and automate processes for efficiency along with important security enhancements.

 

 

ONE: Implementation of Electronic Health Records

The Department's efforts to modernize the way they store and access records for the nine million veterans they care for into a comprehensive electronic system has been well documented. These efforts involve upgrading all 1200+ VA facilities' existing systems to ensure better continuity of care, and are currently focused on moving EHR data to a cloud system that will be interoperable with the Military Health System. The ultimate goal is to ensure service members can seamlessly and digitally transition from DOD to VA health care, instead of needing to carry around stacks of paper forms as is current practice.

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2021 Cybersecurity Awareness Month Challenges Everyone to #BeCyberSmart

Each October, the Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency and the National Cybersecurity Alliance lead the cybersecurity community in an educational campaign around the impact of cybersecurity breaches and best practices to prevent them. Cybersecurity Awareness Month was created to raise awareness about the importance of cybersecurity among individual citizens and companies alike. As exemplified by the theme, "Do Your Part. #BeCyberSmart," the campaign serves to remind us that everyone has a role in ensuring the security of data and systems.

Events, educational materials, videos, blogs, and more will be produced throughout the month by a variety of government entities, non-profits, and commercial organizations to illustrate this shared responsibility. To organize the vast amounts of information, the month is divided into themed weeks with a focus on the threat of phishing and a push to increase interest in cybersecurity careers:

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Security Takes a Leading Role in Acquisition

Recent security breaches via software have made supply chain security a priority across government. No longer is it enough to build security into a solution; now every product that is part of that solution is being examined for its security and risk. In response, the Biden Administration issued a Cybersecurity Executive Order that aims to provide more control over the content of code that comes in contact with government systems and infrastructure.

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Monitoring the Readiness for In-Person Events

In May 2021, shortly after the CDC revised their guidance saying that vaccinated individuals did not need to wear masks, we surveyed our members to get a pulse on their comfort level attending in-person events. At that time, we found that 75% of respondents would be comfortable attending an in-person event in 2021. Size or location (need to travel) did not seem to affect their willingness to attend. Things were looking up for in-person gatherings while enthusiasm for online events also remained high.

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