Ensuring Broadband for All

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Ensuring broadband access for all citizens has been a key government focus, particularly since the pandemic accelerated the move to digital-first services. No longer a nice-to-have service, high-speed internet access is critical for education, healthcare, and access to government services. Ensuring this access means building out the infrastructure from urban centers to the most rural spots of the country and making access to broadband service affordable.

Broadband as a Utility

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is working to restore net neutrality policies that were canceled in 2017. These policies prohibit internet service providers (ISP) from throttling speeds to accelerate or degrade the delivery of online content. This practice can impact how underserved communities receive broadband access, allowing, for example, ISPs to prioritize certain traffic in exchange for user or content provider payments. With net neutrality, internet access is treated as a utility, similar to water or electricity, with equal access. Continue reading →

How the Healthcare Industry Is Working to Become Immune to Ransomware

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The first known ransomware attack occurred in 1989 and was targeted at the healthcare industry. The attention and attractiveness of healthcare organizations to ransomware hackers have not waned in the decades since. In fact, attacks are growing by 70-100 percent year over year. In 2023, there were over 460 ransomware attacks impacting U.S. health organizations, making it the most targeted industry.

This year, a major attack delayed prescription fillings and led to cash flow issues at facilities across the country. The American Healthcare Association said that 94% of hospitals have reported financial impact from the incident, with some losing upward of $1 billion per day in revenues. Continue reading →

Developing an AI Training Plan for the Government Workforce

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In talking about AI, there is a lot of discussion about "training the models"--feeding large amounts of data into an algorithm and then examining the results to ensure they are accurate. Once the models are deployed, the training does not stop for the models, and even more importantly, for its users.

A study from Deloitte estimates that generative AI could help boost productivity tenfold. However, this jump in efficiency will only be realized if AI and its outputs are being used correctly. Working with AI and AI-generated content requires a different set of skills that include critical thinking, algorithmic understanding, data analysis, deeper domain knowledge, cyber/data hygiene, and more. Continue reading →

Department Spotlight: Health and Human Services

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In its work to "enhance the health and well-being of all Americans," the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) oversees more than 100 programs across 13 agencies. Ten of these agencies are focused on public health, with three having human services as their main mission.

Across all of these agencies, there is a shared focus on the secure and ethical use of technology to improve public health and wellbeing. In 2023, HHS had an IT budget of $8.5 billion. Despite this spending, HHS has struggled to meet federal requirements. It did not score well on a cybersecurity audit, partly due to a lack of coordination among the operating units. Continue reading →

Climate Disasters Have Unequal Effects in Communities

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Severe weather events are on the rise. In fact, the U.S. set a new record for billion-dollar climate disasters in 2023. Extreme weather events do not discriminate. Hurricanes, fires, and tornadoes hit wealthy and poor areas equally. However, the recovery in those areas is not as equitable.

Realizing the Power of Power

A study found that low-income communities had to wait longer for power to be restored following hurricanes. The study found that a "1-decile drop in socioeconomic status in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's social vulnerability index was associated with a 6.1% longer outage on average." Continue reading →