Tag Archives: Intelligence

Mapping out Geospatial Uses

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Geospatial, as a strict term, means data that is related to a location. In the government space, Geospatial has been used interchangeably with GIS - or Geographic Information Systems - which refers to technology that uses geospatial data. GIS has long been a key technology for the military and intelligence communities to help map out and gain visibility into areas for combat or missions. But as the availability of geographic data grows through the use of GPS applications, drones, and IoT technologies, the use of GIS is expanding across government.

GIS is a key tool in disaster response helping overlay available resources and assets onto maps of areas impacted by floods or fires. It can also be used to map in real time the location of hazards such as downed power lines.

GIS is also being used by law enforcement. In one case, a boy had gone missing, suspected to be abducted. The boy posted a photo to Instagram and the image, taken from what seemed to be an apartment window, included a sign on a bank across the street. An analyst looked up branch locations and cross-referenced the addresses with online maps, but could not get a location that seemed to be a possible match. When they took that data and loaded it into a GIS system that took a top-down look at locations they were able to pinpoint the location of the child.

Urban sprawl and growth is also being managed with GIS. The city of Durham, NC uses aerial imagery to get a better look at changes being done to properties that impact land use, water runoff, and drainage.

There are several upcoming events focused on GIS as well as others that include discussion of the application of geospatial technology. Continue reading →

The Secret is in the Cloud

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Amazon Web Services (AWS) recently announced a newly developed "secret region" in their cloud, specifically made to host federal data up to the secret level of security classification--the second-highest level behind top secret. Amazon had previously offered only a top secret region, but this new offering now allows for any sensitive data to be stored in the commercial cloud. According to Amazon, "The U.S. Intelligence Community can now execute their missions with a common set of tools, a constant flow of the latest technology and the flexibility to rapidly scale with the mission." Microsoft Azure also has a similar offering.[Tweet "AWS newly developed "secret region" in their cloud to host federal data. #GovEventsBlog"]

The government's adoption of cloud technology started with administrative and low-risk data and applications - service workflow solutions with Salesforce, email platforms, and video conferencing. As evidenced by the work put into securing the cloud for sensitive data, commercial cloud providers see a need and profitable revenue stream with government customers. Continue reading →

Defense in Depth: A Look at Defense Industry Events

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While the defense community is well acquainted with meeting and defeating big challenges, the dynamic nature of the cyber world is proving to be a daunting adversary for our military. From arming soldiers at the tip of the spear not only with weapons but also with data to fending off threats to cyber networks, defense professionals are in a constant learning mode while being on constant alert.[Tweet "The defense community is well acquainted with meeting and defeating big challenges. #GovEventsBlog"]

At GovEvents we are proud to be the defense community's one-stop-shop for finding training and networking events. We hope that our site takes some of the strain of this new tech frontier off their shoulders.

In this post we want to highlight some of the key events coming up for defense professionals through the end of the year.[Tweet "In this post we highlight some of the key events for defense professionals. #GovEventsBlog"] Continue reading →

Your Privacy and the iPhone–What You Need to Know

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Cybersecurity practices, privacy policies, intelligence community best practices are all hot event topics on GovEvents.com. These topics are also garnering intense media focus with the ongoing battle between the Justice Department and Apple to provide access to data on the phone of the main suspect in the mass shooting in San Bernardino, CA. While the back and forth between the FBI and Apple has been well documented in the media, it is a complex issue in terms of what it really means for us as citizens and government professionals.[Tweet "Your Privacy and the iPhone -- what it really means for us. #GovEventsBlog"]

The background: Following the San Bernardino shooting, the FBI realized there may be critical evidence on the shooter's iPhone, which they have been unable to access.  The FBI hopes this information will shine a light on the motivation and any terrorist ties.

The reason the FBI cannot get into the phone without Apple's help comes down to one setting that anyone can turn on or off in seconds. Within Settings, users enter their passcode to lock the phone. Once that's done, a screen appears with the option to "Erase Data. Erase all data on this iPhone after 10 failed passcode attempts."  This makes traditional hacking attempts useless. However, the shooter had an older version iPhone and iOS, which, according to the FBI, means Apple has the ability to override this erase feature and access this phone. Newer phones, and those that have updated iOS, would not be accessible as this 'loophole' was eliminated as part of a 2014 operating system update. Continue reading →

Dawn Meyerriecks to Discuss the Intelligence Community’s Cloud, Mobility Priorities during Keynote Address

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Vienna, Va - August 15, 2012 - Dawn Meyerriecks, Assistant Director of National Intelligence for Acquisition, Technology and Facilities at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), will deliver a keynote address, "Cloud Apotheosis," on Tuesday, October 23, 2012 at 1pm at the Cloud & Virtualization, Cybersecurity and Mobile Government Conferences.  The co-located events will be held October 22-23, 2012 at the Grand Hyatt in Washington, DC.

"Cloud Apotheosis" will focus on the intelligence community's (IC) potential shift to an enterprise cloud environment, as well as their future mobile plans.  Ms. Meyerriecks will share insights on the status of current IC technology initiatives, as well as provide an assessment of what advancements government and industry should expect in the near term.

Continue reading →