More cyber issues found at FDIC

The Federal Headlines is a daily compilation of the stories you hear discussed on  Federal Drive with Tom Temin.

• Cybersecurity problems continue to be found at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. The Government Accountability Office said though the FDIC has improved several elements of its information security, it has still not created a documented process for granting or removing system access or fixed known vulnerabilities in third-party software. (Government Accountability Office)

• Starting in October, senior executives will be able to earn more from performance bonuses. The Office of Personnel Management issued guidance on implementing President Barack Obama’s executive order which makes updates the Senior Executive Service. The cap on awards and payment adjustments will raise from 4.8 percent to 7.5 percent. (Federal News Radio)

• The head of NSA’s information assurance said identity theft is at the heart of the Office of Personnel Management data hacks. Curtis Dukes saidthe breaches could have been done to learn more about government employees and their line of work. But his money is on identity theft. Dukes said the cyber attacks are proof that hackers are getting smarter and both the government and industry need an education. (Federal News Radio)

• The White House is more formally bringing together data experts from across the government. Federal chief data scientist DJ Patil recently launched a new data cabinet to improve communication and the sharing of best practices. The goal of the cabinet is not just to encourage collaboration among chief data officers or data scientists, but really anyone who works with information to improve the government management. The cabinet will help agencies come up with repeatable strategies to address big data from a technology, governance, culture and analytics perspective.

• The number of government employees who need security clearances fell for the second year in a row. The amount of people who need one to access classified information fell 6 percent in 2015. The Obama administration ordered agencies to begin trimming the number of people eligible for a clearance back in 2014. (Federal News Radio)

• Transgender individuals can now serve openly in the military. Defense Secretary Ash Carter made it official saying the Defense Department is trying to ensure it can access 100 percent of the U.S. population for military recruitment and retention. DoD will also be providing medical care and treatment to any service member undergoing gender treatment. (Federal News Radio)

• The Defense Department isn’t the only federal operation changing its policies toward transgenders. Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson and Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Paul Zukunft both expressed support for the new DoD policy. Zukunft said the Coast Guard will align its policies with those announced by Defense Secretary Ashton Carter. He said the Coast Guard leadership has been involved in the DoD’s decision-making. The Coast Guard inducted 312 cadets, known as swabs, earlier this week. Of those, 119 are women. (Department of Homeland Security)

• Congress filled the ranks of the military elite before its vacation. The Senate confirmed a handful of military nominees before it heads off for its Independence Day recess. Vice Adm. Michael Gilday wass confirmed as the next commander of Navy’s 10th Fleet and Fleet Cyber Command. Gilday will take over for Vice Adm. Jan Tighe, Tighe now serves as the Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Information Warfare. The Senate also confirmed Gen. David Goldfein as the next Chief of Staff for the Air Force. During a combat mission in 1999, Goldfein’s plane was shot down over Serbia, he was recovered two hours later. (Federal News Radio)

• President Barack Obama signed the Freedom of Information Improvement Act, becoming law on the 50th anniversary of the original FOIA. Among the law’s provisions is one that codifies the presumption of openness for federal records. Obama announced a series of new initiatives to make information more accessible. He tasked the new Chief FOIA Officer’s Council with solving long-standing federal records’ challenges. (Federal News Radio)

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