GovConJudicata Weekly Debrief (4/12–16)

This week's Weekly Debrief covers data breach notifications, US sanctions on Russia for the SolarWinds attack, DoD and the compliance barrier, Blue Origin's nuclear spacecraft deal, and leadership communication.

Cyber

Medium – Prepare for Rapid Breach Notifications to the US Government

• "It’s no surprise given the impact of the SolarWinds attacks around the world that there’s word that a new Executive Order will likely be signed directing organizations that requires organizations that do work with the United States government to notify the federal government if they experience a breach far more quickly than they’ve had to previously."

Data Breach Today – US Sanctions Russia Over SolarWinds Attack, Election Meddling

• "The Biden administration on Thursday formally sanctioned Russia over the cyberespionage operation that targeted SolarWinds and its customers, including nine federal agencies, as well as the disinformation campaign tied to the 2020 U.S. elections."

Defense

FedScoop – DOD’s innovation ecosystem is growing, but strict compliance is a barrier, DARPA director says

• "The number of innovative companies the Department of Defense is working with has increased in recent years, but a key roadblock remains compliance regulations, the head of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency told Congress Tuesday."

FedNewsNet – Pentagon believes it escaped unscathed from SolarWinds, Microsoft hacks

• "The Defense Department certainly wasn’t immune from the recent global-scale cyber vulnerabilities involving SolarWinds and Microsoft Exchange software. But after months of scouring their own networks for signs of compromise, Defense officials say they’ve found no evidence that adversaries managed to use the security flaws to steal data or do anything else malicious."

PC Mag – Blue Origin Wins Contract to Design Nuclear-Powered Spacecraft

• "Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin company is working on a new spacecraft project that’ll fly via nuclear thermal propulsion. On Monday, Blue Origin was among three companies awarded with US government contracts to design the concept nuclear-powered spacecraft. The project comes from DARPA within the US Defense Department, which is best known for funding experimental prototypes, including a predecessor to the internet. In this case, the goal is to create a nuclear thermal propulsion system that can fly in low Earth orbit by 2025."

Leadership

NextGov – The Importance of Leadership Communication in a Telework Environment

• "Imagine moving across the country to accept a new job during the pandemic. You arrive at the new position where employees are all teleworking. How do you build relationships and instill trust in such an environment? That was the challenge I faced last July amid the COVID-19 shutdown when the Army transferred me to a new billet as the Human Resources Command Readiness Chief at Fort Knox, Kentucky. By the time I moved my household and arrived on the job, my entire staff of 16 were all teleworking."

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