GSA to Partner with GAO in Latest Centers of Excellence Partnership

Nextgov | March 03, 2020

The General Services Administration announced Tuesday it will partner with the Government Accountability Office to assist Congress’ investigatory arm in launching its nascent technology innovation lab. The partnership the seventh under GSA’s Centers of Excellence initiative will provide GAO access to GSA’s technology professionals, best practices and experience in prior federal efforts as it looks to build out a tech lab that could improve the way it audits the government. Specifically, GSA will assist GAO in developing cloud-based infrastructure, services and tools, as well as advance development of a “flexible, scalable and secure computational environment,” according to a statement. The goal is to boost GAO’s capabilities as the chief auditor of the federal government. Its innovation lab will be part of new tech assessment office that will hone in on how the government uses emerging technologies.

Spotlight

The virtual private network (VPN) has been a powerful tool in the network security administrator’s toolbox for decades, because it has provided a means for remote computers to communicate securely across an untrusted network such as the internet. Whether for branch offices communicating with headquarters (siteto-site), or an employee working from home (remote access), the VPN provided a secure point-to-point tunnel back to resources on protected networks.

Spotlight

The virtual private network (VPN) has been a powerful tool in the network security administrator’s toolbox for decades, because it has provided a means for remote computers to communicate securely across an untrusted network such as the internet. Whether for branch offices communicating with headquarters (siteto-site), or an employee working from home (remote access), the VPN provided a secure point-to-point tunnel back to resources on protected networks.

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EMERGING TECHNOLOGY

GeoComm Receives State and Local Government Specialty Designation from Esri

GeoComm | March 03, 2023

On March 02, 2023, GeoComm, provider of Public Safety Location Intelligence®, announced that it has earned from Esri the State and Local Government Specialty designation. The State and Local Government specialty partners utilize their ArcGIS expertise and knowledge to develop and configure ready-to-use solutions and to provide implementation services to city, state, and local government clients. This designation acknowledges GeoComm's commitment to providing state and local governments with industry-leading solutions based on Esri technology over the long term. The solutions include offering GIS services to assist with maintaining, building and publishing locally authoritative Public Safety Grade GIS data. The solution supports public safety applications like mapping, Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) and Next Generation Core Services (NGCS) to help save more lives and protect property when 9-1-1 call takers make life decisions and provide call takers with access to the most accurate and up-to-date GIS data. In addition, the solution also includes enhancing emergency response situational awareness by utilizing indoor maps and converting z-axis location data into a dispatchable location. In 2011, GeoComm joined the Esri Partner Network (EPN) as a Platinum Partner, the highest level of the EPN programs, are acknowledged for developing and providing industry-leading GIS solutions and services using ArcGIS software. Additionally, GeoComm maintains a close partnership with Esri to develop public safety solutions utilizing Esri technology. State and Local Government is the most recent Esri designation earned by GeoComm, following the announcement of Indoor GIS and ArcGIS System Ready certifications. About GeoComm GeoComm is a turnkey emergency 9-1-1 development services provider to county government. The company was founded in 1995 and has grown to serve regional, local, statewide and military agencies in forty-nine states, powering to keep over 100 million people safe. It is widely recognized as the go-to source for public safety GIS systems, which direct 9-1-1 calls to the appropriate dispatch center, plot the location of the caller on maps used by call takers and dispatchers, and direct police, fire, and EMS vehicles to the scene of an incident via in-vehicle screens.

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EMERGING TECHNOLOGY, GOVERNMENT BUSINESS

Verint and Carahsoft Partner to Deliver Digital-First Citizen Engagement Solutions to Federal, State and Local Governments across the U.S.

Carahsoft | March 17, 2023

Verint® (NASDAQ: VRNT), The Customer Engagement Company®, today announced its partnership with Carahsoft Technology Corp., The Trusted Government IT Solutions Provider®. Under the agreement Carahsoft will serve as Verint’s Public Sector Distributor, making the company’s citizen engagement solutions available to the public sector through Carahsoft’s reseller partners, NASA Solutions for Enterprise-Wide Procurement (SEWP) V and Information Technology Enterprise Solutions – Software 2 (ITES-SW2) contracts. “Government agencies are immersed in a worldwide trend to improve their digital IQ and citizen engagement as reliance on government websites and content continues to expand. Consequently, leading global brands are meeting consumers where they want, when they want, and citizens expect this same level of service from government agencies,” says Verint’s John Bourne, senior vice president, global channels and alliances. “Verint’s partnership with Carahsoft will help the public sector meet these challenges by extending the reach of our customer engagement solutions through Carahsoft’s extensive reseller network.” There are a number of government initiatives in place today that are driving the need for improved digital services and making citizen engagement a top priority. These include President Biden’s Executive Order #14058 (Transforming Customer Experience & Service Delivery to Rebuild Trust in Government) which focuses on transforming federal customer experience and service delivery to rebuild trust in government; and the Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP) that simplifies security for the digital age by providing a standardized approach to security for the cloud. Verint solutions are FedRAMP Moderate/IL4 authorized, which comes on the heels of more than 20 years helping hundreds of agencies and departments around the world measure and improve citizen satisfaction. “Forward-thinking government and public sector agencies are continually improving their customer engagement tools to provide a seamless digital experience for citizens,” said Michael Shrader, vice president of Intelligence and Innovative Solutions at Carahsoft. “With the addition of Verint to our Customer Experience and Engagement portfolio, agencies will be able to address various challenges, increase efficiency and promote rapid change across every citizen experience. We look forward to working with Verint and our reseller partners to help our joint customers deploy all the capabilities of the Verint Customer Engagement Platform.” The Verint Customer Engagement Platform helps organizations adapt and improve their operations in days, not months or years. It works across the organization, breaking down the barriers that exist between departments and operations. Verint technology enables people and bots to work together seamlessly from anywhere. The Verint Platform open architecture allows organizations to leverage existing investments in new ways. Verint solutions provide agencies with the data needed to surface and act on insights in real time to enhance customer experiences and efficiency, which ultimately drive continuous improvement. With Verint, organizations can create highly differentiated experiences, drive enduring relationships with their constituents and effectively navigate the disruption and constant change government agencies are experiencing. About Carahsoft Carahsoft Technology Corp. is The Trusted Government IT Solutions Provider®, supporting Public Sector organizations across Federal, State and Local Government agencies and Education and Healthcare markets. As the Master Government Aggregator® for our vendor partners, we deliver solutions for Customer Experience, Cybersecurity, MultiCloud, DevSecOps, Big Data, Artificial Intelligence, Open Source, and more. Working with resellers, systems integrators and consultants, our sales and marketing teams provide industry leading IT products, services and training through hundreds of contract vehicles. About Verint Verint® (Nasdaq: VRNT) helps the world’s most iconic brands build enduring customer relationships by connecting work, data, and experiences across the enterprise. More than 10,000 organizations in 180 countries – including over 85 of the Fortune 100 companies – are using the Verint Customer Engagement Platform to draw on the latest advancements in AI, analytics, and an open cloud architecture to elevate customer experience.

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EMERGING TECHNOLOGY, GOVERNMENT BUSINESS

Skyhigh Secure Web Gateway Is Now Authorized by FedRAMP

Skyhigh Security | February 15, 2023

On February 14, 2023, Skyhigh, a Security Service Edge Leader, announced that its Skyhigh Secure Web Gateway achieves Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP) Moderate Authorization. Federal government agencies and government contractors are increasingly adopting cloud technologies to enhance efficiency, promote agility, and reduce costs. The FedRAMP Authorization enables these organizations to implement Skyhigh SWG, a component of the Skyhigh Security Service Edge (SSE) portfolio, to provide continuous, secure access for users anywhere, shield vital government data, and protect against today's advanced threats. The U.S. government program, FedRAMP, evaluates cloud security vendors based on a standardized security framework for cloud products and services, focuses on protecting sensitive federal data in the cloud. Its process demonstrates the Skyhigh SWG solution has been assessed and approved by the C-level security officers from the Department of Defense (DoD), the General Services Administration and the Department of Homeland Security. Skyhigh SWG enables authorized government users to connect securely to the cloud and web from anywhere and on any device. It prevents threats from entering an environment and sensitive data from leaving by monitoring inline traffic and acting as a gateway between users, websites, applications, and data. Multiple integrated technologies, such as Remote Browser Isolation (RBI), Cloud Access Security Broker (CASB), and Data Loss Prevention, are used by Skyhigh SWG to protect federal agencies from potentially malicious or unauthorized websites and cloud applications (DLP). The Skyhigh SSE portfolio safeguards data and prevents threats in the cloud through all Software-as-a-Service applications, Shadow IT, and Infrastructure-as-a-Service environments from a single, cloud-native enforcement point. It gives organizations to control and visibility of their data in the cloud, irrespective of where it resides. It offers a DLP engine with single user-friendly centralized management and reporting dashboard, a single policy framework through all data exfiltration vectors and multi-layered security technologies to protect all possible use cases in the federal government environment. About Skyhigh Security Skyhigh Security, headquartered in San Jose, California, is committed to assisting clients in securing the world's data. It protects organizations with data-aware and user-friendly cloud-native security solutions. Its industry-leading Security Service Edge (SSE) Portfolio goes beyond data access and focuses on data use, enabling organizations to collaborate securely from any device and location. It allows organizations to gain complete visibility and control and to monitor and mitigate security risks seamlessly, thereby reducing associated costs, enhancing efficiencies, and keeping up with the pace of innovation.

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