iPhone location data used by US government to track coronavirus spread

iPhones | March 29, 2020

On Wednesday, it was announced a collection of mobile carriers in Europe will share customer location data with the European Commission to monitor the spread of the coronavirus. On Saturday, a report surfaced suggesting a similar program is being carried out in the United States, but in a slightly different manner. According to the Wall Street Journal, several government officials have acquired the location data for millions of smartphones and mobile devices across the country. Sources claim the federal government, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and state and local governments are receiving reports about the presence and movement of mobile phone users in specific areas of interest.

Spotlight

Spotlight

Related News

Emerging Technology

US Department of Defense Selects Info-Tech Research Group for Enterprise Software Initiative (ESI) Program

PR Newswire | August 04, 2023

Global IT research and advisory firm Info-Tech Research Group has been selected for participation in the US Department of Defence (DoD) Enterprise Software Initiative (ESI) program. This new partnership enables the DoD and its IT leaders to access world-class resources, gain industry-leading guidance, and receive transformative insights and invaluable consultation from experts with extensive experience. The agreement also includes McLean & Company, a division of Info-Tech known for its exceptional HR research and advisory services, and MyPolicies, the firm's provider of robust online policy management and administration software. The DoD ESI is an official DoD initiative sponsored by the DoD Chief Information Officer (CIO). The initiative is designed to streamline procurement and optimize cost efficiency in the acquisition of commercial software, IT hardware, and services. Through its joint team of experts, ESI consolidates requirements and establishes agreements with IT providers, resulting in a unified contracting and vendor management strategy across the entire department. "We are honored to have been selected to provide services as a member of the US Department of Defense's Enterprise Software Initiative. This partnership affirms our commitment to providing world-class IT research and advisory services to the public sector," says Ron Gumbert, senior managing partner at Info-Tech. "There is a shared vision to foster a technology-enabled, efficient future for the DoD, driving strategic change and transforming challenges into opportunities." Info-Tech's public sector executive services and research team comprises highly experienced industry experts focused on supporting government clients to address mission-critical, technology-enabled initiatives. "Our recent expansion into Arlington, Virginia, signifies our dedication to being an integral part of the IT ecosystem in the US, and this collaboration with the US Department of Defense's Enterprise Software Initiative further solidifies that commitment," adds Gumbert. "Our Arlington office stands ready to serve as a strategic hub for our work with the DoD and other Federal agencies, providing unparalleled research and advisory services. This pivotal development marks a new chapter in our mission to drive impactful digital transformation within the defense sector and beyond." About Info-Tech Research Group Info-Tech Research Group is one of the world's leading information technology research and advisory firms, proudly serving over 30,000 IT professionals. The company produces unbiased and highly relevant research to help CIOs and IT leaders make strategic, timely, and well-informed decisions. For 25 years, Info-Tech has partnered closely with IT teams to provide them with everything they need, from actionable tools to analyst guidance, ensuring they deliver measurable results for their organizations.

Read More

Cybersecurity

Carahsoft, Forescout, stackArmor Partner with Google Public Sector on Authority to Operate (ATO) Pilot Program to Secure Federal Workloads

GlobeNewswire | August 31, 2023

Carahsoft Technology Corp., The Trusted Government IT Solutions Provider®, Forescout Technologies, Inc., a global cybersecurity leader, and stackArmor, an advanced security and compliance solutions provider with a proven track record of delivering FedRAMP, DoD CC SRG, CMMC 2.0 and StateRAMP compliance acceleration, today announced a partnership with Google Public Sector to accelerate the availability of Forescout cybersecurity solutions to state, federal, and department of defense agencies. As part of an ATO pilot program, specialist solution providers like stackArmor combine with Carahsoft’s proven public sector market services, to provide ISVs like Forescout with a holistic “accreditation to acquisition” solution. "Google Public Sector is committed to working with partners like stackArmor and Carahsoft to accelerate the availability of Forescout cybersecurity solutions to state, federal, and Department of Defense agencies,” said Troy Bertram, Managing Director of Partners, Google Public Sector. “This pilot brings together partners with deep expertise and local knowledge to help ISVs accelerate the path to compliance and rapidly bring innovative technology to government agencies.” The Forescout® Cloud, built on Google Cloud, is a unified SaaS platform for security visibility, risk, and operational management. It continuously discovers and analyzes all connected cyber assets, whether they are managed or unmanaged for IT, OT/ICS, IoMT, IoT and cloud, and is a foundation for Forescout solutions that address challenges related to risk and exposure management, and threat detection and response. “We are delighted to be a partner of this ATO pilot program, which provides us with an accelerated pathway towards FedRAMP compliance and uniquely brings together engineering, compliance advisory and continuous monitoring services as well as market access solutions,” said Paul Kao, VP Product & Engineering, Forescout. “We selected stackArmor after a rigorous evaluation process and were impressed with their engineering expertise and ability to help us remove delays and friction from our aggressive accreditation roadmap.” stackArmor rapidly delivers a dedicated Google Cloud Landing Zone with NIST-compliant security services, a complete FedRAMP ATO documentation package and post-ATO continuous monitoring. To ensure the confidentiality, integrity and availability of sensitive data, ThreatAlert® provides a standardized secure by design architecture that is deployed “in-boundary” to ensure the highest levels of security and the ability to meet stringent government cybersecurity requirements including FedRAMP Moderate, FedRAMP High, DOD Impact Level 4 and 5 among others. “Reducing the time and cost of implementing NIST SP 800-53 based cybersecurity controls to achieve an ATO in compliance with FedRAMP, FISMA/RMF, DoD CC SRG and CMMC 2.0 requirements is a strategic necessity for commercial ISVs, critical infrastructure enterprises and public sector organizations, especially given the sharp rise in cybersecurity threats,” said Gaurav “GP” Pal, CEO and founder, stackArmor. “We are excited to expand our partnership with Carahsoft to bring our ThreatAlert® ATO Accelerator, which provides a secure by design cloud landing zone, defense in depth security services, OSCAL ready documentation package and continuous compliance automation to ISVs like Forescout, to accelerate the delivery of FedRAMP accredited cybersecurity services to government agencies.” "Interest in FedRAMP-accredited cloud services has accelerated since the passage of the FedRAMP Authorization Act in December of last year, which opens new opportunities for expanding the portfolio of available accredited SaaS and PaaS offerings in the federal marketplace," said Craig P. Abod, Carahsoft President. "stackArmor’s ThreatAlert® ATO Accelerator combined with Carahsoft’s unique market access solutions provide a compelling accreditation-to-acquisition solution." 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 Cybersecurity, MultiCloud, DevSecOps, Big Data, Artificial Intelligence, Open Source, Customer Experience 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. Visit us at www.carahsoft.com. About Forescout Forescout Technologies, Inc. a global cybersecurity leader, continuously identifies, protects and helps ensure the compliance of all managed and unmanaged connected cyber assets – IT, IoT, IoMT and OT. For more than 20 years, Fortune 100 organizations and government agencies have trusted Forescout to provide vendor-agnostic, automated cybersecurity at scale. The Forescout® Platform delivers comprehensive capabilities for network security, risk and exposure management, and extended detection and response. With seamless context sharing and workflow orchestration via ecosystem partners, it enables customers to more effectively manage cyber risk and mitigate threats. www.forescout.com About stackArmor stackArmor provides cloud migration, security and compliance engineering services for compliance-driven markets, including Public Sector, Government Agencies, Healthcare, Education, Space & Defense, Financial Services, and Non-profit organizations. stackArmor’s ThreatAlert® ATO Accelerator provides a unique “in-boundary” solution that helps organizations rapidly achieve FedRAMP, FISMA/RMF, DOD CC SRG and CMMC 2.0 among other government-driven cybersecurity compliance frameworks. Learn more by visiting https://stackArmor.com

Read More

Emerging Technology

OPEXUS Government Process Management Platform eCASE® Attains StateRAMP Moderate Authorization

Business Wire | September 14, 2023

OPEXUS, formerly known as AINS, LLC, and leader in government process management software, today announces it has attained StateRAMP authorization for eCASE®, a built-for-government case management solution that streamlines workflows and accelerates key government processes. StateRAMP was established in 2020 to efficiently verify that service providers meet the cloud security standards required to do business with state and local governments. The StateRAMP verification process, built upon the widely accepted National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Special Publication 800-53 framework, and independently audited by a reputable third-party assessment organization (3PAO), ensures the highest level of security and compliance. Achievement of this authorization underscores the company's dedication to supporting state and local governments with cutting-edge technology that enhances productivity, flexibility, and collaboration. With this certification, OPEXUS will empower state, local, and educational (SLED) agencies to elevate trust in public institutions with dynamic case management and rapid application development technology that was purpose-built for the government. OPEXUS supports public sector human resources teams by providing an umbrella of workforce management tools that include eCASE® EEO/eComplaint and eCASE® ER/LR. The company also offers eCASE® Audit and eCASE® Investigations, case-management tools built specifically for government auditors and investigators. "State and local government agencies experience many challenges keeping pace with private sector advancements in technology, cyber security, and data security software – from long purchasing timelines to budget constraints, but they cannot compromise on security,” said Howard Langsam, CEO of OPEXUS. “By demonstrating our security qualifications through StateRAMP, we are removing one more barrier to these agencies being able to purchase cloud solutions that meet both their operational and security requirements.” In 2014, OPEXUS attained FedRAMP authorization at the moderate level for its eCASE®, eCASE® COTS and FOIAXpress® solutions, including Audit, Investigations, Employee & Labor Relations, and EEO Complaints. The company has also achieved Defense Information Systems Agency Impact Level 2 (DISA IL2), FISMA, NIST 800-53 Revision 4, and FIPS certifications. About OPEXUS Get government unstuck with OPEXUS. OPEXUS is the leader in FedRAMP-certified government process management software with more than 30 years of experience supporting public institutions. The company brings operational excellence to governments’ middle office so agencies can focus on the critical work of mission delivery. OPEXUS empowers 100,000 government users with exceptional technology experiences and a built-for-government product suite, including solutions for audit, investigations, correspondence, Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests, and employee and labor relations. Located in the heart of Washington D.C., OPEXUS works with more than 150 public institutions in the US and Canada.

Read More