March 29, 2024

What’s Ahead for Cybersecurity?

What's Ahead for Cybersecurity?

Morning Coffee is a robust blend of links to news around the Internet concerning the Naval Air Station Patuxent River Morning Coffee logoeconomic community. The opinions expressed here do not reflect opinions of the Leader’s owners or staff.

President Donald Trump is likely to push for increased cybersecurity spending in government, and also for increased digital surveillance and encryption workarounds, PC World reports. Some cybersecurity policy experts expect Trump to focus on improving US agencies’ cybersecurity while shying away from new cybersecurity regulations for businesses. SC Media asked cybersecurity professionals to give it a quick assessment of the president’s first few weeks in office and what might be ahead in cybersecurity. The magazine reported mixed reviews for Mr. Trump.

DepDefSec Robert Work has been charged with coming up with a military cyber reorganization plan, Breaking Defense reports. An array of specific changes have been proposed, from giving tactical units more authority to conduct cyber attacks to creating a new structure to oversee both cyber and electronic warfare.

The Air Force Materiel Command has established the Cyber Resilience Office for Weapons Systems, or CROWS, Defense Systems reports. CROWS is a new unit tasked with protecting weapons systems by diagnosing and addressing cyber intrusions and attacks.

The Navy has established a digital warfare office within the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations to promote the use of data science across the service branch, executivegov.com reports. VADM Jan Tighe, deputy CNO for information warfare, will oversee the new office.

In his first comments about the US nuclear arsenal since taking office Jan. 20, President Trump said he wants to make sure the country’s nuclear arsenal is at the “top of the pack,” Reuters reports. He also said China could solve the national security challenge posed by North Korea “very easily” if it wanted to.

Federal News Radio says there is one thing budget experts can predict with confidence: This budget cycle will be unlike any agencies and contractors have seen in the past. President Trump is expected to submit his fiscal 2018 budget to Congress in mid-March.

Marines are being deployed to Norway and Australia, The Cipher Brief reports. It’s part of standard procedure, but also to respond to two emerging threats posed by Russia and China.

Special Forces soldiers are deployed to Central Africa to train local militaries to push back against extremist groups, Army Times reports. Officials say they spend time with locals to figure out what they need to improve their quality of life and to support their fight against Boko Haram.

The Pentagon and BAE Systems are working to develop a next-generation undersea drone communications technology to help identify mines, find enemy submarines, and surveil many items relevant to combat missions, Defense Systems reports.

Lockheed Martin took a few reporters for a ride in its advanced pilot trainer, the T-50A, Aviation Week reports, showing off the capabilities of the production-ready aircraft.

PSM of the Year

Charles Dixon, Aircrew Life Support Systems product support manager supporting Aircrew Systems Program Office (PMA-202), left, receives the 2016 Secretary of Defense PSM of the Year, Acquisition Category II, Award from Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Material Readiness Terry Emmert, right, at NAS Patuxent River on Jan. 31. (US Navy photo)

Charles Dixon, Aircrew Life Support Systems product support manager at Naval Air Systems Command, was recognized for his contributions to controlling cost growth, addressing long-term affordability, and promoting industry competition and innovation, The Tester newspaper reports. Dixon was honored as the 2016 Secretary of Defense PSM of the Year, Acquisition Category II.

Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin is scheduled to speak at The American Legion’s annual conference Feb. 28 at the Washington, DC, Hilton, Business Wire reports. Other speakers include Sen. John McCain (R-Arizona) and Rep. Phil Roe (R-Tennessee).

Contracts:

The Boeing Co., Seattle, Washington, is being awarded a $41,329,057 indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for systems and software engineering sustainment association with obsolescence, improvements, and enhancements for the P-8A Multi-mission Maritime Aircraft.  This effort includes engineering analysis, software maintenance, software support services, and modernization and improvements to software and associated hardware capability. Services to be provided include analysis, design, implementation, prototyping, integration, testing, prototype installation, software fleet support, and sustainment of development and test laboratory capability. Work will be performed in Seattle, Washington (85 percent); Huntington Beach, California (13 percent); St. Louis, Missouri (1 percent); and Patuxent River, Maryland (1 percent), and is expected to be completed in December 2019. Funding will not be obligated at the time of award; funds will be obligated on individual orders as they are issued. This contract was not competitively procured pursuant to Federal Acquisition Regulation 6.302-1.  The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity (N00019-17-D-0008).

Cyber Core Technologies LLC, Elkridge, Maryland, is being awarded a $47,500,000 indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity, firm-fixed-price, multiple award contract for procurement of information communication technology/equipment (ICT/E), which includes a broad range of procurements identified by risk.  The ICT/E high risk category includes firewalls, intrusion detection systems and sensors, routers, semiconductor chips and switches; the medium-risk category includes encryptors, hard disk drives, multiplexers and transceivers, servers, solid state drives, workstations and other computing devices; the low-risk category includes racks, cabinets, storage area networks, thin clients, power strips, and other electrical protection and distribution devices. This is one of four multiple-award contracts, with two awardees eligible to compete for delivery orders for all risk categories and two awardees eligible to compete for delivery orders for medium- and-low risk categories during the ordering period. Cyber Core Technologies is eligible to supply ICT/E in all risk categories. This five-year contract includes no options. Work will be performed at the contractor’s facilities in Elkridge, Maryland, and is expected to be completed Feb. 27, 2022.  Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Funding will be obligated via delivery orders which will be competed. The types of funding to be obligated include primarily operations and maintenance (Navy); other procurement (Navy); and research, development, test and evaluation. This contract was competitively procured using full and open competition via publication on the Federal Business Opportunities website and the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command e-Commerce Central website. Six proposals were received and four were selected for award.  The Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center Pacific, San Diego, California, is the contracting activity (N66001-17-D-0094).

Alion Science and Technology, McLean, Virginia (N00189-17-D-Z021); Booz Allen Hamilton Inc., McLean, Virginia (N00189-17-D-Z022); CSRA LLC, Alexandria, Virginia (N00189-17-D-Z023); kglobal, Herndon, Virginia (N00189-17-D-Z024); and Media Fusion, Huntsville, Alabama (N00189-17-D-Z025), are being awarded an estimated $42,609,513 multiple award, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity, cost-plus-fixed-fee contracts that will include terms and conditions for the placement of both cost-plus-fixed-fee and firm-fixed-price task orders for services to provide communication integration and strategy, media relations, community outreach/relations, visual information systems and imagery marketing, public affairs professional and community development, capabilities integration development, communication information environment management and training, and public information materials development and production in support of the Navy Chief of Information Headquarters and its field activities. Each contract will run concurrently and includes a 60-month ordering period. Work will be performed in Washington, District of Columbia (68 percent); and in contractor facilities (32 percent) in response to awarded task orders which cannot be reasonably estimated at the time of contract award. The ordering period of the contract is expected to be completed by February 2022. Fiscal 2017 operations and maintenance (Navy) funds in the amount of $500,000 will be obligated ($100,000 on each of the five contracts to fund the contracts’ minimum amounts); and funds in the amount of $500,000 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured with the solicitation posted to the Federal Business Opportunities website, with nine offers received. Naval Supply Systems Command Fleet Logistics Center Norfolk, Contracting Department, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is the contracting activity.

Mymic LLC, Portsmouth, Virginia, is being awarded a $39,100,602 indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract that will include terms and conditions for the placement of both cost-plus-fixed-fee and firm-fixed-price task orders for analytical services in support of the Joint Staff, J8 Directorate’s Functional Capability Boards. The contract will include a five-year ordering period. Work will be performed in Arlington, Virginia, and the ordering period of the contract is expected to be completed by February 2022. Fiscal 2017 operations and maintenance (Defense) funds in the amount of $754,755 will be obligated at the time of award and funds will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured with the solicitation posted to the Federal Business Opportunities website as a 100 percent small business set-aside requirement, with five offers received. Naval Supply Systems Command Fleet Logistics Center Norfolk, Contracting Department, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is the contracting activity (N00189-17-D-Z026).

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