FedScoop Radio

Cloud computing has given federal agencies newfound ability to run large-scale modeling and high-performance computing workloads that not that long ago required coveted time slots on supercomputers. But moving the massive data sets from agency data centers to the cloud still involves a lot of work. Data extraction charges can also be costly and until recently, latency was a significant issue. That’s changing thanks to new capabilities available from a software solution that many federal agencies are already using on premises to help them manage those workloads. Teams are already moving data between data centers, between office locations, between disaster recovery locations, and they've been using tools like NetApp’s SnapMirror, which replicates business-critical data at high speeds over local or wide area networks, ThunderCat Technology's CTO Nic Perez in this podcast. Sponsored by AWS, ThunderCat Technology and NetApp. Guest: Nic Perez, Chief Technology Officer, ThunderCat Technology Host: Host: Wyatt Kash, SVP, Content Strategy, Scoop News Group Look for more coverage of “IT Modernization in Government” on www.fedscoop.com/listen

The pandemic fundamentally changed the way agencies approach user access to systems and data. With telework, IT departments had to confront weakness in identity management that weren’t designed for large numbers of unmanaged devices connecting from offsite networks. The shift in security drew a distinction between authenticator tools and authentication controls, says Duo Security’s Bryan Rosensteel. Efforts to configure security workarounds put a spotlight on modernizing authentication and identity technology for 2021, he explains in this podcast. Sponsored by Duo Security. Guest: Bryan Rosensteel, Cybersecurity Architect, Public Sector, Cisco’s Duo Security Host: Wyatt Kash, SVP, Content Strategy, Scoop News Group Add: Look for more coverage of “IT Security in Government” on www.fedscoop.com/listen

Federal datasets are growing exponentially, and as they do, agencies are rising to the occasion to better understand, manage, analyze, visualize and share their data through improved strategy and increased leadership. With a host of data on hand, agencies have been placing a new emphasis on the importance of that data and what they can do with it, says Red Hat's David Egts, in a new podcast. He is joined with Henry Sowell from Cloudera Government Solutions to discuss the criticality of clean, useable data to achieve agency missions. Sponsored by Cloudera. Guests: Henry Sowell, Head of Cloudera Government Solutions David Egts, Chief Technologist, North America Public Sector, Red Hat Host: Wyatt Kash, SVP, Content Strategy, Scoop News Group Look for more coverage of “IT Modernization in Government” on www.fedscoop.com/listen

During the pandemic, the security threats facing federal agencies have significantly expanded. While the number of agency endpoints grow and federal employees work remotely with limited VPNs and legacy equipment, hackers are not relenting. To account for this new cloud-based paradigm where the network is no longer confined to the physical walls of a federal building, agencies must now pivot to a zero trust view of security from the data layer, says Spunk's CISO, Yassir Abousselham. “We cannot and need not protect everything at the same level,” Abousselham said. “What is needed is an approach to maintain a level of assurance that is aligned with sensitivity of the data that we want to protect.” Sponsored by Splunk. Guest: Yassir Abousselham, CISO, Splunk Host: Wyatt Kash, SVP, Content Strategy, Scoop News Group Look for more coverage of “IT Security in Government” on www.fedscoop.com/listen

Government agencies are discovering managed security services represent an increasingly attractive alternative to trying to find and retain the cybersecurity skills they need to defend against a growing array of threats. That’s due in part to the need for newer, deeper and broader security skills than most agencies have on staff and managed services providers have the ability to access the depth and breadth of talents and capabilities that might not otherwise be available in an agency setting. Two security leaders discuss how agencies can access the kinds of cybersecurity skills the need which aren't always accessible through their typical hiring or recruiting processes. Sponsored by Verizon Guests: Chris Novak, Global Director, Verizon Threat Research Advisory Center and M.K. Palmore, Vice President, Field Chief Security Officer, Palo Alto Networks Host: Wyatt Kash, SVP, Content Strategy, Scoop News Group Look for more coverage of “IT Security in Government” on www.fedscoop.com/listen

The remote workforce has opened up the floodgates on cyber risk, presenting new challenges to operate safely in distributed environments. In addition to staying on top of growing threats, government CTOs and CISOs are also required to keep their environments current on an extensive list of federal compliance and regulatory guidance. Microsoft’s Alym Rayani explains how IT leaders will benefit from AI-enabled tools to converge security and compliance. Sponsored by Microsoft. Guest: Alym Rayani, General Manager, Compliance Marketing, Microsoft Host: Wyatt Kash, SVP, Content Strategy, Scoop News Group Add: Look for more coverage of “IT Security in Government” on www.fedscoop.com/listen

The extensive ecosystem of open source partners and applications can be a boon to federal agencies trying to boost their modernization efforts. IT leader Christine Cox says that agencies which work with the global open source development community are able to accelerate service delivery and overcome many of the common barriers to cloud modernization. Developing applications using open source tools can help federal agencies future-proof digital services, by avoiding vendor lock-in, enhance their enterprise security and even support their high-performance computing requirements, says Cox. Guest: Christine Cox, Regional VP, Federal Sales, SUSE Host: Wyatt Kash, SVP, Content Strategy, Scoop News Group Look for more coverage of “IT Modernization in Government” on www.fedscoop.com/listen

The COVID-19 pandemic has shifted the federal government’s workforce to cloud-based telework and agency leaders need to address security concerns around access to sensitive information. Even before COVID-19, the risk associated with securing federal IT systems and their underlying data remained high after a variety of high-profile attacks, such as the 2016 breach at the Office of Personnel Management. According to Dan Prieto from Google Cloud, agencies need to continue to evolve both policies and practices to drive down risk. “[O]ur adversaries continue to be determined and they continue to be more aggressive. And their goals continue to expand: They seek to weaken democratic institutions; they seek to disrupt our critical infrastructures in health care and finance and government; and an emergency [within the public] service sector is something that we should be very wary of at this time of the COVID pandemic,” Prieto says. This podcast is sponsored by Google Cloud. Guest: Dan Prieto, Strategic Executive, Public Sector, Google Cloud Host:Wyatt Kash, SVP, Content Strategy, Scoop News Group Add: Look for more coverage of “IT Security in Government” on www.fedscoop.com/listen and www.statescoop.com/listen

Agencies that are implementing the Continuous Diagnostics and Mitigation program have an opportunity to use their CDM data to increase the value of cyberdefense and cyber-operations programs. There's a wealth of sensor data for CDM reporting that has an untapped value. Operationalizing it lets CDM become more than a compliance program, says Splunk's Frank Dimina. Fusing CDM data with other information like perimeter traffic, IPS and firewall data can actually increase insights for the SOC. This podcast is sponsored by Splunk. Guest: Frank Dimina, Vice President, Public Sector, Splunk Host: Wyatt Kash, SVP, Content Strategy, Scoop News Group Look for more coverage of “IT Security in Government” on www.fedscoop.com/listen

Defense Department agencies and their mission partners that are looking to work on projects in a DOD-authorized cloud environment can do so almost immediately — and at significantly lower costs — by using a program called milCloud 2.0, says an executive leading the program. The milCloud 2.0 program, which is supported by the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) and GDIT, is designed specifically to help DOD agencies accelerate adoption of cloud services. The milCloud 2.0 platform is a fit-for purpose commercial cloud program managed by GDIT that sits in a multi-tenant, “Impact Level 5” cloud environment within DISA facilities. The unique arrangement allows DOD project teams to bypass much of the red tape and added costs associated with projects conducted on government-sanctioned public clouds, according to Brian Whitenight, who directs partner accounts for milCloud 2.0 at GDIT. Guest: Brian Whitenight, Partner Account Director for milCloud 2.0, GDIT Host: Wyatt Kash, SVP, Content Strategy, Scoop News Group Look for more coverage of “IT Modernization in Government” on www.fedscoop.com/listen