Disappointment. That describes what most of the information technology industry is feeling regarding state and local homeland security spending. Companies are discouraged with the amount of money spent on homeland security, the lack of opportunities in their sales pipelines and the relatively small size of the projects that have been launched.
When faulty routers or denial-of-service attacks plague an Army network, the top brass want to know one thing: How does it affect the ability of Army units to perform their missions?
The Senate is expected to take up legislation establishing a Department of Homeland Security this month. The House has already passed its version of the legislation, called the Homeland Security Act of 2002.
Sept. 11, 2001 - 8:46 a.m. American Flight 11 hits the north tower of World Trade Center. 9:05 a.m. - United Flight 175 hits the south tower. 9:38 a.m. - American Flight 77 hits the Pentagon.
The Pentagon fires were still burning when Tom Buonforte and his team at General Dynamics Network Systems began sifting through the rubble, trying to figure out how they would rebuild the computer and telecommunications networks in the damaged wing.
The Homeland Security Act (H.R. 5005) passed by the House in July is a massive piece of legislation that not only will restructure the government, it will reshape dealings between government and the private sector on a variety of security-related issues.
<FONT SIZE=2>	The House bill setting up the new Department of Homeland Security, H.R. 5005, includes several key technology provisions. One offers antitrust, civil liability and Freedom of Information Act exemptions to companies or individuals who voluntarily provide ordinarily private information about threats, vulnerabilities and intrusions upon the nation's critical infrastructure. </FONT>
<FONT SIZE=2>General Dynamics Corp.'s aggressive moves to position itself as an information technology provider to the Defense Department are well known. But the company also has been quietly working to win more business with civilian agencies, especially by leveraging its engineering and network talents developed for defense customers.</FONT>
The Office of Management and Budget's e-government management team met July 16 met with the Washington Technology and Government Computer News editorial staffs to discuss the administration's e-gov progress and what the future holds. Participating OMB staff members included Mark Forman, associate director of OMB for information technology and e-government.
<FONT SIZE=2>	The group representing state chief information officers has moved closer to establishing an information sharing and analysis center for the states by signing an agreement with the federal group that issues warnings of cyber and physical attacks against critical infrastructures. </FONT>
The Chinese military is developing tools and programs to disrupt electronic systems and deface Web pages during times of attack, according to a Defense Department report.
A Defense Department report said the Chinese military is developing tools and programs to disrupt electronic systems and deface Web pages during times of attack.
As the president and Congress work toward a consolidated approach to homeland security ? including a massive new federal agency to supervise and coordinate protection of American citizens and strategic national assets ? it has become abundantly clear that the government's success depends on the active participation of U.S. industry.
The Business Software Alliance and the Information Technology Association of America are pushing for the creation of a cybersecurity agency as part of the proposed Department of Homeland Security.
Hacking activities are on the rise, but severe attacks are falling, according to a new study by managed security services provider Riptech Inc. of Alexandria, Va.
Combining six IT security agencies into one division of the proposed Homeland Security Department is an opportunity for enhanced efficiency, but it will not necessarily fix the weaknesses plaguing federal efforts to secure critical infrastructure, according to the General Accounting Office.
President Bush's proposed Homeland Security Department will rely heavily on data sharing and analysis to combat terrorist threats, and will require a systems infrastructure to support that mission -- a complex integration challenge that already has information technology companies scrambling for a piece of the action.
