‘DVLA Is Pushing the Boundaries of AI’
The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) is rapidly embedding artificial‑intelligence tools into its customer‑service operations. A large‑language‑model now powers ChatGPT‑style searches across 2,500 knowledge articles, helping advisers answer queries faster. In partnership with the Government Digital Service, the DVLA is testing an AI voice platform, Gov Voice, to handle routine calls. The agency aims for a 15% efficiency gain by the 2025 Spending Review while prioritising an improved citizen experience.
Administration Releases Cyber Strategy, Executive Order on Cybercrime and Fraud
The administration released a National Cyber Strategy aimed at keeping the United States unrivaled in cyberspace, outlining six policy pillars that stress AI deployment and reduced regulation. An accompanying Executive Order directs agencies to develop plans for dismantling transnational cybercrime...
Singapore: Smart Measures Strengthen Critical Network Resilience
Singapore’s Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) swiftly investigated recent mobile network disruptions affecting the nation’s largest telecom operator, Singtel. The outages, traced to mechanical faults and software challenges, were not cyber‑attacks and are being addressed through coordinated regulator‑provider actions. IMDA’s...
The Ocean’s Enforcement Gap
Governments worldwide have pledged to protect 30% of the ocean by 2030, yet many marine protected areas (MPAs) remain unenforced, limiting ecological gains. Research shows that visible, credible enforcement matters more than the sheer size of MPAs. New tools—satellite imagery,...
DHS CISO Departs After Driving AI, Risk-Based Security
Hemant Baidwan stepped down as the Department of Homeland Security’s CISO after a two‑year tenure focused on scaling secure artificial intelligence and accelerating zero‑trust adoption. Under his leadership, DHS transitioned from a compliance‑driven posture to a risk‑based cybersecurity model anchored...
KC-135 Crash in Iraq Spurs Calls for Communications Upgrades
On March 12, a KC-135 tanker crashed in western Iraq, killing six airmen, while a second tanker landed safely in Israel. The tragedy revived calls from former Air Mobility Command leaders to modernize the aging fleet’s communications, highlighting limited battlespace...
Xplore Asks for Pause on Decision for SpaceX Use of E-Band
Rural broadband provider Xplore has asked Canada’s Innovation, Science and Economic Development department (ISED) to pause approval of SpaceX’s request to use the 71‑76 GHz and 81‑86 GHz E‑band for satellite backhaul. Xplore argues that the World Radiocommunication Conference has not yet...
Tulsa Public Schools Proposal Seeks $105M for Technology
Tulsa Public Schools’ Proposition 3 seeks roughly $105 million from a $609 million bond to overhaul classroom technology, including $68.3 million to replace laptops and other devices. The district plans a five‑year refresh cycle, but inflation and tariffs have pushed costs up from the...
DOW’s Acquisition Overhaul: From Impenetrable Fortress to Innovation Magnet
The Pentagon is overhauling its acquisition system by replacing traditional program managers with Portfolio Acquisition Executives (PAEs) who oversee capability portfolios. A new Challenge‑Based Acquisition model will post problem statements on a unified marketplace, inviting commercial solutions through flexible contracting....
HHS Finalizes HIPAA Transaction Standard for Health Care Attachments
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services issued a final rule on March 20 establishing a uniform electronic format for health‑care claim attachments under HIPAA, along with mandatory electronic signature requirements. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services projects the...
Strategic Alliance Aims to Accelerate Federally Funded R&D Into Real-World Tech
The Federal Laboratory Consortium (FLC) has entered a three‑year strategic partnership with FedTech to close the gap between federally funded research and market‑ready products. The alliance will list patented lab technologies on the FLC Business portal and task FedTech with...
Virtual Power Plant Demonstration Sets up in Washington, D.C.
Ecosuite and Ecogy Energy have been chosen by the District of Columbia Public Service Commission for a five‑year pilot that tests virtual power plant (VPP) concepts on the city’s grid. The project will install Ecosuite’s open‑source software and edge compute...
CFTC and SEC Announce Memorandum of Understanding on Regulatory Harmonization
On March 11, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the Securities and Exchange Commission signed a memorandum of understanding to formalize coordination across their regulatory domains. The agreement creates a Joint Harmonization Initiative targeting product definitions, clearing and margin frameworks,...
Pendleton UAS Range and Gambit Partner to Deliver Red Force as aService for Counter UAS Testing and Training
Pendleton UAS Range and AI‑focused firm Gambit have teamed up to deliver a Red Force as a Service offering for counter‑UAS testing, validation, and operator training. The integrated capability creates realistic, coordinated multi‑aircraft threat scenarios within a controlled, FAA‑approved airspace,...
US and UK Teaming up to Destroy Underwater Drones
The U.S. Department of Defense’s Defense Innovation Unit has issued the Robotic Exclusion and Engagement Framework (REEF) solicitation, inviting commercial solutions to detect and neutralize underwater drones threatening ports and critical waterways. The program seeks AI‑driven sensor suites, sensor fusion,...
Liberia’s National ID Issuance Grinds to Halt over $1.7M Debt to Service Provider
Liberia’s national ID issuance has been stalled since June 2025 after the government failed to pay roughly $1.7 million owed to Techno Brain, the Kenyan firm that operates the country’s biometric registration system. The suspension follows a series of technical glitches,...
Taceo Network Enables ‘Private Shared State’ for Hosting Sensitive Parts of Workflow
Austrian startup Taceo has opened public access to its Taceo Network, a private execution layer that lets organizations run sensitive identity, biometric and payment logic on shared digital infrastructure without exposing raw data. The platform uses coSNARKs, a cryptographic tool...
Age Assurance a Baseline Requirement for AI in New White House Framework
The White House’s new National Policy Framework for Artificial Intelligence places child safety at the forefront, requiring every AI service likely to be accessed by minors to implement age‑assurance mechanisms. The policy defines age verification as a foundational, privacy‑preserving control...
Even AI-Free Agencies Should Be Standing Up the Data Foundation Now
Civilian agencies are urged to build AI‑ready data foundations before adopting generative or agentic models. The roadmap includes establishing data‑governance guardrails, deploying zero‑trust network segmentation, and upgrading hardware to GPU‑enabled servers with DDR5 RAM. Bandwidth must jump from legacy 1‑Gbps...
UPDATE: March 20, 2026 Deadline for Comments on GSA’s Proposed AI Clause Extended to April 3, 2026
On March 6, 2026 the General Services Administration issued a draft contract clause, GSAR 552.239‑7001, that would embed AI‑specific safeguarding requirements into GSA Schedule contracts. The comment deadline was extended from March 20 to April 3, 2026, and the clause will be considered...
Colorado’s Artificial Intelligence Law Could Be on the Chopping Block
Colorado Governor Jared Polis signed the state’s AI law (SB 24‑205) in 2025, but warned that its complex compliance regime could stifle innovation. The governor’s AI Policy Working Group has drafted a bill to roll back many employer obligations while preserving...
Virginia Presses To Reinstate Social Media Time Limits
Virginia Attorney General Jay Jones is urging the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals to lift a district‑court injunction that halted enforcement of a state law requiring social‑media platforms to verify users’ ages and limit minors under 16 to one hour...
Maryland’s Data Lead Reflects on Ongoing ‘Culture Shift’
Maryland has intensified data‑driven decision making under Governors Larry Hogan and Wes Moore, with Chief Data Officer Natalie Evans Harris describing a statewide "culture shift" toward breaking data silos. The state is building a centralized governance structure and an enterprise...
FAA Wants Feedback on UAS Airport and Droneport Integration
The Federal Aviation Administration has opened a public comment period, ending April 22, to gather input on how unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) should be incorporated into existing airports and emerging droneports. The request targets airports, operators, and other stakeholders to...
From Phoenix to Dayforce: Auditor General Warns of Risks
The Canadian federal government is replacing the troubled Phoenix payroll system with the Dayforce platform, a project now projected to cost more than $3 billion USD. An Auditor General report warns that slow simplification of pay rules has led to costly...
Conn. Lawmakers Push for EMS Response Time Transparency
Connecticut lawmakers are advancing SB 238, which would require the Department of Public Health to build an online dashboard that publicly displays EMS response times broken down by geography, call type, and time of day. Current EMS data is two years...
Japanese Operators Join Forces to Launch Emergency Roaming
Japan’s five major mobile carriers—NTT Docomo, KDDI, SoftBank, Rakuten and Okinawa Cellular—are launching a nationwide emergency roaming service called “Japan Roaming” on April 1, 2026. The service lets subscribers temporarily use another carrier’s 4G LTE network if their primary network is disrupted...
New Zealand to Enable Digital ID Credentials, Age Checks via Govt.nz App Wallet
New Zealand will embed a digital identity wallet into the existing Govt.nz app by the end of March 2026, allowing government and private entities to issue credentials directly to users’ phones. The first credential, the Kiwi Access Card, will replace...
Marshall Islands Advances Pacific Connect Cable Project
The National Telecommunications Authority of the Marshall Islands signed an agreement to join the Pacific Connect initiative, adding the Iokwe subsea fiber‑optic cable that will connect Majuro directly to Google’s Halaihai system. Backed by U.S. Trade and Development Agency funding,...
When Publishing Stops Being the Endpoint
Artificial intelligence is now the primary interpreter of local government information, exposing the fact that traditional publishing systems were built for human readers, not machines. Because agency authority, jurisdiction, and update recency are often implicit, AI models frequently misattribute guidance...
As Communities and Policymakers Push Back, Can Batteries Make Data Centers Better Neighbors?
Virginia’s legislature passed a bill that, starting in July, will block air‑quality permits for data centers unless their onsite generators meet federal Tier 4 emissions standards, reflecting growing community backlash over noise, pollution and water use. The measure, which originally required...
The Future of the CA Age-Appropriate Design Code Act- What Remains, What’s Still Open to Be Contested, and What Companies...
The California Age‑Appropriate Design Code Act (CAADCA) faces ongoing constitutional challenges after NetChoice’s lawsuits. In March 2026 the Ninth Circuit ruled that the law’s broad coverage definition and age‑estimation requirement likely survive facial challenges, but found data‑use and dark‑pattern provisions unconstitutionally...
'What We Do and Why We Do It': Pa. FD Launches Podcast to Boost Community Engagement
Valley Regional Fire & Rescue in Butler Township, Pennsylvania, launched a podcast called “116‑The Frequency” in November, hosted by Captain Kenny Cunningham and part‑time firefighter Jack Jones. The show aims to boost community engagement by sharing behind‑the‑scenes stories, answering resident...
Avaya Finds Louder Voice for Mission-Critical Comms Platform
Avaya has launched Nexus, a mission‑critical voice platform aimed at regulated sectors such as public safety, healthcare, financial services and defence. The solution promises always‑on resiliency, hardened security and cloud‑native flexibility, while exposing APIs for AI‑driven transcription, authentication and analytics....
OPINION: Why Good Data Matters More than AI in Transport
Australian transport leader ITS Australia argues that high‑quality, governed data is the true catalyst for AI‑driven improvements on roads. A national research project showed that integrating real‑time vehicle and bicycle data with traditional traffic feeds can predict conflicts, optimise signals...
BigID Achieves FedRAMP Certification Partnering with Knox Systems
BigID has earned FedRAMP authorization through a partnership with Knox Systems, allowing U.S. federal agencies to deploy its data discovery, classification, and AI‑governance platform under federal security standards. The certification validates BigID’s ability to protect CUI, PII, PHI and support...
Irish Government Launches CNI Resilience Plan
The Irish government unveiled a National Strategy on the Resilience of Critical Entities to meet the EU’s Critical Entities Resilience (CER) Directive, with implementation required by October 2026. The plan targets essential services such as digital infrastructure, water, energy, transport and...
HS2 Train Speeds Could Be Cut to Save Money
The UK government is asking HS2’s builder to evaluate lower operating speeds on the London‑Birmingham segment to curb spiralling costs. The high‑speed line, originally designed for 360 km/h, now faces a projected price tag of over £100 bn and a likely completion...
UIDAI Launches Bug Bounty Programme to Enhance Aadhaar Security
The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has launched a structured bug bounty program to harden the public‑facing components of the Aadhaar ecosystem. Twenty vetted ethical hackers will probe the UIDAI website, the myAadhaar portal and the Secure QR Code...
Phakamo Tech Champions Integrated GRC Approach at ITWeb Security Summit 2026
Phakamo Tech announced its sponsorship of the ITWeb Security Summit in Johannesburg, scheduled for 2‑3 June 2026, where it will present an integrated cyber security, governance and risk management (GRC) framework. The company argues that African organisations must align security controls...
Japanese City Taps Fujitsu for Public Transport Planning
Maebashi city selected Fujitsu's new traffic simulation system to design a regional public transport plan, aiming to optimise bus routes amid demographic shifts and driver shortages. The system, built for the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, can model...
Sci-Tech Ministry Sets Digital Roadmap in Motion
South Africa’s Department of Science, Technology and Innovation (DSTI) has outlined a digital transformation roadmap slated for the 2026/27 fiscal year, prioritising cloud computing, artificial intelligence and big data analytics. The plan integrates these technologies with existing systems while decommissioning...
ProPublica Adds Ownership Search to Nursing Home Inspect Database
ProPublica has upgraded its Nursing Home Inspect database with a searchable owner, manager, and officer function, letting users trace ownership across more than 14,000 facilities. The new tool reveals that a single individual can be linked to over 100 nursing...
An Integrated Approach to Waterways Safety Risk Assessment for the U.S. Coast Guard
RAND researchers examined the U.S. Coast Guard’s six waterways safety risk assessment tools and applied a tailored Risk Management Framework (RMF) to gauge their effectiveness. The analysis revealed that while each tool captures valuable hazard data, they operate largely in...
A Review of Coast Guard Waterways Safety Risk Assessment Tools
The U.S. Coast Guard evaluated six waterways safety risk assessment tools using a risk‑management framework, uncovering strengths in hazard identification but notable weaknesses in risk characterization, evaluation, and especially monitoring. The review found considerable overlap and duplication among tools, with...
When It Comes to Catastrophic Space Weather, the UK Is Holding a Cocktail Umbrella
The UK National Audit Office warned that the nation is ill‑prepared for a severe space‑weather event, despite improved forecasting from the Met Office. Recent solar storms have already displaced thousands of satellites, highlighting vulnerability. The government estimates a 5‑25 percent chance...
M-PESA Ethiopia Expands Into Tax Collection with Amhara Region Deal
M-PESA Ethiopia has signed an MoU with the Amhara Regional State Revenue Bureau, enabling the region’s 450,000+ taxpayers to settle taxes through the mobile money platform. The partnership makes Amhara the first Ethiopian region to integrate mobile payments into its...
Booz Allen’s Vellox Brings AI Vs. AI Defense to Protect Critical Infrastructure and National Security
Booz Allen Hamilton unveiled Vellox, an AI‑native cyber‑defense suite designed to counter AI‑driven attacks that now breach enterprises in minutes. The company’s threat report shows breach dwell time fell below 30 minutes in 2025, with some incidents resolved in seconds....
Ghana Card Now Central to Fighting MoMo Fraud
Ghana announced a new policy that will block any Ghana Card linked to multiple mobile‑money (MoMo) fraud cases, effectively cutting offenders off from telecom services and public digital platforms. The move follows a surge in fraud, with the Bank of...
Alausa Announces Plan to Scrap Common Entrance for Learner ID Tracking
Nigeria’s Minister of Education Tunji Alausa announced the phase‑out of the National Common Entrance Examination, replacing it with a continuous assessment model and a centralised Learner Identification Number (LIN) system. The reform targets the stark transition gap—23 million primary pupils versus...