Consultation Questions, Companies House Incident Highlight UK IDV Industry’s Fears
The UK government’s consultation on a national digital identity system omits private Digital Verification Service (DVS) providers, prompting the Association of Digital Verification Professionals (ADVP) to warn of data‑ownership and market‑distortion concerns. Simultaneously, a security breach at Companies House exposed five million directors’ identities, highlighting risks of government‑run verification and the cost‑free model that sidelines private firms. ADVP urges the consultation to treat identity as personal property and to recognize existing DVS solutions. The incident underscores urgency for transparent governance and robust digital‑ID architecture.
Calif. Sheriff's Department to Answer Non-Emergency Calls with AI
The San Diego County Sheriff’s Office launched an AI‑driven system to field non‑emergency calls, routing callers to the appropriate service without tying up 911 dispatchers. The pilot diverted about 20% of roughly 400,000 annual non‑emergency calls, cutting average hold time...
Winning Hearts and Minds: Ensuring Adoption of OPM’s HR 2.0 Initiative
The Office of Personnel Management’s HR 2.0 platform is the most ambitious federal HR‑IT overhaul in decades, but its success depends on more than technology. OPM must adopt a human‑centered change strategy that tackles agency anxiety, loss of flexibility, and fear...
Leaked Records and Smart Glasses Expose DHS Surveillance Drift
The Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Industry Partnerships (OIP) has formalized a pipeline that awarded over 1,400 contracts worth $845 million to more than 6,800 firms for AI‑driven biometric and video‑analysis tools. Leaked records show projects ranging from smartphone‑based fingerprint...
CMS Announces Centralized Platform for Managing Independent Dispute Resolution Operations
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announced a new centralized platform, the IDR Gateway, to manage independent dispute resolution (IDR) operations under the No Surprises Act. The system will replace the current single‑use web forms, allowing users to initiate...
As HHS Looks to Speed up AI in Clinical Care, the Big Questions Are Burden, Trust and What Comes Next
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has closed a major request for information (RFI) to gather public input on speeding AI adoption in clinical care. The initiative follows the OMB’s AI guidance and HHS’s own AI Strategy,...
US Committee Demands Big Tech Share Private Comms with EU Officials
The U.S. House Judiciary Committee sent letters to ten major tech firms, demanding they preserve and produce all communications with European Commission officials related to the EU Digital Services Act, including auto‑deleting messages. The subpoena, issued in February, targets companies...
When Disaster Strikes, Census Data Can Help Show Who Is in Harm’s Way
The U.S. Census Bureau upgraded its OnTheMap for Emergency Management tool (v4.26.1), adding the latest 2020‑2024 American Community Survey five‑year estimates and 2023 LEHD Origin‑Destination data. The platform now overlays disaster‑event boundaries with up‑to‑date population, housing, and workforce information, letting...
How Trump Drove a Wedge Between Florida Republicans Over A.I.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis championed an AI Bill of Rights that would require disclosures and ban AI in mental‑health counseling, but the measure stalled as the Florida House declined to act. President Donald Trump publicly opposed state-level AI regulation, urging...
DOD's New CIO Headlines Our First Power Breakfast of 2026
The Department of Defense introduced its new chief information officer, Kirsten Davies, at the inaugural Power Breakfast of 2026. Davies outlined a roadmap for IT transformation, cyber resilience, and aligning the CIO office with the Pentagon’s “Arsenal of Freedom” strategy,...
Congress Reauthorized the Technology Modernization Fund Through the Fiscal Year. Why that Matters and What’s Next
Congress reauthorized the Technology Modernization Fund (TMF) through September 30, 2026, allowing the board to keep selecting high‑impact federal IT projects. The fund operates as a revolving vehicle, requiring agencies to repay investments so the same dollars can finance future...
Florida Lawmakers Target ADS-B Use For Landing Fees
Florida lawmakers approved CS/CS/SB 422, prohibiting airports from using ADS‑B surveillance data to calculate landing fees or related charges for Part 91 aircraft weighing 12,499 pounds or less. The bill, cleared by both chambers, heads to Governor Ron DeSantis and would...
Sonoma Valley Schools Approve Specific Rules for AI Use
The Sonoma Valley Unified School District Board unanimously approved a comprehensive artificial‑intelligence policy that outlines expectations, guardrails, and nine guiding principles for students, staff, vendors and volunteers. The policy emphasizes ethical, transparent use, equitable access, and the need for security,...
DHS Chooses Small Biz for $178M Enterprise IT Contract
The Department of Homeland Security awarded a potential ten‑year, $178.6 million task order to Netizen, a service‑disabled veteran‑owned small business, for enterprise IT delivery and operations support to the Federal Law Enforcement Training Centers. The contract covers service‑desk functions, Microsoft 365 deployment,...
PHX To Offer Enhanced Passenger Processing
Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport announced the rollout of Enhanced Passenger Processing for U.S. citizens arriving on international flights. The system, developed with U.S. Customs and Border Protection, uses photo‑matching technology to accelerate the CBP inspection process. Airport officials highlighted...
Fort Bragg Fiber Deployment Sees Delays, Higher Costs
Fort Bragg, California’s municipal fiber project has encountered significant setbacks after the city dismissed its original construction‑management partner, GHD. The budget has ballooned from an initial $14.7 million to $18.9 million, driven by added fiber‑flower‑pot enclosures and street‑restoration costs. Direct city oversight...
Pakistan Upholds Legal Acceptance of Digital ID with Official Guidance
Pakistan’s National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) has issued official guidance confirming that its digital identity credentials, including the Pak ID, are legally equivalent to physical CNICs. Under the NADRA Digital Identity Regulations 2025, public authorities and service providers are...
Government IT Efficiency Starts With Rethinking Code, Infrastructure and the Edge
State and local governments can boost IT efficiency by overhauling three pillars: legacy code, infrastructure spending, and edge computing. Outdated, siloed applications inflate maintenance budgets, while open‑source and platform consolidation can slash costs and improve citizen services. Flexible cloud governance...
AI Is Causing a Power and Cooling Headache for Agencies
The latest NVIDIA AI processors are forcing federal agencies to confront unprecedented power and cooling requirements. Agencies must secure trusted partners or conduct assessments to size generators, UPS systems, and transfer switches, while private‑sector spenders are willing to invest over...
How to Help Tech Cross the Valley of Death
Leslie Beavers, former Deputy CIO of the Department of Defense, now leads LB Insights to guide firms through the “valley of death” that separates tech innovation from operational deployment. At the Pentagon she helped launch digital modernization programs such as...
New Texas Cyber Command Looks to ‘Bind the State Together’
Gov. Greg Abbott signed legislation creating Texas Cyber Command, which officially launched in September 2025 and is housed at the University of Texas at San Antonio. Led by Ret. Admiral TJ White, the command is legally required to build an...
Internet Goes Down in Congo in Time for the Election
Internet monitoring group NetBlocks reported a nation‑scale outage in the Republic of Congo coinciding with the presidential election, echoing a similar three‑day blackout in 2021. The shutdown occurred despite the telecom regulator ARPCE’s recent directives urging service continuity and resilience....
GeoComm Launches Service to Accelerate GIS Indoor Mapping
GeoComm unveiled Conversion Services, a new offering that accelerates the creation of indoor GIS maps by more than 50%, turning PDFs and other legacy floor plans into dynamic, data‑rich layers. The service targets 911 centers, public‑safety agencies, and municipal GIS...
L3Harris Unveils P25 Device with 5G, Satellite D2D Functionality
L3Harris introduced the XL‑300P, a redesigned P25 handheld that adds a built‑in LTE‑5G modem and satellite direct‑to‑device (NTN) capability. The device can switch among P25, Wi‑Fi, commercial LTE bands—including Band 106—and T‑Mobile’s Starlink‑backed satellite service, with an AI‑driven selector that chooses...
Nigerian Fintech Duplo Gets Licenced for E-Invoicing and Tax Transmission
Duplo, a Nigerian B2B payments platform, secured Systems Integrator and Access Point Provider licences from the Nigeria Revenue Service. The dual licences let the company generate NRS‑compliant e‑invoices, transmit them automatically, and settle payments within its platform. Nigeria’s digital tax...
Imminent Access to Work Legacy Upgrade Will Help ‘Avoid Problems’, Says DWP Chief
The Department for Work and Pensions will replace the 30‑year‑old case‑management platform that underpins Access to Work with a modern, integrated system in June. The upgrade is designed to connect three existing modules, eliminate re‑keying, and improve data collection, aiming...
Top ICT Tenders: IEC Moves to Increase Stakeholder Interaction
The Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) has issued two high‑profile ICT tenders ahead of the 2026 local elections. The first calls for a complete redevelopment of its public mobile app, citing an obsolete framework, security flaws and the need for better...
Report Urges Congressional Action to Support AI Adoption Across Federal Agencies
A new report by the Partnership for Public Service and Inclusive Abundance urges Congress to act to accelerate AI adoption across federal agencies. It finds that workforce gaps, talent shortages, fragmented communication, and legacy IT systems are slowing progress. The...
Liberian Registry to Introduce Electronic Seafarer Documents
The Liberian Registry, the world’s largest ship registry, announced the rollout of electronic seafarer documents. The new system, featuring QR‑coded digital certificates and the SEA360 mobile app, will complement existing hard‑copy paperwork while enabling faster, secure verification. Integrated into the...
Europe’s New Biometric Border System to Enhance Entry Controls From April 2026
From 10 April 2026 the EU’s Entry/Exit System (EES) will replace passport stamps with an automated biometric registration for non‑EU visitors across all 29 Schengen states. The system captures facial images and fingerprints, linking them to passport data to create a digital...
New Central Digital Procurement Hub Has Delivered 11% Savings on Devices
The UK government launched the Digital Commercial Centre of Excellence (DCCOE) last year to centralise technology and digital services procurement across departments. Staffed by about 24 officials, the hub has already delivered roughly an 11% cost reduction on a large‑scale...
West Sussex's Oracle Rollout Pushed Back Again as Costs Balloon 15 Times
West Sussex County Council has pushed the Oracle Fusion HR and payroll rollout to October 2026, marking a five‑year delay and a cost explosion from the original £2.6 million estimate to roughly £41 million. The project, intended to replace an aging SAP system...
Sidebrief, Diligence Africa and Impact Hub Launch ‘Signal’ a Quarterly Event Series Bridging Founders, Investors and Regulators in Africa’s Startup...
Sidebrief, a regulatory‑tech platform, has launched Signal, a quarterly event series co‑hosted with Diligence Africa and Impact Hub Lagos. The inaugural edition will take place on March 27, 2026, at Impact Hub Lagos and features 20 speakers across five moderated...
Senate OKs Bill Requiring Law Enforcers to Wear Body Cameras
The Philippine Senate passed the Law Enforcement Body‑worn Camera Act, mandating police, NBI, BJMP and PDEA officers to wear cameras that meet 1080p, audio, GPS and timestamp standards, with heavy penalties for non‑compliance. The measure aims to boost transparency and...
Baltimore Names TJ Mayotte as New CIO
Baltimore announced TJ Mayotte as its new Chief Information Officer, taking charge of the city’s Information Technology Office. Mayotte arrives with more than two decades of government technology and cybersecurity leadership, most recently serving as CIO for Howard County with...
Long Beach Tech Leader Eriksen Joins Culver City
Lea Eriksen, Long Beach’s technology director since 2014, will depart next month to become Senior Assistant City Manager in Culver City. During her tenure, the Department of Technology and Innovation grew to nearly 200 staff, managed a $90 million annual budget,...
UK Government Unveils Gigabit Broadband Upgrade Tracker
The UK government has launched an online address checker that lets businesses and households verify whether they are slated for a gigabit broadband upgrade under the Project Gigabit scheme. The programme, funded with £5 billion, now brings gigabit‑capable service to more than...
Tinubu’s NIN Initiative Drives Rural Inclusion, Security – Amgbare
President Bola Tinubu has ordered a community‑driven rollout of National Identification Number (NIN) registration to reach Nigeria’s 774 local government areas, focusing on rural and underserved communities. The Niger Delta Basin Development Authority’s CEO, Ebitimi Amgbare, highlighted that the decentralized,...
Cape Town Intensifies CCTV Rollout
The City of Cape Town’s Strategic Surveillance Unit has expanded its CCTV network to over 1,200 cameras, with 85% of installations completed by mid‑February and a R14.4 million investment this fiscal year. New cameras were deployed in high‑crime suburbs such as...
Why the Federal Government Is Going After California's AI Laws
President Donald Trump signed an executive order threatening legal and financial pressure on states with what he calls “burdensome” AI regulations, singling out California’s Transparency in Frontier Artificial Intelligence Act (SB 53). SB 53, effective January 2026, obliges large developers of frontier AI...
Government to Set Taxi Fares for Bolt, Uber in Kenya
Kenya’s government plans to introduce a national taxi pricing model that will mandate standardized fares for ride‑hailing platforms such as Uber and Bolt. The policy seeks to curb aggressive price wars and provide drivers with more predictable earnings while potentially...
Revealed: How HMRC Has Been Quietly Building Surveillance Capabilities
HMRC has quietly built a mobile‑phone surveillance capability, signing a 2021 contract with Cellxion for IMSI‑catcher equipment worth £330,460 and later paying £102,000 for software licences. The tax authority uses the gear, installed in vehicles by Sonic Communications, to locate...
Home Office Renames Digital, Data and Tech Division
The Home Office has renamed its Digital, Data and Technology division to Home Office Digital, signalling a shift from a support function to a core operational pillar. Chief Digital, Data and Technology Officer Rob Thompson highlighted milestones such as 48‑hour...
User Feedback Helps StatsWales to Evolve
Six months after its autumn launch, Wales' new StatsWales open data service has rolled out a suite of user‑driven enhancements. A searchable interface and refined filtering now let users locate and slice datasets faster, while the previous limit on simultaneous...
Victoria’s Train-Goers Test Accessible ‘Tap and Go’ Tech
Victoria’s public‑transport authority is piloting a contactless “tap and go” ticketing system on its City Loop, Craigieburn, Upfield, Ballarat and Seymour train lines. Full‑fare passengers can tap on and off using Mastercard, Visa, smartphones or smartwatches, eliminating the need for...
Scindia Launches First Integrated Phygital Service Centre in MP's Guna District
Union Telecom Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia inaugurated India’s first integrated phygital service centre in Umri village, Guna district, Madhya Pradesh. The Samriddh Gram Phygital Services Pilot combines healthcare, education, agriculture, financial and e‑governance services under one roof, powered by BharatNet’s high‑speed...
Thailand to Digitally Consolidate National Disease Surveillance System
Thailand’s Department of Disease Control has signed an MoU with the National Science and Technology Development Agency to digitally consolidate the nation’s disease surveillance system. The partnership will build big‑data, AI‑driven platforms and strengthen personnel capabilities to shift from reactive...
When Efficiency Becomes Fragility: Hyperscalers and the Next Frontier of National Security
The article argues that hyperscale cloud providers and frontier AI firms are evolving from mere vendors into critical components of national security infrastructure. By storing intelligence, processing operational data, and delivering high‑performance computing, they enable modern defence and critical‑infrastructure missions...
Malaysia: New Risk Policy Ensures Digital Payment Resilience
Bank Negara Malaysia has issued a new Technology Risk Management Policy for payment service providers, consolidating existing tech‑related requirements into a single framework. The policy introduces a tiered, proportional approach that aligns security and resilience obligations with the size and...
Vietnam: Digital Tech Strengthens Election Information Management
Vietnam is expanding digital technologies across all stages of election management to deliver information quickly, accurately, and securely. Chairman Tran Thanh Man highlighted how real‑time monitoring, automated verification, and integrated voter databases improve coordination between central and local authorities. The rollout...