Local Government

Twilio, a services provider with public- and private-sector clients, says some customers’ data was breached after employees fell for social engineering ploys. The firm hasn’t shared if government clients were impacted.

Following the recent retirement of Heath Douglas who served as the city of Round Rock’s CIO for over two decades, Ramsey Saad has been tapped to lead the city’s Information Technology Department.

Cities, especially those in fire-prone areas, are increasingly exploring tech-based alternatives to traditional fireworks shows. While not everyone is a fan of the switch, officials are discovering unexpected benefits.

After several years of pushing, the Phoenix Fire Department has officially launched its unmanned aircraft systems program, laying the policy and best practices groundwork for other city departments to follow suit.

Since pausing expansion efforts in 2016, Google Fiber has slowly resumed adding new cities and even has plans to add some more this year. But why did it pause, and which cities will get the high-speed service next?

According to county officials, nearly 85 percent of the county has access to high-speed Internet service, though areas with no business base are not afforded the same access. New federal and state funds will help close that gap.

Across the United States, many local governments and states — as well as private companies — are discovering their cyber insurance premiums have skyrocketed and that they must meet stricter guidelines

Residents in the Southern California city will get to experience an underground stormwater project in an augmented reality experience designed to give them a better understanding of both the project and area.

The threat is fast, frequent and international. Keeping up may take stronger cross-border public-private partnerships, improved reporting rules, a higher national cybersecurity baseline and cryptocurrency payment disruptions.

The newly announced Equity Through Data and Privacy Program in San Jose, Calif., will use government data and analytics to better serve residents through an equity-based, accountability-driven approach.

Lorain, Ohio, will roll out software it hopes will help it and residents fight the never-ending war against problems like potholes, long grass and the neighbor who wants to store a rusting old vehicle in their backyard.

A new tool is giving residents access to the policing data regarding use of force and other incidents. According to officials, the department is the first law enforcement agency in Macomb County to provide such information.

The Bellingham Public Library reported that a “limited number” of patrons were impacted by the recent cyber attack against the Whatcom County Library System. Officials say 735 patrons were affected.

Two recent department website redesigns — the San Diego Police Department and Homelessness Strategies and Solutions Department — were aimed at improving the user experience and access to critical service information.

Attackers who penetrate an organization can evade detection by using the victims’ own cloud-based services to conduct their data exfiltration and malware downloads. This is the latest evolution of living off the land attacks.

Texas-based Ryan, which sells tax services and software, is beefing up its government business while also making a bigger play for the Canadian market. The deal follows a similar acquisition in late 2021.

The controversial proposal to allow the Dayton Police Department to use license plate-reading technology was approved by a narrow margin this week. Opponents of the tech cite privacy as a main concern.

The town of Frederick, Colo., is currently investigating claims about a breach in their network. Officials are working with digital forensics experts to determine exactly if and how the community might be impacted.