New York

A paper trail involving multiple banks and “mules” to funnel money has emerged after more than 100 days. The December incident involved a vendor impersonation, and payments made to a fraudulent account.

Following a shutdown to upgrade technology earlier this year, the New York Department of Motor Vehicles continues to address system issues and delays, to ensure it is functioning as intended.

Gov. Kathy Hochul’s proposed budget calls for an expansion of SUNY Reconnect, a program that offers free college to adult New Yorkers in fields like cybersecurity and digital forensics, environmental science and nursing.

New York is scaling statewide employee AI training with InnovateUS, after 75 percent of participants in a pilot reported saving time using one AI training tool, and 86 percent wanted to continue.

A year after New York state passed a law mandating fully electric school bus fleets by 2035, school district leaders are worried about infrastructure and energy costs, battery capacity and physical limitations.

The program, designed for water and wastewater systems, builds upon plans released last year by Gov. Kathy Hochul. The move comes amid increasing worries about cyber attacks linked to the ongoing and widening war in Iran.

SLICFiber, based in the state’s northernmost county, will build out a fiber optic network across nearly all of the north country. The company now has about 4,500 miles of fiber-optic laid in the region.

Colin Ahern takes over as the state’s first director of security and intelligence. He brings two decades of Army, private-sector and public agency experience to the new job, which focuses on high-level risks.

To guard against phishing-based ransomware attacks, the state is outfitting 161 of its jurisdictions and other public-sector organizations with hardware-based protection. And it's not alone.

Various State University of New York schools are working with University at Albany, Binghamton University, University at Buffalo and Stony Brook University on AI programming and research for students and faculty.

After a phishing incident in December initially cost Warren County over $3.3 million, officials may soon pass a thorough computer use policy for county employees that will touch on related issues.

Among the recommendations from last year’s audit was creating a high-level management role to oversee tech. The city’s inaugural CIO is its now-former director of digital services.

Siwei Lyu, a computer science professor and expert on AI-generated media like deepfakes, will lead the University at Buffalo's Institute for Artificial Intelligence and Data Science.

The appointment of Eleonore Fournier-Tombs as chief AI officer and Stephen Graham as chief digital officer signals a more coordinated approach to AI, tech policy and public services as leadership roles evolve.

The new unit, part of the Office of Information Technology Services’ statewide strategy, will focus on New York State Police’s specific needs while preserving shared IT services like AI and information security.

New York state Gov. Kathy Hochul signed new legislation on Friday — the RAISE Act — that creates safety requirements for AI developers and establishes a new oversight entity, which will issue annual reports.

New York state's policy banning students from having personal devices during the school day have led to improved concentration among students, though some parents have expressed concerns.

The renewal of a state grant program for local public agencies focuses on cybersecurity and other areas that involve gov tech. Officials encourage governments to partner on projects that could receive funding.