State Government

Staff at various Louisiana government agencies are returning to the office, but their perspective and toolset have changed. They’ve learned new communication tech and experienced a different kind of work-life balance.

Preparing against ransomware means getting response plans and contracts in place early, drilling, making — and monitoring — critical backups and, of course, convincing leadership to fund it all, experts say.

A cybersecurity company that searches for weaknesses was able to obtain the personal information of about 750,000 Indiana residents who took a contact tracing survey. The company destroyed the data eventually.

Florida’s unemployment insurance system had made strides to keep up with the number of jobless claims, but the progress has taken a significant hit now that hackers have stolen data and targeted the system.

State and local officials are giving residents the ability to map and submit redistricting proposals online, to better gather feedback and provide the sort of transparency that could reduce gerrymandering fears.

Thirty-one California Democrats have written a letter to U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, explaining that firefighters’ lives could be in jeopardy if the Defense Department discontinues a wildfire monitoring program.

North Carolina's elections director told state congressmen that the state's elections system needs better security and enough staff to make improvements. The House's budget, however, didn't address these concerns.

Starting next month, Texas businesses and government entities will no longer contract with companies from China, Russia, North Korea and Iran as a preventative measure to protect the state's critical infrastructure.

The funding is among the latest signs of growth for government-centric subscription software. Esper’s platform allows a single collaboration point for policymakers, potentially removing friction from the process.

Co-chairs Tom Kealey and Zach Tudor explain how the Idaho Cybersecurity Task Force will gather a holistic view of the state’s cybersecurity resources and needs to inform its recommendations to the governor in early 2022.

Chris Carr, attorney general of Georgia, has sided with a large coalition of attorneys general across the country. The group wants the Federal Communications Commission to take quicker action on illegal robocalls.

According to the Delaware Department of Labor, more than 60 percent of its reported unemployment insurance fraud cases have occurred over the last three months. This activity has delayed payments for legitimate claims.

A new study rejects the idea that provider networks held up quite well for Americans during the pandemic. This research, as well as state broadband leaders, think upload speeds must be better for America’s future.

A new training guide aims to help local, state and federal employees chart the way to cybersecurity roles and skill development resources, while a new entity will coordinate cyber defense across all levels of government.

Last month, a dozen prisoners at the state penitentiary in Bismark, N.D., began taking tech training classes as part of a new program. The program is funded by a $250,000 Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act grant.

This week, the Texas comptroller announced the creation of a Broadband Development Office, which will help the state in its effort to bring broadband access to unserved and underserved areas.

Businesses in the state could soon avoid punitive damages if their personal or restricted information becomes compromised. However, this protection only works if businesses meet certain cybersecurity standards.

Digital licenses and IDs are currently being tested before being rolled out to the public later this year. Once released, users will be able to share their app-based ID with law enforcement and participating retailers.