Acquisition

Agencies issue rule to ban TikTok on contractor devices 

The interim rule amends the Federal Acquisition Regulation to include a ban on the use of TikTok by government contractors and vendors. 

  • By Edward Graham

Agencies launch initiative to better identify minority-owned contractors

The joint effort between the Small Business Administration and the General Services Administration aims to make it easier for federal procurement officials to connect with small, disadvantaged businesses across sectors.

  • By Chris Riotta

CIO-SP4 protests move toward final decision

No action appears likely to resolve the 130-plus protests involving this $50 billion IT vehicle, which indicates the Government Accountability Office will decide on the contract's next steps.

  • By Nick Wakeman

DOJ tees up infrastructure program management recompete

The Justice Department is conducting market research for a potential $75 million recompete contract to provide enterprise infrastructure services support within the CIO's office.

  • By Carten Cordell

GDIT launches tech strategy focused on 'accelerators'

The company is investing in its labs, employees and partnerships as it focuses on technologies such as zero trust, automation, cloud, software, 5G and artificial intelligence.

  • By Nick Wakeman

Google Public Sector names new board of directors

Dave Goldfein, retired general and former Air Force chief of staff, will serve as the board’s chairman, alongside professionals with backgrounds in defense and intelligence, technology, education, health care and state and local government.

  • By Frank Konkel

VA seeks cyber operations help

The Department of Veterans Affairs is looking for capabilities ranging from cyber incident response and cloud threat detection to insider threat analysis to support its security operations center in a new market research request.

  • By Carten Cordell

What's going on with DHS' enterprise cloud plan?

The Department of Homeland Security teased its plan for a 10-year enterprise cloud contract in the fall and then went relatively quiet. Based on previous cloud procurements, that could be a good thing.

  • By Carten Cordell

DHS wants software to manage biometrics system requirements

The department is asking for market research on new tools that can help it manage, define and engineer multiple systems requirements across its biometrics identity system.

  • By Carten Cordell

GSA tools flag diverse suppliers for procurement officials

Two new online tools give agency buyers a look at diverse vendors and reports on access by new entrants to the federal market.

  • By Adam Mazmanian

Army wants help with safeguarding datasets for AI use

The military service is preparing for a report on how to secure the datasets used with the emerging technologies and called for a range of collaboration in a new request.

  • By Carten Cordell

NITAAC extends CIO-SP3 contracts amid protests of follow-on vehicle

The extension is intended to give NIH’s governmentwide acquisition program enough time to work through more than 100 remaining active bid protests against the 10-year, $50 billion CIO-SP4 contract vehicle.

  • By Chris Riotta

The Pentagon wants to peer inside its cloud providers’ infrastructure

Recent leaks have the CIO’s office contemplating red teams and more IP scanning.

  • By Lauren C. Williams

Space Force focusing on innovative procurement methods for commercial software

The Space Force is leaning on rapid prototyping and new software pathways to keep up with the commercial sector and its growing suite of software and services for space, according to a top official. 

  • By Chris Riotta
Featured eBooks

Watchdog dings GSA’s transactional data reporting pilot

According to the agency’s Inspector General, GSA performed an inaccurate evaluation of the program when it deemed TDR a success, but in actuality, the data is unusable.

  • By Kirsten Errick

6 major multibillion dollar tech procurements to watch in 2023

Contracts range in potential estimated value from $5 billion to $100 billion, according to government spending data and Deltek analysis.

  • By Frank Konkel

DARPA looking for flaws in business systems

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency wants to better understand what leads to breakdowns in these systems.

  • By Nick Wakeman

TSA wants automated ID verification, ML detection algorithms at security gates

A new market research request has the agency exploring automated capabilities for its airport security screening technology.

  • By Carten Cordell

Report highlights procurement innovation hubs that may help achieve White House equity goals

A new Partnership for Public Service report identified specific case studies across the federal procurement community that modeled collaboration and could advance White House policies on equity, sustainability and modernization.

  • By Chris Riotta

GAO says Army procurement plans to replace aging helicopter fleet don’t have credible cost estimates

A new report highlights critical acquisition risks associated with the U.S. Army's plans to deploy next-generation helicopters, potentially threatening its plan to deliver the aircraft on schedule.

  • By Chris Riotta

GAO wants Air Force, Navy plans for directed energy weapons to transition the ‘valley of death’

A new report calls for the armed services to detail how they plan to shift directed energy weapons from prototypes to programs of record. 

  • By Carten Cordell