Virtualization can help admins meet growing user demands. But as networks become more complex and budgets and IT staffs are cut, automation also comes into play.
The ability to document the erasure of data from hard drives makes it easier for Santa Barbara County, Calif., to reuse computers rather than destroy them when it's time for replacement.
The standard for clearing drives by overwriting data comes from the Defense Department's National Industrial Security Program, which establishes requirements and limitations for the process.
The Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and North Carolina's Cumberland County Department of Social Services provide two different examples of using software to improve productivity.
Multiprotocol Label Switching offers the promise of bigger, cheaper pipes for law enforcement agencies that are increasingly making data available to officers in the field.
It's hard to argue against the benefits of a virtual environment, but ignoring the "hair raising" implications for security is asking for trouble, says information security specialist Bill Phillips of the National Law Enforcement Telecommunications System.
The Air Force is halfway through a massive project to outline relationships among its business systems, and a modeling tool has made life much easier for the unit in charge of the effort.
A proposed Uniform Military and Overseas Voters Act for states would ensure that electronic access to ballots now guaranteed for absentee voters in federal elections also would be extended to state and local races.
Overseas and military voters now have electronic options for applying for and receiving absentee ballots for the 2010 federal election.
Responders in disaster areas are relying on mobile satellite connections more frequently for IP data connections than for voice.
A CAC-enabled mobile access device could provide secure remote connections from any computer to resources inside the Navy network for Reserve personnel not on active duty.
Telework remains a goal of most agencies. But a combination of technology, employee expectations and legislation can help make it a reality.
The technology is available to enable secure, efficient access for remote working emergencies and day-to-day operations, but planning ahead is critical. Two agencies show that it can be done.
Java should be considered a top software security threat, even more so than Adobe PDF files, according to Microsoft's announcement issued today.
Microsoft's chief software architect Ray Ozzie is stepping down from his role and will retire, the company announced late Monday.