Contracting Tips

Why computer passwords are still a problem in 2019

January 29, 2019 By cs

There was a recent article before the holiday break on the complexity of computer passwords. The top “worst” password for 2018 was “123456.” Close behind in second place was “password.” They were also in first and second place in 2017. Slightly more complex was “123456789,” in third place in 2018, with the one-character shorter version, “12345678” just behind in fourth place. You get the gist.

Passwords are one of the critical problems in cybersecurity today. They are too easy to guess. They are too easy to break. All a hacker needs is your user ID (say, e.g. notsodifficult@password.com) and he or she can be off to the races in a matter of minutes invading your employee email account. Likely he also will be able to raid many of your other online accounts (like shopping, online gaming and streaming video) because you thought your lame password was so tricky that it was worthy of reusing in your 10 other accounts. The technical term for what happens here is an account takeover. In this case times 10. Re-using a lame password is problem one.

Problem two is social media. We are enamored with sharing information with our family and friends. That is good. Unfortunately, we share too much: names, places you went on vacation, names of dogs and cats and other animals, even grandparents’ names and locations. That is all good, except when those same names of places and dogs show up in your password.

Keep reading this article at: https://www.nextgov.com/cybersecurity/2019/01/why-computer-passwords-are-still-problem-2019/154086/

Federal contractors may be able to recover costs caused by the government shutdown

January 25, 2019 By cs

The current government shutdown is now the longest in U.S. history, and many federal contractors are incurring costs as a result of shutdown-related work stoppages and delays. Luckily, many federal contracts contain clauses that provide a potential avenue for recovery of such costs. Further, there are practical steps that contractors can take to increase their chances of recovering shutdown-related costs from the government.

What contract clauses might apply?

Several Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) clauses, including the following ones, could provide contractors with an avenue to recover costs incurred as a result of shutdown-related delays or work stoppages:

FAR 52.242-14 (Suspension of Work)
FAR 52.242-15 (Stop Work Order)
FAR 52.242-17 (Government Delay of Work)
FAR 52.243-2 (Changes – Cost-Reimbursement)
FAR 52.243-3 (Changes – Time-and-Materials or Labor-Hours)

It is very important to note that these clauses generally impose very short timeframes in which a contractor must provide the government with notice and/or assert its right to an adjustment.

Keep reading this article at: https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/federal-contractors-may-be-able-to-53396/

The new rules of cybersecurity

January 24, 2019 By cs

At this very moment someone, somewhere in the world may be plotting to hack into an organization’s critical network infrastructure.

Creativity, time and investment are never in short supply when determined attackers are intent on gaining access to networks. It’s created an environment whereby solutions to prevent attacks are being developed just after new hacking tactics are deployed. To solve this divergence, we need to focus on “cyber at machine speed” — implementing new tools simultaneously with or even before hackers.

In short, getting the basics right is no longer enough. Adversaries now have the tools, the motivation and certainly the persistence to overcome current standards and compliance protocols.

Simply put, adequacy is no longer adequate.

Keep reading this article at: https://www.nextgov.com/ideas/2018/12/new-rules-cybersecurity/153714/

See GTPAC’s video, template and other resources designed to help contractors comply with the DoD/NIST cybersecurity rules at: http://gtpac.org/cybersecurity-training-video/

E-Verify procedures during the government shutdown

January 24, 2019 By cs

When the federal government partially shut down on December 22, 2018, so did E-Verify, the online system for verifying a new hire’s eligibility to work.

Employers that are obligated to or have chosen to use E-Verify have probably already received this message from the E-Verify website: “NOTICE: Due to the lapse in federal funding, this website will not be actively managed. E-Verify and E-Verify services are unavailable.”

But what does this notice actually mean for employers?

In a nutshell, the E-Verify system is completely unavailable.

Keep reading this article at: http://www.mondaq.com/article.asp?articleid=772996

Tips for federal contractors during a government shutdown

January 23, 2019 By cs

25 days and counting, the partial government shutdown has left many federal employees with an endless weekend and no paycheck.

While those workers grapple with the financial hardship and uncertainty as Congress and the Administration try to reconcile their differences, contractors working under a government contract may be forced to deal with their own issues.

Government contractors may feel the impact of the shutdown in three primary ways: 1) availability of funds, 2) financing performance of the contract, and 3) handling financial responsibility for an idle workforce.

Keep reading this article at: http://www.mondaq.com/article.asp?articleid=773342

See our earlier article on this subject at:

What to expect during a government shutdown: Submitting bids, getting paid, and more – https://gtpac.org/2018/12/31/what-to-expect-during-a-government-shutdown-submitting-bids-getting-paid-and-more/

Here’s how technology vendors can navigate the legislative branch

January 17, 2019 By cs

Congress can be a difficult place for technology vendors to do business.

The legislative branch’s “unique, fragmented and opaque rules” set a barrier to entry that can keep even vendors with experience in other areas of government out of the loop. But a new white paper from Future Congress aims to lay out the rules of the road for vendors and civic hackers who’d like to help Congress function better.

The paper gives a little information on everything from the governance structure of IT in the House and Senate to the acquisition rules and practices that govern the $288 million in IT spending Congress does each year.

Keep reading this article at: https://www.fedscoop.com/future-congress-tech-vendor-white-paper/

The Big R: Relationships remain the key to GovCon success

January 15, 2019 By cs

It is impossible to overstate the role of relationships in GovCon.

They are needed with customers and prospects, primes and subs, OEMs to channel, media, internal relationships within your company, and more.

Read Mark Amtower’s Washington Technology column here where he reminds himself that it is relationships that drive the government contracting marketplace: https://washingtontechnology.com/articles/2018/12/21/insights-amtower-power-of-r.aspx

LPTA solicitations no longer acceptable? Reviewing DoD’s proposed changes to the DFARS

January 7, 2019 By cs

In a proposed rule issued last month, the Department of Defense (DoD) seeks to incorporate into the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulations Supplement (DFARS) restrictions on the use of the lowest price technically acceptable (LPTA) source selection method from the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Years 2017 and 2018. This proposed rule makes clear that these NDAA-imposed restrictions are not going away any time soon, and that DoD contracting officers need to engage in a thorough and reasoned analysis before conducting an LPTA procurement.

Just as its name suggests, the LPTA source selection process prioritizes cost or price over technical capability — the agency will make award to the lowest-priced offeror that presents a technically acceptable proposal. Typically, agencies use the LPTA process to procure straightforward goods and services such as routine maintenance work or office equipment. In recent years, however, contractors have complained that agencies employ LPTA selection processes in inappropriate circumstances where qualitative differences really matter and technical superiority is worth a price premium.

Keep reading this article at: https://www.insidegovernmentcontracts.com/2018/12/lowest-price-technically-acceptable-solicitations-no-longer-acceptable-reviewing-department-defenses-proposed-changes-dfars/

DoD and other agencies seek to enhance contractors’ cyber and supply chain security

January 4, 2019 By cs

The Department of Defense (DoD) and its component services and agencies are taking several independent steps to assess and enhance their cyber and supply chain security that will directly or indirectly affect DoD contractors and subcontractors.

Other federal agencies, including the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Commerce, and General Services Administration (GSA), are also considering or implementing measures to enhance cyber and supply chain security that will directly or indirectly affect government contractors and their supply chains.

These initiatives will intensify scrutiny of government contractors and subcontractors, increase their cyber and supply chain security compliance requirements, and affect their ability to compete for, and win, government contracts. This article summarizes these initiatives and states our view that, despite the proposal and likely adoption of a comprehensive new Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) cybersecurity clause next year, federal government contractors and subcontractors are likely to face multiple, overlapping, and possibly conflicting cybersecurity and supply chain requirements for some time to come.

Keep reading this article at: http://www.mondaq.com/article.asp?articleid=767144

See GTPAC’s video, template and other resources designed to help contractors comply with the DoD/NIST cybersecurity rules at: http://gtpac.org/cybersecurity-training-video/

What to expect during a government shutdown: Submitting bids, getting paid, and more

December 31, 2018 By cs

Background

Federal agencies receive funding through a series of appropriations bills. A number of these bills — including those that fund the Department of Defense, the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Education — have been approved for the federal fiscal year that began October 1st. As a result, those agencies are not being affected by the partial shutdown of the federal government.

Agencies Affected

However, appropriations bills that support other agencies — including the Department of Homeland Security, the Justice Department, the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Transportation, the Department of Commerce, the State Department, the Interior Department, the Commerce Department, and the Department of Housing & Urban Development — have expired. These nine departments are directly affected by the shutdown, although some units within these departments remain open because they are funded by money that is not subject to congressional appropriations, or their services are deemed “essential,” or because they can operate with what is known as “carryover funding.”

The shutdown has special implications for federal contractors, including vendors competing for federal contracts. The contracting offices of the agencies affected by the shutdown may be closed. In some cases, these agencies have issued stop-work orders to their contractors. Listed below are details.

Should vendors submit bids during a government shutdown?

Here’s what the experts have to say: https://www.nextgov.com/cio-briefing/2018/12/should-vendors-submit-contract-bids-during-government-shutdown/153803/

Some government contractors could go unpaid even after the shutdown ends

How you might be affected: https://www.businessinsider.com/government-shutdown-2018-will-government-contractors-get-paid-2018-12

Employers can’t use E-Verify system during shutdown

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which oversees the E-Verify program, announced that the website www.e-verify.gov is not available to employers during the current partial government shutdown: http://www.mondaq.com/article.asp?articleid=769346

What vendors learned from the last government shutdown

Do you remember the three-day shutdown in Jan. 2018? Here are some lessons learned: http://www.mondaq.com/article.asp?articleid=666774

Signs point to extended shutdown with no deal emerging quickly

So far, little progress has been made in breaking the stalemate: https://www.nextgov.com/cio-briefing/2018/12/signs-point-extended-shutdown-no-deal-emerging/153824/