Government Technology

The world has been questioning whether the public sector is forcing a secure smartphone revolution ever since Edward Snowden, ex-National Security Agency contractor, leaked documents exposing the organization's spying program.

Global paranoia over America's aggressive surveillance has prompted companies to ramp up the development of cryptophones, which are smartphones designed specifically for secure, hack-proof communications.

Social media has been a remarkable tool over the last several years, enabling friends and family members to connect and stay in touch.

But for all the benefits sites like Facebook can provide, they’ve also become privacy landmines for those people who want separate professional and personal lives.

Employers have been pushing employees for access to their social media accounts for years, raising a number of legal concerns. While an employee or prospective hire could decline such a request, a denial may potentially cost someone their job. And if permission is given, who’s to say that a photo shared between “friends” doesn’t influence a boss’ opinion of someone?

As a result, many states are now banning private- and public-sector employers from making compliance with social media password requests necessary. Louisiana may become the latest state to outlaw the practice.

The Louisiana House of Representatives unanimously voted in favor of the Personal Online Account Privacy Protection Act. Also known as HB 340, the measure prohibits employers from demanding online account access as a condition of employment, both before and after a person is hired. In addition, the bill forbids K-12 and post-secondary schools from disciplining those students that don’t provide access to their accounts.

The practice of telehealth has increased in recent years as physicians and patients have become more comfortable meeting through video conferencing and other digital means. But as electronic health practices have grown, so have the legal and financial complexities that come with them. A number of bills have been introduced recently to address those issues and encourage adoption of telemedicine methods as a way to meet the rising demand for routine medical services.

1. On the federal level, H.R. 3077, the TELE-MED Act of 2013 would enable certain Medicare providers licensed in a state to provide telemedicine services to Medicare beneficiaries in a different state. If the bill passes, it would help expand telemedicine opportunities for some people who live near state borders. Sponsored by Rep Devin Nunes, (R-CA), the bill currently sits in the US House of Representatives Subcommittee on Health.
2. H.R. 3306, the Telehealth Enhancement Act of 2013, authorizes changes to federal law that make it easier for hospitals and patients to pay for and use telehealth services.
3. Rep Mike Thompson (D-CA), has circulated a draft of a bill that would require Medicaid programs to reimburse for telehealth services that are included under state plans. The bill has not been formally introduced yet.
4. House Bill 1158 in New Hampshire. The American Telemedicine Association described the legislation as something that will require managed care plans to offer financial incentives to beneficiaries who use less expensive services, such as telemedicine.
5. California Assemblyman V. Manuel Pérez is sponsoring AB 1771, a bill that would require health insurance companies to reimburse physicians for phone and electronic patient visits. If the measure becomes law, it could potentially benefit doctors in rural areas where the number of patients greatly outnumbers available physicians.

[Commentary] Remember Adelphia Cable? How about Susquehanna Communications? Or Renaissance Media? Maybe TCI rings a bell?

These largely forgotten cable company names are part of what was once a broad and diversified cable TV industry, with more than 40 players.

Today, there are four big players dominating the market: Comcast, Time Warner, Charter and Cox. And soon we may be down to just three. In March, Comcast announced it would buy Time Warner Cable.

The US Department of Justice and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will review the proposed merger, which many object to because they say it will create something close to a monopoly in cable service. But the biggest losers if the merger goes through may be cities and towns, who will lose the ability to create high-quality, low-cost, publicly owned broadband services for their citizens.

Partially thanks to Comcast and other cable giant's lobbying, 19 states have already passed laws that ban or restrict local communities from setting up publicly owned alternatives to the dominant provider in the area. Municipalities that pursue publicly owned broadband often cite several reasons for their efforts, ranging from lack of competition and choices in the area to a desire for faster speeds at lower costs.

An experiment using tablet devices to display city council agendas has sparked a paperless office movement and progressive technology policy-making in Rancho Cordova (CA).

Under a new policy launched in July, if an employee can show three business reasons why a tablet would help improve work efficiency, the city will purchase either an iPad or Android tablet for him or her.

The device is then authorized for both business and personal use, but the employee must agree to bring it to work every day. The policy has been a success for the city so far.

Jay Hadley, IT manager for Rancho Cordova, told Government Technology that 61 of the city's 70 full-time employees are now using city-owned tablets. In time, Hadley believes the devices will eventually enable staff to become a completely mobile work force.

The White House is leading efforts for online authentication technology -- a new form of identification that some have called a driver's license for the Internet.

But program leaders at the National Institute of Standards and Technology maintain that such a characterization is inaccurate, while privacy groups worry that the program’s scope could creep beyond the bounds of constitutionality if not carefully managed.

Today’s incarnation of the National Strategy for Trusted Identities in Cyberspace (NSTIC) endeavors to provide state residents with a common identity for acquiring services across state departments, piloting technology that could be used more broadly online. Michigan and Pennsylvania are now running federally-funded pilot programs to test early versions of the technology. An additional 10 organizations will be announced to receive pilot funding in August.

The program is also NIST’s effort to encourage the private sector to develop viable alternatives to a well-known but aging form of authentication: the password.

The movement to allow everyday items to connect to the Internet has gained momentum, as toothbrushes, bathroom scales and trash cans (to name a few) are available with sensors and online access.

And now, this dominantly consumer-based field may see a new line up of enterprise-focused -- and potentially government-focused -- startups through a new program by the Alchemist Accelerator. As a San Francisco-based tech accelerator for startups that provide enterprise-level solutions, Alchemist was recently supercharged with funding from Cisco Systems to launch its first six-month accelerator program to support Internet of everything startups.

The program draws upon a portion of $150 million -- funding that Cisco allocated in April -- for growth outside traditional markets. Openings for 13 startup teams have been offered, and an application deadline has been set for May 17 with the Internet of Everything Accelerator program to start on Aug 21. Alchemist’s Managing Director Ravi Belani spoke with Government Technology to outline why the program was created and what it intends to accomplish during its inaugural debut.

In July 2013, Kenya’s Ministry of Information, Communications and Technology along with the Communications Commission of Kenya launched the National Broadband Strategy, one piece of the nation’s ambitious Vision 2030 program.

But is the nation is ready to give its people the power of the Internet? Some fear broadband could become a tool of the powerful in Kenya, further dividing the classes. There also are fundamental infrastructure barriers to the success of a broadband rollout.

A 2011 World Bank survey found an average of 6.9 power outages in Kenya monthly, and the lack of reliable electricity was cited as a major constraint by more than 25 percent of Kenyan businesses.

The Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF) has adopted an online authentication tool the agency is using to ensure that the benefits it issues, like food assistance, are going to the right people.

Such incarnations of online authentication technology are sprouting up in state government agencies around the country, led by a White House vision of a new, central form of identification, what some are calling “a driver’s license for the Internet.”

The DCF reported that in 2013 it saved about $14.7 million through the use of an online authentication tool, with an initial investment of about $1 million and a total contract of just under $3 million. The DCF says the technology is saving so much money because it saves staff the time of verifying identities manually, and even better, there’s been a reduction in cases of identity fraud.

Not everyone thinks a driver’s license for the Internet is a great idea. Lee Tien, senior staff attorney with the Electronic Frontier Foundation, is skeptical whether the government’s main motivation with such a program would even be fraud prevention -- and not tracking. “We think it’s a terrible idea,” Tien said. “The main substantive issue is that much of what we do on the Internet is plain old speech: writing comments, posting on blogs or whatever. And one of the things about speech in the United States, especially under the First Amendment of the Constitution, is that you have a right to speak anonymously. […] Any mandatory type of ID online runs really directly counter to that.”

Technology has become a major factor in many of the proposals introduced by lawmakers during state legislative sessions. But it can be difficult to zero-in on the elected leaders who have their fingers on the pulse of and are truly engaged in the latest tech issues -- until now.

Government Technology has produced a list of 13 state senators and representatives who have shown a keen interest in and willingness to tackle technology policy and legislation. The legislators included on the interactive map were based on recommendations from the National Association of State Chief Information Officers (NASCIO), the National Association of Counties (NACo) the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL), the Council of State Governments (CSG) and other experts. Those recommendations were researched and vetted by Government Technology Senior Writer Brian Heaton and Managing Editor Noelle Knell.

These include: Washington Rep Reuven Carlyle (D-Seattle); Nebraska Sen Dan Watermeier, (Lincoln); Illinois Sen Ira Silverstein (D-Chicago); Illinois Sen Don Harmon (D-Oak Park); California Sen Alex Padilla (D-Pacoima); Minnesota Sen Matt Schmit (DFL-Red Wing); Washington Rep Jeff Morris (D-Mount Vernon); North Dakota Rep Blair Thoreson (R-Fargo); and Minnesota Rep Joe Atkins (DFL-District 52B).