Department of Commerce
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Trump asks for $9.6 billion to bolster cybersecurity in 2020 budget
President Donald Trump has revealed his proposed budget for the 2020 fiscal year, which "supports the creation" of Space Force (USSF) as the sixth branch of the armed forces. The White House also hopes to bolster cybersecurity and NASA exploration missions.
US government lays out strategy to speed up rural broadband deployment
The US government has unveiled a strategy called the American Broadband Initiative (ABI), which aims to speed up broadband deployment and bring faster, reliable internet access to tens of millions of Americans who don't yet have it. More than federal 20 agencies are involved with the project, which follows President Donald Trump signing an order last month to promote rural broadband.
ICANN reveals plan for ending America's control of the internet
Though it's called the "world wide web," the US Commerce Department has held the keys to the internet since its inception in the '90s. Last year, it agreed to hand them over to worldwide bodies and asked ICANN, the group that manages internet addresses, to come up with a plan. ICANN unveiled the much anticipated report yesterday, and has given the public until September 8th to comment on it. The gist of the 100-page document? Internet control functions will be given to ICANN and an oversight body made up of "interested parties" that has no connection to any world governments.
US backpedals on plan to regulate hacking software
After a huge outcry from the security community, the US government will re-write proposed regulations on software used to hack smartphones and computers, according to Reuters. The Department of Commerce wants to heavily restrict the development and testing of exploits, zero-days and other intrusion software, which sounds like a good thing on the face of it. However, security professionals discovered that it would've severely limited, and possibly even criminalized, research into surveillance software. That might have made internet security worse than ever by keeping such exploits confined to the black market.
Nations gather to decide who gets the keys to the internet
Many countries are (understandably) unhappy with the influence the US wields over the internet, and in particular its control of ICANN, the web's "back end." The Department of Commerce has agreed to give up its oversight of the body, and is meeting various nations at Net Mundial in Brazil this week to discuss exactly how to do that. The gathering itself is controversial, as US political figures from the right and left, including ex-President Bill Clinton, oppose moves to give up ICANN control. Specifically, Clinton thinks it could lead to many states "protect(ing) their backsides instead of empowering people." Similar concerns over censorship have been expressed by the EU and others, especially given the recent goings-on in Turkey and elsewhere.
Americans to get DTV coupons before analog gets the kibosh
In 2009, we'll all say our final farewells (good riddances) to sub-par analog television. Despite congressional apprehension, the Department of Commerce has gone forward with a plan to ease old-hat Americans into the digital TV age. Our source article's coughed up some wacky numbers, so we can't really tell whether the budget will suffice or not. Any household will be allowed to claim two $40 coupons each for a discount on digi-to-analog set-top boxes until nearly $1 billion has been spent. If old-hat peeps are still left hanging, another $500,000 ($500 million?) will be available only to those depending on antennas for reception. Apparently only 15% of the current 73 million analog TV users are catching their TV via antenna, so they shouldn't have much trouble scoring the discount at least. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration's plan alots for a max amount of about 33,750 (37.5 million?) coupons -- hopefully enough to keep everyone glued to the tube. In the case of a shortage, one idea is to sit tight and hope enough people opt out of the coupons and volunteer to throw down for a new TV that supports digital broadcasting. Another is for the government to increase the subsidy -- a measure the Democrats already tried to push for with no success. Either way, we're talking about a historic shift in the way we watch television in America, people -- it's sure to be rat possum race and if you snooze 'til February 19, 2009, you'll royally lose.[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
