James Risen reported from Washington, and Laura Poitras from Berlin. Charlie Savage contributed reporting from Washington: “The list of those caught up in the global surveillance net cast by the National Security Agency and its overseas partners, from social media users to foreign heads of state, now includes another entry: American lawyers. A top-secret document, obtained by the… Continue Reading
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Author Archives: Sabrina I. Pacifici
CFPB – Free Guide to Managing Someone Else’s Money
Managing someone else’s money by NAOMI KARP Millions of Americans are managing money or property for a loved one who is unable to pay bills or make financial decisions. This can be very overwhelming. But, it’s also a great opportunity to help someone you care about, and protect them from scams and fraud. We are releasing four… Continue Reading
Annual Report on Assistance Related to International Terrorism: Fiscal Year 2013
U.S. Dept. of State, Office of the Coordinator for Counterterrorism, Bureau of Counterterrorism, February 11, 2014. Annual Report on Assistance Related to International Terrorism, Fiscal Year 2013 “This report is submitted pursuant to the requirements for a congressionally mandated annual report codified at 22 U.S.C. § 2349aa-7(b). During Fiscal Year (FY) 2013, the U.S. government provided assistance related to… Continue Reading
Youth Perspectives on Tech in Schools: From Mobile Devices to Restrictions and Monitoring
Youth Perspectives on Tech in Schools: From Mobile Devices to Restrictions and Monitoring Published January 15, 2014 Download Paper (SSRN) “This research brief is a contribution by the Youth and Media team at the Berkman Center to its Student Privacy Initiative, which seeks to explore the opportunities and challenges that may arise as educational institutions adopt cloud… Continue Reading
EC Commission obtains from Google comparable display of specialised search rivals
“The European Commission has obtained an improved commitments proposal from Google in the context of the ongoing antitrust investigation on online search and search advertising. In its proposal, Google has now accepted to guarantee that whenever it promotes its own specialised search services on its web page (e.g. for products, hotels, restaurants, etc.), the services… Continue Reading
New GAO Reports – Contingency Contracting for State and USAID, and Managing for Results
CONTINGENCY CONTRACTING: State and USAID Made Progress Assessing and Implementing Changes, but Further Actions Needed, GAO-14-229: Published: Feb 14, 2014. Publicly Released: Feb 14, 2014: “For more than a decade, State and USAID have used contractors extensively to help carry out missions in contingency operations, such as those in Iraq and Afghanistan. While State and USAID transition to… Continue Reading
Results in Relating Quality Attributes to Acquisition Strategies
Results in Relating Quality Attributes to Acquisition Strategies, Brownsword, Lisa; Albert, Cecilia; Carney, David J.; and Place, Patrick R., (2-2014). Software Engineering Institute. Paper 779. “In the acquisition of a software-intensive system, the relationship between the software architecture and the acquisition strategy is typically not specifically examined. The first phase of our research discovered an initial… Continue Reading
Education for Life and Work: Developing Transferable Knowledge and Skills in the 21st Century
James W. Pellegrino and Margaret L. Hilton, Editors; Committee on Defining Deeper Learning and 21st Century Skills; Center for Education (CFE); Board on Testing and Assessment (BOTA); Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education (DBASSE); National Research Council “Americans have long recognized that investments in public education contribute to the common good, enhancing national… Continue Reading
OECD delivers new single global standard on automatic exchange of information
“Offshore tax evasion remains a serious problem for countries and jurisdictions worldwide, with vast amounts of funds deposited abroad and sheltered from taxation when taxpayers fail to comply with obligations in their home countries. Responding to a mandate from G20 leaders to reinforce action against tax avoidance and evasion and inject greater trust and fairness into… Continue Reading
New GAO Report – College Debit Cards
COLLEGE DEBIT CARDS: Actions Needed to Address ATM Access, Student Choice, and Transparency, GAO-14-91: Published: Feb 13, 2014. Publicly Released: Feb 13, 2014: “At least 852 schools, or 11 percent of U.S. colleges and universities, had agreements to provide debit or prepaid card services to their students as of July 2013, and most offered students the ability to receive… Continue Reading
Intelligence Community: Additional Actions Needed to Improve Reporting, Planning for Use of Contract Personnel
CIVILIAN INTELLIGENCE COMMUNITY: Additional Actions Needed to Improve Reporting on and Planning for the Use of Contract Personnel, GAO-14-204: Published: Jan 29, 2014. Publicly Released: Feb 13, 2014. “Collectively, CIA, ODNI, and the departments responsible for developing policies to address risks related to contractors for the other six civilian IC elements have made limited progress in developing… Continue Reading
FHFA Oversight of Enterprise Handling of Aged Repurchase Demands
Audit Report – AUD–2014–009. February 12, 2014, FHFA Oversight of Enterprise Handling of Aged Repurchase Demands “Why OIG Did This Report: “Various entities such as banks often sell mortgage loans to two Government Sponsored Enterprises – the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac); taxpayers invested heavily… Continue Reading
