DataStream

When it comes to privacy and information security, citizens hold the government to a higher standard than the private sector, according to a new report from the General Services Administration. Citizens also want choices for how services are delivered.


The report, "Citizen Expectations for Electronic Government," was released Nov. 14 by GSA's Office of Intergovernmental Solutions.


The report also found that citizens want flexibility to deal with the government in person, and also want services to be delivered by mail, telephone, fax, CD-ROM, interactive voice response systems, interactive television and the Internet.

Governments that include citizens in planning, development and implementation of e-government initiatives will be the most successful, it said.

The report is based on interviews with program managers in federal, international, state and local governments.

Nineteen case studies were also submitted, three from international governments, 11 from state and local and five from the federal government. Electronic Data Systems Corp. Nov. 14 launched bluesphere, a new company integrating creative Web design with EDS' information technology business support capabilities.

The Plano, Texas, systems integrator announced the formation of bluesphere at the COMDEX technology conference in Las Vegas. The new EDS company targets the e-commerce integration market, which Forrester Research Inc. of Cambridge, Mass., estimates to be more than $19.6 billion in 2000.

Bluesphere's 2,525 employees will work with its 750 clients to build or enhance an interactive Internet presence. Business issues addressed by bluesphere include branding and identity, connectivity, selling goods and services, customer care, marketing and community building.A new automated warehouse and retrieval system to retrieve past performance report cards of Defense Department contractors is now operating, the Navy Electronic Acquisition Office said.

The system, called the DoD Past Performance Automated Information System, allows officials to access through a single site 8,600 report cards representing $300 billion in contracting actions. PPAIS is managed by the Naval Sea Logistics Center Detachment in Portsmouth, N.H., for the Joint Electronic Commerce Program Office.

The system was developed in response to a 1997 mandate by the office of the Defense undersecretary for acquisition reform ordering the armed services to begin collecting past performance report cards and use the information when awarding contracts.

The database contains report cards on contractors who have worked for the Air Force, Navy, Army and Defense Information Support Agency.

Dozens of Defense Department users have made more than 850 queries since the system was installed in July, and the number of users is expected to eventually hit the thousands.

A module that allows contractors to retrieve their own data is expected to be ready in the first quarter of 2001, with other system enhancements to be added over the next several years.Science Applications International Corp. of San Diego won a $45 million contract to provide critical infrastructure protection support to the Social Security Administration.

The contract, a blanket purchase agreement, is part of Social Security's efforts to comply with Presidential Decision Directive 63, which ordered agencies to take steps to protect systems and facilities that are critical to an agency's operations.

Under the contract, SAIC will help Social Security's Office of Finance, Assessment and Management to protect the confidentiality, integrity and availability of information systems and other assets, including physical assets identified as critical.

The agency is looking to increase overall information security, conduct penetration testing and ultimately conduct vulnerability assessments.

The test will provide the agency with data necessary to assess vulnerabilities and develop effective strategies for addressing risks.The state of Arizona authorized nine companies to provide broadband communications services for up to 10 years to the state and its agencies, said Arizona's Government Information Technology Agency.

The statewide contract includes leading telecommunications companies such as AT&T Corp., Cox Communications Inc., Qwest Communications International Inc., Sprint Corp., Winstar Communications Inc. and WorldCom Inc.

Other companies on the contract with local offices in Arizona are Citizens Communications Co., Gtech Corp. and Global Crossing Ltd.

As individual contracts are awarded, Arizona will ask vendors to assist the state in providing telecommunications to remote and sparsely populated areas, said Arthur Ranney, Arizona's chief information officer.Lockheed Martin Corp. of Bethesda, Md. won a $118 million contract to provide automated identification and information technology services to the FBI's Criminal Justice Information Services division in Clarksburg, W. Va.

Lockheed Martin will provide a range of engineering, software and hardware support services to the FBI's System of Systems Information Technology Services program.

The program combines operations and support of three major automated systems ? the Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification System, National Crime Information Center and National Instant Check System.

The three FBI automated systems provide a number of identification services to law enforcement and other agencies across the United States. For example, the fingerprint system provides positive identification services based on the FBI's criminal records and processes in excess of 50,000 queries daily against a database of 40 million individuals.Keane Federal Systems, a subsidiary of Keane Inc., Boston, won a $54 million task order from the State Department to provide software engineering and software production services.

The work is the first task order Keane has won under the General Services Administration's Millennia Lite program, a $20 billion contract won by 20 companies to provide a broad range of IT services. Keane won its Millennia Lite contract in June.

Keane's work will be for the State Department's Office of Foreign Buildings Operations. The company will help the agency align its processes with the Software Engineering Institute's Capability Maturity Model Level 3, a de facto standard for helping IT organizations achieve process improvements.Rapid Performance Systems Inc. of Los Gatos, Calif., a provider of e-learning applications, completed a Web-based recruiter training system for the Army, company officials said.

The Army's "Recruiter Tutor" is a role-play based sales training program for enhancing the performance of the Army's recruiters.

The program consists of a 12-hour training system that contains broadcast quality video, audio and animation. The program also offers knowledge evaluation strategies, user progress and response tracking.

The company is also working with the Navy and Air Force to develop similar training programs, officials said.