SAIC case raises red flags

After being found guilty by a federal jury of fraud and false claims under the Federal False Claims Act, Science Applications International Corp.'s case is shedding new light on conflicts of interest with government contractors, according to an article by .While the company still maintains its innocence and is considering an appeal, the case does bring attention to the fact that sometimes contractors do receive insider knowledge of other projects and contracts that may allow them an edge ? either by helping to write rules that would benefit them, by suggesting new projects that they hope to win or by receiving firsthand knowledge that would aid them in winning a contract. Often these conflicts of interest are not noticed or, due to the shortage in the government acquisition workforce and increase in outsourcing, nothing is done about them.