Objective

The objective of this evaluation was to determine the extent to which DoD Components provided access to DoD information technology and communications during the coronavirus disease–2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

Background

In May 2006, the President issued the National Strategy for Pandemic Influenza Implementation Plan that requires Federal agencies to develop plans to maintain information technology and communications systems to continue operations during a pandemic. In response, the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Homeland Defense and Global Security (ASD[HD&GS]) issued the DoD Implementation Plan for Pandemic Influenza (DoD Implementation Plan) in August 2006 to ensure the continuity of essential functions in the event of a pandemic. The DoD Implementation Plan states that during a pandemic, special consideration must be given to social distancing in the workplace through teleworking. DoD Components’ pandemic plans should include the use of laptops, high-speed telecommunications links, and other systems that enable personnel to perform essential functions while teleworking. The plans should also include the requirement to test telework procedures, the impact of Government-wide mandated telework on internal networks, and backup plans for communications infrastructure.

Apart from DoD pandemic planning, the DoD Telework Policy states that telework will be actively promoted and implemented throughout the DoD in support of emergency preparedness. The policy recognizes that during a pandemic, essential and non-essential personnel and Service members may be asked to telework; therefore, periodic telework exercises are required to ensure its effectiveness in continuing operations and an efficient transition to telework in the event of a pandemic.

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, DoD Components began transitioning to maximum telework in mid-March 2020. On March 18, 2020, the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense issued a memorandum stating that DoD Components could execute their pandemic plans, or portions of their plans, at any time to ensure the ability to perform their essential functions.

To determine the extent to which DoD Components provided access to DoD information technology and communications during maximum telework in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we administered a 43-question survey to a sample of DoD military and civilian personnel. In August 2020, we invited 269,282 DoD military and civilian personnel to respond to our survey to share their teleworking experiences from March 15 through August 26, 2020. We received a total of 56,057 responses, comprising 7,323 military and 48,734 civilian personnel, for a 20.8 percent overall response rate. We also conducted interviews with officials from the DoD Office of the Chief Information Officer, the DoD COVID-19 Telework Readiness Task Force, and the Offices of the Chief Information Officer for 10 DoD Components to obtain their perspectives on the infrastructure established to support the increased number of teleworking personnel.

Finding

According to the 54,665 respondents who reported their telework status, the DoD transitioned 88.2 percent of respondents to full- or part-time telework from March 15, 2020 through August 26, 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Of the 11.8 percent of respondents who continued to work on site, the most common reasons provided by survey respondents for not teleworking were that their work could not be performed while teleworking, or they were not eligible to telework. Of those who teleworked, survey respondents reported problems accessing DoD Component networks, voice and video teleconference applications, and identified shortfalls in Government-furnished equipment available to DoD personnel when their Components first transitioned to maximum telework in mid-March 2020. However, the problems cited in survey responses lessened over time as the DoD increased its network availability and capacity, added voice and video conferencing applications, and purchased and distributed computer and communications equipment.

Based on the results of the survey and interviews with DoD officials, the DoD’s initial challenges occurred because some DoD Components had not fully tested whether their information systems could support Government-wide mandated telework and had not conducted telework exercises with their personnel before March 2020 as required by the DoD Implementation Plan and the DoD Telework Policy. Therefore, some DoD Components were unprepared for the network and communications limitations, as well as equipment and application shortfalls, uncovered by the transition to maximum telework. While the Marine Corps, Defense Contract Audit Agency (DCAA), Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA), and the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) were able to immediately transition to maximum telework, the Army, Navy, Air Force, Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA), Defense Finance Accounting Service (DFAS), and Defense Health Agency (DHA) faced challenges during the transition.

The ability of DoD personnel to perform essential and non-essential tasks while on maximum telework depends on DoD Components’ ability to provide enough network capacity, communication tools, and equipment to enable the DoD’s essential and non-essential personnel to stay mission-ready and productive while in a telework status. Some teleworking personnel reported that they found their own alternative solutions including the use of unauthorized video conferencing applications and personal laptops, printers, and cell phones to complete their work because some DoD Components were unprepared for maximum telework. However, using unauthorized applications or sharing DoD information over improperly secured devices, even temporarily, increases the risk of exposing sensitive departmental information that could impact national security and DoD missions.

Overall, DoD Components and the majority of survey respondents expressed positive maximum telework experiences. Specifically, 88.1 percent of survey respondents stated that their productivity level remained the same or increased during maximum telework, regardless of their Component’s initial telework challenges. Many survey respondents reported a desire to telework regularly in the future (37,146 responses) and expressed appreciation for commuting less often (27,711 responses), better work‑life balance (25,508 responses), and more flexible work hours (22,461 responses).

Recommendations

We recommend that the ASD(HD&GS) revise the DoD Implementation Plan for Pandemic Influenza to update planning assumptions with the use of telework for essential and non-essential personnel, align the DoD Implementation Plan with the DoD Telework Policy, and require DoD Components to update their plans to include revised assumptions regarding telework for personnel and the resources required to support the teleworking workforce.

We recommend that the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy (USD[P]), in coordination with the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness, establish management oversight procedures to verify that DoD Components have performed the testing, training, and exercise requirements of the DoD Implementation Plan and the DoD Telework Policy. The oversight procedures should assess the ability of DoD Components to support Government-wide mandated telework, including the results of tests of network and communications systems and telework exercises with personnel.

Management Comments and Our Response

The Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Policy (DUSD[P]), responding for the USD(P) and the ASD(HD&GS) did not respond to the recommendation to require DoD Components to update their Pandemic Plans to include revised assumptions regarding telework for personnel and the resources required to support the teleworking workforce. Therefore, the recommendation is unresolved. We request that the ASD(HD&GS) provide comments on the final report.

The DUSD(P) did not agree or disagree with the other two recommendations in the report. However, the DUSD(P) stated that the ASD(HD&GS) would work with the Joint Staff and the U.S. Northern Command to include the use of telework for essential and non‑essential personnel in the Functional Campaign Plan–Pandemics and Infectious Diseases, which will replace the DoD Implementation Plan for Pandemic Influenza, and align the plan with the DoD Telework Policy. In addition, the DUSD(P) stated that the ASD(HD&GS) would also work with the Joint Staff to include the use of telework for essential and non-essential personnel in the Global Integration Framework-Pandemics and Infectious Diseases.

Furthermore, the DUSD(P) stated that her office would support and advocate for oversight procedures to verify that DoD Components performed the testing, training, and exercise requirements of the Global Integration Framework–Pandemics and Infectious Diseases, the Functional Campaign Plan–Pandemics and Infectious Diseases, the DoD Telework Policy, and the Pandemic Plans. Therefore, the recommendations are resolved, but will remain open until the ASD(HD&GS) updates the Functional Campaign Plan–Pandemics and Infectious Diseases and the Global Integration Framework-Pandemics and Infectious Diseases to include the use of telework for essential and non-essential personnel and USD(P) provides oversight procedures for verifying that DoD Components performed the required testing, training, and exercises.

This report is the product of Proj. No. D2020-D000CU-0125.000.

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Evaluation of Access to Department of Defense Information Technology and Communications During the Coronavirus Disease-2019 Pandemic (DODIG-2021-065) [100 Pages, 6MB]

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USS George H. W. Bush (CVN 77) Sailors demonstrate helpful ways to fight the spread of COVID-19.

This video was created and published in May of 2020 in order to help provide better understanding of fighting the spread of COVID-19.

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GAO Report: COVID-19 — Federal Efforts Could Be Strengthened by Timely and Concerted Actions, September 2020 [371 Pages, 11MB]

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The post GAO Report: COVID-19 — Federal Efforts Could Be Strengthened by Timely and Concerted Actions, September 2020 first appeared on The Black Vault.

The COVID-19 pandemic changed the routines of millions of people around the world seemingly overnight. In some places, once-congested streets are now easily navigable; previously crammed sidewalks, eerily vacant.

Such widespread, rapid change in human activity is unprecedented and its effects on our planet and our lives are only just beginning to be realized. NASA’s Earth Science Division is supporting the science community as it investigates the many changes this unique situation has brought to light. Through its Rapid Response and Novel Research in Earth Science (RRNES) initiative, the agency is providing funding for selected, rapid-turnaround projects that make innovative use of satellite data and other NASA resources to address the different environmental, economic and societal impacts of the pandemic. NASA announced last month the first RRNES projects and is continuing to evaluate new project proposals.

The agency recently funded the following four RRNES projects:

Exploring Uneven Gains in Urban Air Quality

The drastic reduction of passenger vehicles on the roads has resulted in a drop in air pollution, particularly nitrogen dioxide (NO2), in many urban areas. However, according to Susan Anenberg and Dan Goldberg from George Washington University, initial analysis of satellite data indicates that the decrease in NO2 concentrations across cities globally during their lockdown periods has been inconsistent. Cities in China and Italy, for example, seem to show a much greater and more abrupt decline in this type of pollution than many cities in the U.S.

“Our project will link satellite remote sensing with weather, traffic counts, and other data to shed light on why we are seeing these inconsistent effects of COVID-19 lockdowns on air quality in different cities around the world,” said Goldberg.

Data like this can greatly benefit public health both as we navigate the current pandemic and in the future.

“Since air pollution may be a risk factor for increased severity of COVID-19 outcomes, accurate information about air pollution levels during the COVID-19 crisis is critical to protect public health,” Anenberg said. “Our project will also improve public health in the long-term by advancing our understanding of how transportation policies can be designed to improve air quality most effectively and efficiently.”

Impact of Air Pollution Reduction on the Atmosphere

Although satellites have observed a global decrease in some types of air pollution, including nitrogen dioxide, it remains to be seen how long the reduction in harmful emissions will last and what effects these changes will have on the chemistry of the atmosphere in the future. University at Buffalo scientist Kang Sun is developing a process that will give scientists and stakeholders a way to efficiently monitor both.

“Using a new data-driven framework that combines satellite and meteorological data, we will take NASA satellite assets one step further to quantify the reduction in emissions and its impact on air quality chemistry,” said Sun.

For now, he plans to focus his research on three regions, each at different phases of the pandemic and that have adhered to different regulations and policies in an effort to control it.

“We will focus on nitrogen oxides in the polluted regions of Jianghan Plain (which includes Wuhan) in China, Po Valley in Italy, and southern California in the U.S.,” he said. “However, the established framework can be quickly applied to other regions, time periods, and trace gases with rapid sharing of the results, algorithm, and data generated by this project.”

Air Pollution Links to Water Quality

What goes into our air can also impact other parts of the Earth system, like water quality. City University of New York scientists Maria Tzortziou and Brice Grunert are researching this connection to determine what impact the COVID-19-related declines in air pollution may have on coastal water quality in Long Island Sound, near New York City.

“Socioeconomic policy responses to the COVID-19 pandemic have resulted in a dramatic decline in atmospheric nitrogen pollution across the globe. Yet, the impacts on atmospherically deposited nitrogen and resulting changes in coastal aquatic ecology remain unknown,” said Tzortziou.

In general, an overabundance of nitrogen and other chemicals and nutrients in the water can cause excessive algae growth. When the algae decompose, a process that consumes oxygen, the water is often left without enough oxygen to sustain life. In other words, these processes have a negative effect on water quality.

The reduction of atmospheric nitrogen pollution due to society’s response to the pandemic provides scientists with a unique opportunity to investigate air pollution’s influence on water quality.

“Using new measurements from ground-based and satellite platforms to capture changes in both atmospheric and water quality conditions, this project will help address a gap in our fundamental understanding of air-water exchange of nutrients and pollutants, and how this impacts and is impacted by environmental regulations, socioeconomic policy responses and decision making,” said Tzortziou.

Shedding (Night) Light on Pandemic Economic Impacts

In addition to environmental changes, measures to curb the spread of COVID-19 have led to a substantial shift in human activity and movement around the globe. A team of researchers led by Miguel Román, program director at Universities Space Research Association and a principal investigator of NASA’s Black Marble science team, is using satellite nighttime light data to help assess the social and economic impacts of this crisis locally to globally, and the effectiveness of containment actions, such as stay-at-home orders, taken to control the spread of the virus.

“Our research team has been analyzing images of Earth at night to decipher patterns of energy use, transportation, migration, and other economic and social activities,” Román said. “Currently, there are minimal data about how different containment strategies have affected local businesses and neighborhoods, and how companies and residents are responding to preventative measures aimed at containment.”

The research team will use NASA’s Black Marble – a product suite that provides daily satellite-derived nighttime light data – along with population, urban infrastructure, and local pandemic response information to develop COVID-19-specific maps and data products capable of tracking these responses from the street level to the global level in near-real-time.

“By tracking responses at fine spatial scales – at the sub-neighborhood level, for example – using NASA’s Black Marble product, we seek to improve understanding of how responses to containment strategies have varied within cities and across metropolitan areas with different levels of urbanization and regulation,” said Román.

This information can inform stakeholders responsible for monitoring the extent, duration, and recovery from this and future outbreaks and disasters.

Banner image: Empty streets in Los Angeles. Credit: Drew Tilk/Unsplash

The post NASA Funds Four Research Projects on COVID-19 Impacts, Published May 13, 2020 first appeared on The Black Vault.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Office of the Director of National Intelligence today issued the following Intelligence Community (IC) statement:

“The entire Intelligence Community has been consistently providing critical support to U.S. policymakers and those responding to the COVID-19 virus, which originated in China. The Intelligence Community also concurs with the wide scientific consensus that the COVID-19 virus was not manmade or genetically modified.

“As we do in all crises, the Community’s experts respond by surging resources and producing critical intelligence on issues vital to U.S. national security. The IC will continue to rigorously examine emerging information and intelligence to determine whether the outbreak began through contact with infected animals or if it was the result of an accident at a laboratory in Wuhan.”

The post Intelligence Community Statement on Origins of COVID-19, April 30, 2020 first appeared on The Black Vault.

On March 16, 2020, President Trump and the White House Coronavirus Task Force issued new guidelines to help protect Americans during the global Coronavirus outbreak.

Even if you are young and otherwise healthy, you are at risk—and your activities can increase the risk of contracting the Coronavirus for others. Everyone can do their part. The new recommendations are simple to follow but will have a resounding impact on public health.

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