Tightened regulations applied to federal grants under a new executive decree
In recent developments, the General Services Administration (GSA) has signed an agreement with Amazon Web Services (AWS) to drive down costs and increase access to cloud services and training. This move is part of a larger strategy to modernize government IT infrastructure.
Meanwhile, the White House has issued an executive order to apply more rigor and oversight to the grants process. Senior political officials are now required to review and approve funding opportunity announcements and grant awards, aiming to ensure that awards align with the administration's priorities and are coordinated across agencies to avoid duplication.
One key aspect of this enhanced security is the implementation of identity security as a core pillar of Zero Trust Architecture (ZTA). This approach mandates continuous verification and strict access control for every user and device, regardless of location.
Identity security integrates into Zero Trust architecture in several ways. Strong Identity and Access Management (IAM) is implemented using multi-factor authentication, single sign-on, and role-based access control. This ensures that users have only the permissions essential for their job functions.
Continuous Authentication and Authorization ensures that every access request is validated in real-time, reducing the chance for credential abuse or insider threats. Device Compliance and Health Checks extend identity verification to devices, enforcing policies that block or remediate those not meeting security standards.
Micro-segmentation and Network Isolation further secure the network by segmenting it and associating network access to verified identities, thus highly constraining an attacker's ability to move laterally after a breach.
Identity security also enables proactive threat hunting and rapid incident response by monitoring anomalous identity behaviors, automating threat detection and quarantine using AI-driven tools as part of a Security Orchestration, Automation, and Response (SOAR) platform.
Government agencies are adopting identity-centric zero trust frameworks to comply with standards like CISA Zero Trust Maturity and NIST 800-207, reducing overall cyber risk and improving resilience.
Elsewhere, House Democrats have sent a letter to the Department of Agriculture requesting all documents and communications related to the agency's major relocation plans. No new agreements regarding cloud services have been announced by the GSA in the current paragraph.
In other news, the Army has issued new guidance to modernize and consolidate the Defense Department's business IT systems, clarifying what a defense business system is and isn't. However, no new guidance on modernizing and consolidating Defense Department's business IT systems has been issued by the Army in the current paragraph.
The Postal Service lost $3.1 billion in the third quarter of 2025, marking continued financial struggles, despite seeing growth in package revenue and a decrease in total work hours. No specific federal news updates were mentioned regarding the European Economic Area.
Agencies have until Monday morning to address a critical cyber vulnerability in some Microsoft Exchange environments, as per the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency's emergency directive. No new cybersecurity directives have been issued by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency in the current paragraph.
The Trump administration's new rules for probationary employees give agencies leeway to fire employees for broader reasons than just performance or conduct. No changes to the Uniform Guidance have been announced in the current paragraph. No updates have been provided on the Office of Personnel Management's guidance on federal probationary periods in the current paragraph.
Lastly, it's important to note that our platform does not provide federal news updates beyond the current article. The White House has not issued a daily newsletter.
- As part of the federal workforce's cybersecurity enhancement, identity security is being implemented, which is a core pillar of the Zero Trust Architecture (ZTA).
- The General Services Administration (GSA) is focusing on modernizing government IT infrastructure, as evident by the recent agreement with Amazon Web Services (AWS) to increase access to cloud services and training.
- Policy-and-legislation changes, such as the Trump administration's new rules for probationary employees, are impacting the federal workforce, giving agencies more flexibility to fire employees for reasons beyond performance or conduct.
