Nextgov
Should Feds Be Afraid of a Popular Chinese Chat App?
WeChat’s U.S. footprint is increasing, despite allegations of spyware.
Benefits
Tricare stops mailing paper notices of benefits changes
Tricare is warning beneficiaries to make sure they have an online milConnect account to receive information about changes to their coverage now that the Defense Department has stopped mailing paper letters on changes to coverage and eligibility status.
Retirement
Retirement claims backlog shrinks slightly in September, OPM says
The Office of Personnel Management received and processed fewer retirement claims in September than it had forecast, and slightly reduced its claims backlog, according to the agency's latest progress report.
Employee Policy
Clearance polygraphs to seek out leakers
Federal employees seeking security clearances or “sensitive” jobs now will have to undergo tougher scrutiny during lie detector tests.
Defense One
Inside the Navy’s Secret Swarm Robot Experiment
Swarming robot boats could be heading to a contested strait near you. By Patrick Tucker
Nextgov
Would Agencies Buy More Cloud if Companies Made It Easier?
Maybe contracting officers shouldn’t take all the blame.
Nextgov
DHS No Longer Needs Permission Slips to Monitor Other Agencies' Networks for Vulnerabilities
New rules published by the Office of Management and Budget require agencies to agree to proactive scanning.
Management
Did Budget Cuts Cause the Secret Service Failures?
Independent review likely will focus on White House safety and agency culture, not money.
Oversight
The FDA Says Farmers Are Giving Animals Too Many Antibiotics
Overuse of the drugs has increased over the past few years. That's not good for human health.
Tech
NASA Explains How Climate Change Is Like the Flu
Like some of us mere mortals, Earth has a “fever.”
Management
Designing a Test Worth Teaching To
Performance targets aren’t always perfect, but they’re necessary.
Management
If Ebola Spreads, How Close Are You to a CDC Quarantine Station?
The agency has 20 facilities to help stop outbreaks of deadly contagious diseases in the United States.
Management
The Federal Jobs Picture Isn't Nearly as Rosy as the Overall Jobs Picture
Uncle Sam’s workforce remained more or less flat in September.
Management
Patient Treated for Ebola-Like Symptoms in Washington
The patient recently traveled from Nigeria.
Management
3 Ways to Motivate Your Employees
Boosting morale is about more than financial incentives.
Oversight
Ebola Scare, Secret Service Enter Campaign Politics
It's either tactically smart or desperately silly, but a North Carolina Republican is trying to use the week's biggest news items to attack President Obama.
Defense
The ISIS Conflict Has Saturated the American Mind
On Pew's latest news quiz, the only issue Americans were better informed about was the level of the minimum wage.
Route Fifty
Drought Is Making California Shrink in Mass
There are "potentially dire consequences for the economic and food security of the United States."
Oversight
Barack Obama's Friendly-Fire Problem
Leon Panetta is the latest former aide to criticize the president publicly.
Oversight