• Hackers Issue Emergency Zombie Alert in Montana
• Source: Great Falls Tribune   |   Montana   |   February 12, 2013
• The Great Falls Police Department said it has not yet been called to investigate who hacked into a local television station’s emergency alert system and reported “dead bodies rising."

• Obama to Issue Cybersecurity Order, Sources Say
• Source: The Hill   |   Nation   |   February 12, 2013
• The executive order would establish a voluntary program in which companies operating critical infrastructure would elect to meet cybersecurity best practices and standards crafted, in part, by the government.

• 5 Cities Accept Citizenville Challenge to Make Tech Transformation
• BY: Government Technology   |   Nation   |   February 8, 2013
• Five local governments have committed to taking steps toward building a government for the 21st century, using technology to transform the way government and citizens interact.
• 1 Comments

• Seattle Abandons Police Drone Program
• Source: Seattle Times   |   Seattle   |   February 8, 2013
• Mayor Mike McGinn ordered the Seattle Police Department to abandon its plan to use drones after residents and privacy advocates protested.

• Christie Vetoes Online Gambling Bill -- for Now
• Source: Newark Star-Ledger   |   New Jersey   |   February 8, 2013
• New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie said he wanted lawmakers to provide more funds to combat gambling addiction, toughen oversight of casino employees, revise the bill to collect more taxes and then he would sign the bill.

• Drone Ban Up in the Air in Virginia
• Source: Politico   |   Virginia   |   February 7, 2013
• Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell has not decided whether he will sign a bill barring state and local agencies from using drones for two years — the first legislation of its kind in the country that passed through the state’s General Assembly.

• Driverless Car Bill Shelved in Colorado
• Source: Denver Post   |   Colorado   |   February 6, 2013
• The legislation would have made Colorado the fifth state to make automatic cars legal.

• Transparency, Social Media and Gun Safety
• BY: Tod Newcombe   |   February 5, 2013
• 4 ways technology can help make guns safer, 5 up-and-coming social media sites and more.
• 5 Comments

• Amazon to Collect Sales Taxes in Connecticut
• Source: Connecticut Mirror   |   Connecticut   |   February 5, 2013
• Gov. Dannel P. Malloy announced a new agreement that will result in Amazon.com collecting the state sales tax on Connecticut purchases.

• Maryland Offshore Wind Plan Likely to Pass, But Less Likely to be Built
• Source: Washington Post   |   Maryland   |   February 5, 2013
• The tortured process of garnering support has left Gov. O’Malley with a project so small that developers and banks probably won’t take the financial risk, experts predict.

• Super Bowl Blackout Blamed on 'Abnormality' in System
• Source: New Orleans Times Picayune   |   New Orleans   |   February 4, 2013
• The second half of the game between the San Francisco 49ers and the Baltimore Ravens had just gotten under way when the lights went out for 34 minutes.

• Tech, Telecom Giants Take Sides as FCC Proposes Free, Widespread Public WiFi
• Source: Washington Post   |   Nation   |   February 4, 2013
• The proposal has rattled the wireless industry, which has launched a fierce lobbying effort against the idea, while Google, Microsoft and other tech giants say a free-for-all WiFi service would spark an explosion of innovations and devices.
• 1 Comments

• Government Technology Ideas Worth Importing
• BY: Steve Towns   |   February 2013
• These best e-government practices aren't from this side of the pond.
• 2 Comments

• Iceland Writes the World's 1st Crowdsourced Constitution
• BY: Liz Farmer   |   February 2013
• Some U.S. cities have dabbled in crowdsourcing -- asking citizens to help solve problems via the Internet -- but replicating Iceland’s approach on such a large scale may be hard.

• What Privacy Means to Americans vs. Europeans
• BY: Paul W. Taylor   |   February 2013
• Experts are worried that disparate privacy rules between the two could pose a threat to future growth.
• 1 Comments