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TOP STORIES FOR FRIDAY, JUNE 10, 2005 VeriSign Selected to Manage .net Domain Feds Look to Add Controls to Computer Systems Study Predicts Gains in IT Job Market VERISIGN SELECTED TO MANAGE .NET DOMAIN The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) has renewed VeriSign's contract to manage the .net domain for another six years. The decision was expected, after Telcordia Technologies, the third-party firm hired to evaluate bids for the contract, selected VeriSign as the top candidate. Even after objections from other bidders about the process, Telcordia reiterated its support for VeriSign in a second report. VeriSign has had responsibility for the domain since 2000, when it bought Network Solutions, which had operated the domain since 1993. The .net domain is the third most popular, behind .com and Germany's .de domain. The new contract stipulates a lower fee for names in the .net domain as well as the .com domain, which VeriSign also manages. The annual cost will be $4.25--including 75 cents that will be paid to ICANN--compared to the current charge of $6. The U.S. Department of Commerce, which has veto power over the selection of domain registrars, is expected to give its approval to the new contract. Wall Street Journal, 10 June 2005 (sub. req'd) http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB111835358928355785,00.html FEDS LOOK TO ADD CONTROLS TO COMPUTER SYSTEMS The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is developing a set of controls that federal agencies will be compelled to adopt to increase the security of their computer systems. The controls are part of an effort to bring agencies into compliance with the Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA). FISMA Implementation Project Leader Ron Ross said that agencies will be required to add 17 safety controls to their systems, noting that stronger controls will be required for more important systems. When finalized, the controls will become mandatory in January 2006. Agencies will have one year to implement the controls on existing systems; for new systems, the controls will be required immediately. Ross stressed that although it will not be "easy to put in all these controls and get them working," the government must make every effort "to establish a federal level of due diligence" for its computer systems. Federal Computer Week, 9 June 2005 http://www.fcw.com/article89154-06-09-05-Web STUDY PREDICTS GAINS IN IT JOB MARKET A survey conducted by staffing firm Robert Half Technology paints a rosier picture for IT professionals than has been offered by the company for three years. Results of the survey, which polled CIOs at more than 1,400 U.S. companies, showed that 14 percent expect to hire full-time IT staff in the third quarter, while 3 percent projected reductions in IT staff. Eighty-one percent of respondents said their staffing levels will remain steady. Respondents indicated that the primary factors determining staffing levels were business expansion (38 percent) and the need for higher levels of customer and end-user support (21 percent). The report comes amid mixed signals regarding the IT job market. According to the Labor Department, the number of unemployed high-tech workers fell by 64,000 last year. Still, the overall number of unemployed IT professionals was nearly 150,000, and 60,000 high-tech jobs were cut in the first quarter of this year, double the number of jobs lost during the same period in the previous year. CNET, 9 June 2005 http://news.com.com/2100-1022_3-5739974.html ***************************************************** EDUPAGE INFORMATION To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your settings, or access the Edupage archive, visit http://www.educause.edu/Edupage/639 Or, you can subscribe or unsubscribe by sending e-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] To SUBSCRIBE, in the body of the message type: SUBSCRIBE Edupage YourFirstName YourLastName To UNSUBSCRIBE, in the body of the message type: SIGNOFF Edupage If you have subscription problems, send e-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] ***************************************************** OTHER EDUCAUSE RESOURCES The EDUCAUSE Resource Center is a repository for information concerning use and management of IT in higher education. To access resources including articles, books, conference sessions, contracts, effective practices, plans, policies, position descriptions, and blog content, go to http://www.educause.edu/resources ***************************************************** CONFERENCES For information on all EDUCAUSE learning and networking opportunities, see http://www.educause.edu/31 ***************************************************** COPYRIGHT Edupage copyright (c) 2005, EDUCAUSE
