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An Unlocked Database Exposed 42 Million Local Government Records. No Hacker Required.
A security researcher found 42 million resident records sitting in an unencrypted, password-free database tied to the CitySourced civic engagement platform. Here's why that's a design failure, not a hack, and what governed pipelines do differently.
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Before an Agency Launches AI, Someone Needs to Audit the Data
Agencies routinely vet AI vendors, contracts, and security postures before go-live, but almost nobody checks the data a model will learn from. That blind spot is a pipeline problem, and it's one cloudPWR's governed document and data pipelines already answer.
Texas's Cannabis Registry Expansion Shows Why "Query, Don't Copy" Should Be Standard Practice
Texas is expanding its medical cannabis program from three dispensing organizations to fifteen, and every new operator has to plug into a patient registry housed inside the state police. The access pattern they choose will define their risk.
GovRAMP's Accelerator Partner Program Just Doubled. Here's What Agencies Should Ask About It
GovRAMP added two Accelerator Partners on October 28, bringing the program to four since its August launch. For agencies comparing vendors, the expansion raises a question the Authorized Product List badge alone doesn't answer: whose environment is actually running your data.
Georgia's Patient Registry Crossed 56,650. That Number Triggered New Dispensary Licenses
When Georgia's medical cannabis patient registry crossed 56,650 active patients, it didn't just mark a milestone. It automatically authorized a new round of dispensary licenses, which is exactly what a well-built registry is supposed to do.
GovRAMP's New AI Security Guidance Shows What Agencies Should Be Asking Every Vendor
GovRAMP's AI Security Task Force just published guidance for agencies evaluating AI-enabled cloud products, and the disclosure questions it's asking reveal a lot about vendor transparency.
Washington's Cannabis Certification Gap Shows What Registries Are Actually For
When federal rescheduling handed medical cannabis businesses new benefits, Washington found out it had no way to prove which licensees actually qualified. The fix on the table is a certification program, which is another word for a registry.
Arizona's Court Breach Shows Why You Can't Secure Data You Forgot You Had
A cyberattack on Arizona's court system exposed thirty years of records through an old backup, not the live case system. It's a clear lesson in why retained data needs the same governance as data in active use.
Connecticut's Cannabis Reciprocity Rule Shows Why Registries Need Governed Pipelines, Not Workarounds
Four days after Connecticut let out-of-state medical marijuana patients buy at its dispensaries, the state had to issue guidance on how to report their missing data. The fix reveals a problem every multi-state registry will eventually hit.
The GovRAMP Reciprocity Gap: What It Means for Agencies Evaluating Cloud Vendors
States are layering their own GovRAMP mandates on top of a framework built to avoid exactly that. Here's what the reciprocity gap means for agencies sorting through vendor authorizations before the next RFP.