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FBI cocks up new computer system

by on22 December 2008

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Spooks still need paper


A U.S. Justice Department audit said that the spook's brand new computer system that will manage investigative case files will show up in the time honored tradition of being late and over budget.

The Feds scrapped a $170 million project to build a paperless case management system and decided that paper was the superior technology option. Now, a second go at the new system, which is called Sentinel, is being questioned by the Justice Department's iIspector General.

He is apparently worried that the construction is not being supervised.  Originally, Sentinel was expected to cost $425 million and be completed by December 2009. The Inspector General's audit said that it will now cost $451 million and be finished by June 2010.

The audit said that the system would be good, but the FBI needs to improve the risk management process it uses to identify, monitor, control, and mitigate risks before they negatively affect Sentinel's cost, schedule, and performance. Lockheed Martin contractors are building Sentinel in four phases and it might be that the FBI does not really understand what the techies are doing and are letting them do it so they don’t have to think too much about it.

The report praised the FBI for fixing problems identified in earlier audits of Sentinel.
Last modified on 23 December 2008
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