The White House says agencies should make it easier to use their scientific research. The Office of Science and Technology Policy is directing agencies that do more than $100 million a year in research and development to draft open-access plans within six months. They have to make federally funded research public within a year. They also have to find ways to make their data and archives easier to search.

Call it a Rocky-Balboa move: Challengers have better odds of unseating federal technology providers. That's because the government is changing the way it shops for tech services. Bloomberg Government Analyst Brian Friel looked at the largest technology-services contract program, the General Services Administration's Alliant and Alliant Small Business.

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Government auditors say nearly all agencies are failing to secure their computer systems. Cyber attacks against federal networks are at an all-time high. But even if agencies strengthened their network defenses, it may not be enough. A growing number of experts say cybersecurity professionals need the ability to predict future attacks and stop them before they happen.