A tip hotline offers an anonymous way for people to report concerns via phone, mail or internet about suspected fraud, waste or abuse, policy or law violations, and questionable accounting practices. If you are interested in starting a hotline, you can find additional help and information in SAO’s resource Making it Easy to Report Concerns.
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Washington has followed best practices in speeding the testing of sexual assault kits and has implemented a kit tracking system, a new performance audit by the Office of the Washington State Auditor found. However, a backlog of untested kits remains.
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Working from home has many benefits, but it also brings additional risks because remote workers are more vulnerable to cybercrime than those who work in the office. SAO shares tips to help work-from-home employees keep households safe and secure from cyber threats.
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Keeping information safe and secure isn’t a new challenge for governments, but the COVID-19 pandemic, which forced governments to quickly shift to online or hybrid workplaces, has made the job tougher. If you haven’t had time to update your cybersecurity policies in light of the shift to remote and hybrid work, we offer four steps you can take now to better protect your government against cyberattacks.
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The Office of the Washington State Auditor has passed its external peer review, a rigorous independent examination of the Office’s quality control system and audit work conducted every three years.
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Janel Roper, the Office of the Washington State Auditor’s Director of Administrative Services, is a 2022 recipient of the Governor’s Award for Leadership in Management. The annual award recognizes extraordinary leadership in state government in the previous year.
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Attorney General Bob Ferguson announced Oct. 3 that 125 local governments in Washington will receive $215 million under a resolution with three companies found responsible for fueling the opioid epidemic.
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While breaches at large companies often dominate the headlines, cybercriminals are also hacking local and state governments, public and private universities, and school districts. We’ve put together some helpful information on what data breaches are and the steps you should take if you suspect or know you have experienced one.
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When it comes to thwarting cybercrime, everyone in your government has a role to play. Here are a few key best practices that you and your employees can implement today to protect your government.
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Today the Office of the Washington State Auditor released two first-of-their-kind audits related to law enforcement officers’ use of deadly force. The reports compare the investigations of such incidents to state rules and professional best practices.
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