Here is today’s federal cybersecurity and information technology news:

• The Department of Justice is developing biometric smartcards that will provide access to buildings, cloud databases, and mobile applications without a password. More here.
• The Office of Naval Research is pursuing several projects to improve weather forecasting through next-generation weather models. More here.
• LinkedIn is working with the Federal Bureau of Investigation to investigate the attack that resulted in 6.5 million stolen passwords. More here.
• The Department of Defense is looking to buy passive radio frequency identification tags, readers and software to track the movement and location of supplies. More here.
• The North American Electric Reliability Corp and electric utilities want the Department of Homeland Security to issue more security clearances to executives for cybersecurity information sharing. More here.
• The Department of Energy is investigating allegedly hostile attempts by private firms to access its website when market-moving economic data are released to the public. More here.
• The Navy Bureau of Medicine is working on obtaining  a Wi-Fi based Real-Time Locations System to track medical equipment in its hospitals and clinics worldwide. More here.
• Former top military and intelligence officials are calling on the Senate to pass cybersecurity legislation that protects critical infrastructure. More here.