FBI Broadens Scope of Replacement IT Project

Computerworld - FBI Director Robert Mueller last week disclosed more details about the agency's plan to develop a replacement for the unfinished case-management system it scrapped in March, saying that some other existing applications will also be replaced as part of the project.
The new system, called Sentinel, is due to be rolled out in four stages beginning late next year, Mueller told a Senate appropriations subcommittee. The FBI expects to have the full system in place by early 2009.
Sentinel will incorporate the case management functions that were supposed to be supported by the Virtual Case File system, which the FBI shelved after a four-year, $170 million development effort .
In addition, the new system will eventually replace applications that the FBI uses to manage criminal informants and track bank-robbery statistics, Mueller said. He noted that Sentinel will support XML technology for data-sharing purposes.
The FBI doesn't yet have a cost estimate for the project, according to an FBI official who asked not to be identified. She said the system likely will be based on commercial software that has been tweaked to improve its security. The agency plans to issue a formal request for proposals to IT vendors by midyear.
The FBI is "confident we're in a lot better position for the future" with Sentinel, the official said. "The capabilities will go well beyond Virtual Case File."
In written testimony to the Senate subcommittee, Mueller said the FBI will be able to gradually add IT capabilities with Sentinel. "We will roll out key technical services in phases, such as records and case management capabilities, to smoothly transition into the new system while retiring legacy applications," he wrote.
Gross writes for the IDG News Service.