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CBS/AP) The FBI's $581 million effort to modernize its antiquated computer system to help prevent terrorist attacks has suffered a serious reversal, the Los Angeles Times reports.
The newspaper, citing unidentified sources, says the centerpiece of that effort - a $170 million computer software program called "Virtual Case File" - is already viewed as inadequate and outdated by FBI officials.
The newspaper said the Bureau may seek proposals for a new software system in the spring. The software was expected to be completed by the end of 2003, but the FBI is no longer giving an estimate on when it might be ready.
Sen. Judd Gregg, R-N.H., told the Times that the abandonment of the system would be a "stunning reversal of progress. If the software has failed … that sets us back a long way."
Judd is the chairman of the Senate subcommittee that oversees FBI funding.
The software system was developed by Science Applications International Corp. of San Diego. The newspaper said the firm had declined to comment on the matter apart from indicating that it had "successfully completed" delivery of initial version of the software last month.
The Virtual Case File system has been on the ropes for months.
Last May, an outside report by technology experts for the National Research Council concluded that the software "is not now and unlikely to be an adequate tool for counterterrorism analysis because (it) was designed with criminal investigation requirements in mind."
The council's report pointedly criticized plans to allow agents to begin using Virtual Case File - a system aimed at letting investigators anywhere in the world quickly share information - before it has been rigorously field-tested. The council called that "highly risky" and "nearly guaranteed to cause mission-critical failures and further delays."
The council is a nonprofit research board operating under the National Academies of Science.
The FBI's overhaul of its antiquated computer system has progressed very slowly. It was launched in November 2000 with an estimated $380 million price tag and a completion date of 2003. The price tag has risen to $581 million, and there is now no target date for completion.
©MMV, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.The Associated Press contributed to this report.
The newspaper, citing unidentified sources, says the centerpiece of that effort - a $170 million computer software program called "Virtual Case File" - is already viewed as inadequate and outdated by FBI officials.
The newspaper said the Bureau may seek proposals for a new software system in the spring. The software was expected to be completed by the end of 2003, but the FBI is no longer giving an estimate on when it might be ready.
Sen. Judd Gregg, R-N.H., told the Times that the abandonment of the system would be a "stunning reversal of progress. If the software has failed … that sets us back a long way."
Judd is the chairman of the Senate subcommittee that oversees FBI funding.
The software system was developed by Science Applications International Corp. of San Diego. The newspaper said the firm had declined to comment on the matter apart from indicating that it had "successfully completed" delivery of initial version of the software last month.
The Virtual Case File system has been on the ropes for months.
Last May, an outside report by technology experts for the National Research Council concluded that the software "is not now and unlikely to be an adequate tool for counterterrorism analysis because (it) was designed with criminal investigation requirements in mind."
The council's report pointedly criticized plans to allow agents to begin using Virtual Case File - a system aimed at letting investigators anywhere in the world quickly share information - before it has been rigorously field-tested. The council called that "highly risky" and "nearly guaranteed to cause mission-critical failures and further delays."
The council is a nonprofit research board operating under the National Academies of Science.
The FBI's overhaul of its antiquated computer system has progressed very slowly. It was launched in November 2000 with an estimated $380 million price tag and a completion date of 2003. The price tag has risen to $581 million, and there is now no target date for completion.
©MMV, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.The Associated Press contributed to this report.