Now online: - Social Security Administration: Update on Year 2000 and Other Key Information Technology Initiatives. T-AIMD-99-259. 24 pp. July 29, 1999. http://www.gao.gov/new.items/ai99259t.pdf Lots of good news. As we all know they started early and have been working hard. Done? Well, not quite. Snippet (pg. 6 of 20) Page 6 SSA Still Needs to Complete Critical Tasks to Ensure Year 2000 Readiness While SSA has been a Y2K leader, it must still complete several critical tasks to ensure its readiness for the year 2000. These tasks include  ensuring the compliance of all external data exchanges,
 completing tasks outlined in its contingency plans,
 certifying the compliance of one remaining mission-critical system,
 completing hardware and software upgrades in the Office of Telecommunications and Systems Operations, and
 correcting date field errors identified through the quality assurance process.
SSA reported as of mid-July that six of its external data exchanges were still in the process of being made Y2K compliant. In each instance, these include files that have been addressed by SSA but which need further action on the part of SSAs business partners to achieve Y2K compliance. For example, SSA transmits one file on cost-of-living adjustments to the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). While SSA has made the file compliant, VA must still complete its testing in order to receive the file in a Y2K compliant format. VA is scheduled to complete its testing in August. In addition, SSA is waiting to verify the successful transmission of three compliant files from Treasury regarding information on tax refund actions. SSA expects to verify the compliance of the Treasury files during the first week of August. SSA also still needs to verify the successful transmission of two Massachusetts death data files. SSA expects to complete this activity by the end of this week. Completing tasks in its contingency plans and coordinating with its own staff and its business partners to ensure the timely functioning of its core business operations is likewise critical. This includes coordinating with its benefit delivery partners on contingency actions for ensuring timely benefits payments. For example, SSA plans to assist Treasury in developing alternative disbursement processes for problematic financial institutions. SSA is also now in the process of testing all of its contingency plans, with expected completion in September. In addition, SSA must implement its day-one strategy, consisting of actions to be executed during the last days of 1999 and the first few days of 2000. SSA also has one remaining mission-critical stand-alone systemthe Integrated Image-Based Data Capture Systemwhich must still be certified as Y2K compliant. This system is used to scan and convert W-2 forms to electronic format for entry into the Annual Wage Reporting System. According to officials in SSAs Office of Systems, theSSA-developed application software has been renovated, tested, and implemented into production; however, SSA cannot certify the systems compliance until it has completed testing of the systems upgraded commercial off-the-shelf software used for tracking W-2 form data from the point of receipt to image scanning. This testing is not scheduled to conclude until late August. The installation of software and hardware upgrades in SSAs Office of Telecommunications and Systems Operations must also be completed. For example, SSA must install Internet browser patches for the IWS/LAN software by August. Finally, SSA must correct a number of date-field errors recently identified using its QA tool. SSA reported that as of July 23, 1999, it had assessed 92 percent (283 of 308) of its mission-critical applications (having a total of about 40 million lines of code), and that it had identified 1,565 date field errors. SSA is in the process of correcting these identified date problems. As of mid-July, it reported that 44 of the 283 applications had been corrected, recertified, and returned to production. SSA plans to correct, recertify, and implement all of its remaining applications by November, when it is scheduled to modify some mission-critical applications to reflect Title II benefit rate increases and Title XVI cost-of-living adjustments.

-- Linda (lwmb@psln.com), August 10, 1999

Answers

Linda,

As they used to say about Matadors in the bull ring and about Bridegrooms on the wedding night...

theMOMENT OF TRUTH is at hand.

It won't be long now!

-- K. Stevens (kstevens@It's ALL going away in January.com), August 10, 1999.

Also see this thread from December 28, 1998 about Social Security:

http://www.greenspun.com/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg.tcl?msg_id=000L3L

-- Linkmeister (link@librarian.edu), August 10, 1999.

Possible Situation: Grandma: (Check is late) You told me that I would get my check sonny! You told me y2k was hype, a non-event.

Sonny (a polly): Well ... Oh.... Um... I got it!! Don't panic. This is a people problem!! It's not a y2k problem!!

-- Larry (cobol.programmer@usa.net), August 10, 1999.

Ok, someone refresh my memory. Wasn't there a big ballyhoo a while back that SSA was 100% D-O-N-E, finished, completed with its Y2K remediation?

92% completion on ASSESSMENT of mission-critical apps is not "done".

44% of remediated apps returned to production (meaning 56% are still waiting to be "productionized") is not "done".

What the heck, over??

-- Mac (sneak@lurk.hid), August 10, 1999.

Herr Linkmeister -

Vielen dank fur das Link zum SSAthreaden gehapt gehapt gewesen.

(Anyone else out there enjoy Twain's "Innocents Abroad"? Another addition to the Y2K Library...)

-- Mac (sneak@lurk.hid), August 10, 1999.

The best indicator as to whether a department is going to make it is whether the .gov has publicly predicted said department being hacked, and thus far I don't think SSA's been mentioned?

-- Lisa (lisa@work.now), August 10, 1999.

Lisa, That's only because the only thing worse than a sheeple stampede is an AARPster stampede which would be started if .gov claimed that SSA was being hacked.

-- Puddintame (achillesg@hotmail.com), August 10, 1999.

What about all the people who are having their SS checks automatically deposited into their banks? Scarey!!

-- thinkIcan (thinkIcan@make.it), August 10, 1999.

Lisa commented:

"The best indicator as to whether a department is going to make it is whether the .gov has publicly predicted said department being hacked, and thus far I don't think SSA's been mentioned? "

Lisa, very astute observation. I would also throw in the Fed's actions with regard to blaming state and municipal governments

Ray

-- Ray (ray@totacc.com), August 10, 1999.