SubscribeHomeland Security Training NYC Firefighters to Spy
February 19, 2008
“In New York City, the Department of Homeland Security is training New York City firefighters to assist in gathering intelligence information during routine inspections and emergencies.
In November, the Associated Press reported that in New York, Homeland Security was testing a program called the Fire Service Intelligence Enterprise (FSIE) to help identify “material or behavior that may indicate terrorist activities.”" (AlterNet)
DHS project delivers new malware capture method
February 19, 2008
“A project funded by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) promises to give security researchers a new way to kill botnets and targeted malware attacks before they infect computers.
This week, Endeavor Security plans to launch its Active Malware Protection (AMP) technology, which it developed as part of the DHS’s Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program, at a DHS-sponsored event. Endeavor delivers AMP as a software-as-a-service product.” (SC Magazine)
Amtrak to randomly screen bags and step up patrols
February 19, 2008
“Amtrak, the only long-haul passenger rail service in the United States, will for the first time randomly screen passengers’ bags and deploy armed security officers on trains and platforms, the railroad said on Monday night.
Details of the shift in security strategy at Amtrak will be released on Tuesday, but the railroad said the steps were not in response to any threat.” (Reuters)
Air Force says budgets are billions of dollars short of what’s needed
February 19, 2008
“Air Force officials are warning that unless their budget is increased dramatically, and soon, the military’s high-flying branch won’t dominate the skies as it has for decades.
After more than seven years of war in Afghanistan and Iraq, the Air Force’s aging jet fighters, bombers, cargo aircraft and gunships are at the breaking point, they say, and expensive, ultramodern replacements are needed fast.” (GovExec)
US, N Korea envoys meet in China
February 19, 2008
“The top US nuclear negotiator Christopher Hill has had a meeting in Beijing with his North Korean counterpart, Kim Kye-gwan.
The meeting was the first since North Korea missed a year-end deadline to submit a detailed declaration of its nuclear facilities.” (BBC News)
A Key Gap In Fighting Terrorism
February 15, 2008
“One of the most critical weapons in the fight against terrorists and other foreign intelligence threats — the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) — has not kept up with the technology revolution we have experienced over the past 30 years. We are on the brink of bringing this 20th-century tool in line with 21st-century technology and threats.” (Washington Post)
Britain is a ’soft touch’ for terrorism, defence institute says
February 15, 2008
“The world is living in “remission”, waiting for the next 9/11 terrorist attack, a report by the Royal United Services Institute said yesterday.
The next attack could deliver an “even greater psychological blow”, and Britain was in a poor state to deal with any new threat, the institute said.” (Times UK)
NYPD Warns of Chlorine Terror Risk
February 15, 2008
“Undercover police secretly set up a fake company to demonstrate how easily and anonymously a terrorist could purchase chlorine on the Internet for a deadly chemical strike against the city.
A videotape — presented Wednesday at a briefing of private security executives — discloses for the first time the results of “Operation Green Cloud” — a reference to the yellow-green color of chlorine gas.” (AP)
Border locals complain DHS uncompromising
February 15, 2008
“Border residents complained to a House panel Thursday that the Homeland Security Department has been unwilling to listen to them as it builds a security fence along the U.S-Mexico border.
The complaints stem from the federal government’s effort to build 700 miles of fence along the southern border, required by a 2006 law signed by President Bush. The Homeland Security Department wants to finish about 370 miles by the end of the year.” (Houston Chronicle)
EU Plans Biometric Border Checks
February 13, 2008
“It is a very 21st century conundrum: how can modern, open democracies provide basic homeland security in a world with nearly limitless mobility? On Wednesday, the European Commission tried to answer that by unveiling a border management plan calling for fingerprinting all foreign visitors to the European Union.
E.U. Justice Commissioner Franco Frattini said the electronic register scheme — which could be in place by 2015 — was needed to protect the E.U.’s external borders now that travelers can cross national boundaries without checks between the 25 E.U. countries that are part of the border-free ‘Schengen’ zone. (E.U. members Ireland and the U.K. aren’t in the zone, which does include non-members Iceland, Norway and Switzerland.)” (Time)
