Government
The House of Representatives recently advanced 12 legislative proposals derived from recommendations from the Homeland Security Committee’s Task Force on Denying Terrorists Entry to the United States final report.
The legislation included various initiating designed to prevent terrorists from... Read More »
In two law enforcement actions, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers recently seized more than $1.04 million in marijuana and crystal methamphetamine.
The first seizure occurred Jan. 9 at the Juarez-Lincoln International Bridge between Mexico and Laredo, Texas. A non-intrusive... Read More »
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is focused on bolstering its efforts to stop cybercriminals and hackers, said FBI Director Christopher Wray.
“Today, we live much of our lives online, and we're in a situation where just about everything that is important to us lives on the Internet.... Read More »
U.S. Sens Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Cory Gardner (R-CO) recently introduced the Wildfire Management Technology Advancement Act of 2017, which seeks to modernize fire departments by requiring the Forest Service and the Department of the Interior to provide GPS locators for crews fighting... Read More »
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently announced that the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has failed to verify some licenses for radiological shipments through U.S. airports.
Warning that such material as contained within these shipments could be used by terrorists to make... Read More »
A bill introduced in the House of Representatives Wednesday would authorize construction of a border wall, invest in new technology and expand ports of entry, and add 5,000 Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) agents.
The Securing America's Future Act would also require the use of a biometric... Read More »
The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) took part in a field training exercise earlier this month with the U.S. Agency for International Development’s (USAID) Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA) to test the agencies’ response to radiological or nuclear incidents.
If an... Read More »
U.S. Border Patrol, U.S. Coast Guard (USCG), and the Puerto Rico Police Department (PRPD) recently intercepted two vessels carrying 40 undocumented aliens from the Dominican Republic and Haiti attempting to illegally enter Puerto Rico near the island’s west coast.
“Sustained collaborations... Read More »
The number of wireless network outages increased from 189 in 2009 to 1,079 in 2016, making safety-related communications like calling 911 and receiving weather alerts increasingly unavailable to the public, a recent Government Accountability Office (GAO) review found.
The increase in wireless... Read More »
A working group consisting of government officials, private-sector representatives, academics, and veterinarians would be formed to develop standards for breeding and training dogs to detect explosives under a bill that the House of Representatives approved on Tuesday.
The Domestic Explosives... Read More »
The Department of Homeland Security would be directed to draft best practices for using biographic traveler information and information about reservations and itineraries for counterterrorism screening under a bill introduced in the House of Representatives on Tuesday.
The Screening and Vetting... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers from the Area Port of Philadelphia recently seized 709 pounds of cocaine, the largest local cocaine load in 10 years, which they found concealed inside cabinets shipped from Puerto Rico.
The cocaine load, which has an estimated street value of... Read More »
The Defense Advanced Research Agency (DARPA) selected Tucson-based Raytheon Company Monday to complete development of software that enables unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) to leverage collaborative autonomy to perform long-distance engagements in contested battle spaces.
After successful flight... Read More »
El Centro Sector Border Patrol agents assigned to the Highway 111 checkpoint recently discovered 6.44 pounds of methamphetamine with an estimated street value of $22,540 strapped to a 14-year-old girl’s chest.
The girl, an American citizen, arrived at the checkpoint as a passenger in a vehicle... Read More »
Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) officers at eight ports of entry extending from Brownsville to Del Rio, Texas, seized $12.1 million in narcotics, arrested 80 fugitives and blocked more than 3,500 inadmissible entries due to immigration law violations over the holiday season.
From Dec. 15 to... Read More »
The FCC’s forthcoming proposal to improve wireless emergency alerts will focus on making geographical targeting more precise so alerts can be used more effectively in local emergencies and disasters, the commission announced on Monday.
The FCC’s full proposal to revamp the wireless... Read More »
A request for innovators (RFI) has been released by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T), officially beginning the search for partners on emergency response technology development by 2020.
There are three projects on which the department is... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) recently released an update to its directive regarding border searches of electronic devices, which was designed to enhance the transparency, accountability, and oversight of the searches.
CBP currently searches the electronic devices of fewer than... Read More »
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) screened a record number of passengers during the 2017 holiday travel period, Dec. 15, 2017, through Jan. 2, 2018.
TSA officers screened 42 million passengers and more than 30.6 million checked bags screened nationwide. Dec. 22 was the busiest day... Read More »
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) launched a new program last week that aims to predict and prevent cross-species transmission of viral diseases to bolster military readiness.
The program, called Preventing Emerging Pathogenic Threats (PREEMPT), will explore how pathogens... Read More »
Four U.S. citizens were arrested and charged with providing material support to ISIS in December, marking an uptick in the number of cases of homegrown terrorism, according to an assessment released by the House Homeland Security Committee on Friday.
The Terror Threat Snapshot indicates that... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers at the Dallas Fort Worth (DFW) International Airport recently seized more than 65 pounds of liquid methamphetamine with an estimated value of $297,000.
The shipment was sent from China to Memphis, Tennessee, and was destined for Fort Worth,... Read More »
U.S. Sen. John Hoeven (R-ND) made the case last Thursday that North Dakota should serve a hub for federal efforts to integrate more unmanned aerial systems (UAS) into northern border security.
In a meeting with officials from the Department and Homeland Security (DHS) and Customs and Border... Read More »
Five businesses tied to Shahid Bakeri Industrial Group (SBIG), which plays a key role in Iran’s ballistic missile program, were sanctioned last week by the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).
The five businesses — Shahid Kharrazi Industries, Shahid Sanikhani... Read More »
North Korea denies claims made in the Trump administration’s recently released National Security Strategy that it “has spent hundreds of millions of dollars on nuclear, chemical and biological weapons” nor that it has researched “chemical and biological weapons which could be delivered by... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers from the Champlain Port of Entry and U.S. Border Patrol agents from the Champlain Station recently intercepted a human smuggling operation.
The incident resulted in the arrest of one subject for criminal alien smuggling and two subjects for... Read More »
More than 4,735 pounds of cocaine was intercepted in the Caribbean Sea over a three-day period in December as part of Operation Full Court Press, which is being led by Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Air and Marine Operations (AMO).
Operation Full Court Press is an interagency effort to... Read More »
Tucson Sector Border Patrol agents assigned to the Ajo Station and Pima County Sheriff Department deputies recently arrested two Mexican nationals and one U.S. citizen after a thwarted marijuana smuggling attempt near Ajo, Arizona.
Agents following up on a suspicious activity report along State... Read More »
In light of allegations that a Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) initiative targeting Hezbollah drug trafficking was improperly handled, Attorney General Jeff Sessions renewed his support of a full review.
The initiative, known as Project Cassandra, as launched in 2008 in response to evidence that... Read More »
A Tuscon, Arizona man was recently charged in U.S. District Court with the transportation of illegal aliens resulting in serious bodily injury, high-speed flight from a Border Patrol checkpoint, assault on a federal officer and use of a firearm
Court documents allege that Roberto Ramirez, 21,... Read More »
Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers used biometric verification to prevent a Ghanaian man posing as a U.S. citizen from entering the country at Washington Dulles International Airport on New Year’s Day.
The man, who had been denied U.S. travel visas in 2013 and 2016 because of fraud,... Read More »
In recognition of National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month, the Department of Defense(DoD) highlighted a program on Tuesday that trains military veterans to help law enforcers identify and curb online child exploitation.
Veterans who are wounded, ill or transitioning are trained... Read More »
New best practices recently released by the wireless industry group CTIA outline steps for local governments to help maintain and restore wireless services during natural disasters and emergencies.
The guidelines call for better coordination and communication between wireless service providers... Read More »
Experiencing an escalating threat level of chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) attacks across its region, the European Commission’s related preparedness plan is extremely important, a London-based expert recently told Homeland Preparedness News.
“I consider this to be... Read More »
All 50 states, the District of Columbia, and two U.S. territories accepted a Radio Access Network (RAN) buildout plan for the FirstNet wireless broadband network for first responders by the time a 90-decision period came to a close on Dec. 28.
Congress approved a bill establishing FirstNet in... Read More »
