Government
Members of the House Homeland Security Committee pressed David Pekoske, the newly confirmed administrator of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), on how quickly the country could integrate computed tomography (CT) scanners into every airport in the country to thwart threats at a... Read More »
The House Homeland Security Committee majority staff released a new report reviewing the nation’s network of fusion centers, hubs for sharing information related to security between federal, state and local government entities.
The new report, Advancing the Homeland Security Information... Read More »
As Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands continue to recover from the devastating effects of Hurricanes Irma and Maria, a group of Democratic U.S. Senators recently sent a letter to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Brenda Fitzgerald requesting information on the... Read More »
The Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) recently announced its Digital and Cyberspace Policy program is launching a Cyber Operations Tracker, a database of all publicly-known state-sponsored incidents that have occurred since 2005, in order to gain a better understanding of the current cyber threat... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers stationed at various ports of entry in California recently intercepted 314 pounds of illicit narcotics and arrested 14 fugitives over multiple incidents.
From Friday, Nov. 3 through Sunday, Nov. 5, California CBP officers seized more than 181... Read More »
The Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force will continue its efforts help state and local police departments and prosecutors prevent, investigate and respond to technology-enabled crimes against children under a bill signed into law on Friday.
Established in 2008, the ICAC Task... Read More »
The labs working to protect the United States from hazardous pathogens are themselves in need of oversight updates, according to the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), owing to several lapses in safety.
The labs in question--overseen by the Federal Select Agent Program--amount to more... Read More »
A vulnerability recently identified in the Wi-Fi Protected Access II (WPA2) protocol that secures most wireless network traffic highlights the critical nature of Department of Homeland Security (DHS) information sharing, according to a recent DHS release.
Jeanette Manfra, the assistant... Read More »
State and local law enforcers will continue to receive specialized training to incorporate cyber and digital tools into criminal investigations following the President’s signed a bill last week that formally authorizes the National Computer Forensics Institute (NCFI).
The NCFI has trained... Read More »
In a recent report and testimony, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) recommended that the Department of Energy (DOE) take a leading role in a collaborative interagency effort on research into low-dose radiation’s health effects.
GAO identified seven federal agencies that obligated... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport this week intercepted $509,700 in counterfeit U.S. $100 bills that a 62-year-old U.S. Citizen arriving from Peru attempted to hide in his luggage.
“This seizure demonstrates how U.S. Customs... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents helped rescue two people on Tuesday who were injured while hiding in El Paso’s storm drain system after reportedly entering the United States illegally.
CBP’s Confined Space Entry Team (CSET) was deployed following a report on Monday that five... Read More »
The first nationwide public safety broadband network, known as FirstNet, secured partnership commitments from about half of the states and two U.S. territories by the end of October, according to testimony before a congressional panel on Wednesday.
Members of the House Energy and Commerce... Read More »
Thirty private sector and government stakeholders would reimburse U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) for providing additional cross-border trade and travel inspection services under tentative partnership agreements announced on Tuesday.
The Reimbursable Services Program (RSP) was launched... Read More »
State-run election systems would be deemed critical infrastructure, and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) would be enlisted to protect registration data, voting systems, and ballots from foreign interference, under bipartisan legislation introduced in the Senate on Tuesday.
The Securing... Read More »
U.S. Border Patrol announced Tuesday the appointment of Felix Chavez as the new Chief Patrol Agent of the Del Rio Sector, effective Oct. 29.
As Chief Patrol Agent, Chavez will manage nine stations and more than 1,500 agents and support staff. He will also oversee 210 miles of border and over... Read More »
New York City first responders conducted this week a critical incident training exercise and tested new technologies provided by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) at Grand Central Station.
The New York Police Department (NYPD), the Fire... Read More »
Members of U.S. House of Representatives Homeland Security Committee held a field hearing last week on port security at the Port of Los Angeles.
The hearing, titled Examining Physical Security and Cybersecurity at our Nation’s Ports, included testimony from representatives from the Coast... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers stationed at the Brownsville Port of Entry in Texas recently intercepted five shipments of narcotics over separate incidents.
The first seizure occurred on Oct. 20 at the port’s Veterans International Bridge when officers encountered a 2010... Read More »
A recent report from the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) revealed that there is an overlap in the missions and membership within a number of U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) emergency communications organizations because each of them promotes interoperable emergency... Read More »
Sen. Edward J. Markey (D-MA) and Rep. Ted W. Lieu
(D-CA) recently introduced bicameral legislation that would create a voluntary cybersecurity certification program for Internet of Things (IoT) devices.
“The IoT will also stand for the Internet of Threats unless we put in place appropriate... Read More »
Vice President Mike Pence and Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson recently joined U.S. Sen. John Hoeven (R-ND) for a review of the dual-nuclear missions of the Minot Air Force Base in North Dakota to highlight the central role the nation’s nuclear triad plays as a deterrent for threats to global... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Office of Field Operations (OFO) officers stationed at the Hidalgo/Pharr/Anzalduas Port of Entry in Texas recently seized more than $480,000 worth of alleged cocaine in separate incidents.
On Oct. 24, officers assigned to the port’s Pharr International... Read More »
In observance of National Cybersecurity Awareness Month, the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) recently called upon more people to consider careers in cybersecurity as part of a push to fill more than 209,000 unfulfilled cybersecurity jobs in the United States.
“We are focused on... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) recently announced that the six companies tasked with building prototypes for a southern border wall completed construction in San Diego, California.
CBP will now test and evaluate the eight prototypes over a 30 to 60-day period to determine which... Read More »
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) recently began implementing enhanced screening procedures for carry-on items at the Orlando International Airport (MCO).
TSA personnel will now require travelers passing through standard screening lanes to remove electronics larger than a cell... Read More »
A bill that aims to strengthen American security at airports in Cuba and on commercial flights between the two countries was recently introduced to the Senate by U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL).
The Cuban Airport Security Act would require the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to... Read More »
Sen. John Hoeven (R-ND) announced Wednesday that Vice President Mike Pence will visit the Minot Air Force Base in Ward County, North Dakota, today to review the base’s dual-nuclear missions.
Pence will also meet the base’s leadership and address the airmen during the visit Minot, which is... Read More »
A group of 28 Senators led by Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) to require private sellers to conduct background checks for the sale or transfer of firearms, with certain exceptions.
The requirements of the Background Check Expansion Act would apply to all unlicensed sellers, whether they sell firearms... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents stationed at the Falfurrias Checkpoint in Texas recently seized more than 80 pounds of cocaine and 60 pounds of marijuana and rescued 52 undocumented immigrants over four separate incidents.
Beginning on Oct. 20, agents assigned to the checkpoint... Read More »
President Donald Trump announced Tuesday the implementation of updated security measures for refugees entering the United States, including, but not limited to, increased data collection, improved information sharing between agencies, and new training procedures for screeners.
The changes come... Read More »
The House Energy and Commerce Committee’s Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations held a hearing Tuesday to examine the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) preparedness for and response to Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria.
The hearing follows a recent bipartisan... Read More »
A bipartisan bill that seeks to combat the growing opioid epidemic in the United States was advanced this week by the U.S. House of Representatives.
Authored by U.S. Reps. Niki Tsongas (D-MA) and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA), the International Narcotics Trafficking Emergency Response by Detecting... Read More »
A bill that seeks to improve information sharing and cooperation in addressing cybersecurity risks at the nation’s ports was recently unanimously advanced by the U.S. House of Representatives.
Authored by U.S. Rep. Norma Torres (D-CA), the Strengthening Cybersecurity Information Sharing and... Read More »
Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis and his 10 counterparts from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations’ (ASEAN) Defense Ministers Meeting-Plus met Monday at the former Clark Air Base in the Philippines to discuss mutual security challenges and their multilateral defense cooperation.
Mattis... Read More »
