Government
The House of Representatives approved legislation on Monday that would recalibrate the Department of Homeland Security’s cybersecurity and infrastructure security functions by establishing the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Agency (CISA), a standalone organization.
Under the Cybersecurity... Read More »
Thanks to cooperative efforts from Ugandan and Kenyan authorities working with international health organizations, an outbreak of Marburg virus disease has been contained in Uganda just a few weeks after its detection.
The reversal of fortunes has been praised by the World Health Organization,... Read More »
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) recently announced its end-of-year immigration enforcement numbers for New England for fiscal year 2017 (FY17).
“CBP officers at the ports of entry throughout New England are committed to enforcing the border security laws of our nation, which... Read More »
A self-propelled, semi-submersible vessel that was allegedly smuggling 3,800 pounds of cocaine was intercepted by Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Air and Marine Operations (AMO) last month near Corpus Christi, Texas.
During a multi-day operation, AMO crew used a P-3 Long Range Tracker... Read More »
Officials from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the Department of Defense (DoD), and the FBI testified before a Senate panel on Friday about evolving international terrorist threats and the impact of $582.8 million in proposed cuts to counterterrorism programs.
U.S. Sen. Claire... Read More »
Plants serve a variety of purposes ranging from food and medicine to clothing and furniture. And now they have a new use – in the Department of Defense (DOD).
The U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is working on a plan to use plants to gather intelligence information.... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and Mexico’s National Migration Institute (INM) recently launched a pilot program to collect and share biographic information on pedestrians leaving the United States for Mexico at the San Ysidro-El Chaparral Port of Entry.
The Joint Pedestrian Land... Read More »
The International Partnership for Nuclear Disarmament Verification (IPNDV) defined a Phase II program of work to increase the scope of its activities at its fifth plenary meeting recently held in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Phase II aims to emphasize the importance of verification ahead of the... Read More »
A new Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction (CWMD) Office within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will consolidate the efforts to thwart and counter WMD attacks, the department announced on Thursday.
DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen announced the creation of the CWMD Office, which will... Read More »
A Department of Homeland Security (DHS) proposal to begin consolidation of chemical, radiological, nuclear and explosives (CBRNE) functions this month does not reflect recommendations made by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) in August 2016.
Congress directed DHS to review its weapons... Read More »
A witness at a House subcommittee hearing on Thursday identified drone delivery of biological, chemical and nuclear weapons as one of the newest threats to homeland security, as lawmakers examined a proposal to reorganize and enhance U.S. defenses against weapons of mass destruction.
The... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) reported on Wednesday significant increases in seizures of cocaine and unreported currency at eight South Texas ports of entry in fiscal year (FY) 2017 as compared to FY2016.
CBP officers at the eight ports of entry from Brownsville to Del Rio that... Read More »
U.S. Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX) requested information this week about how many government agencies have complied with a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) directive to identify Kaspersky Labs software on government computers and to plan for its removal.
DHS Binding Operational Directive (BOD)... Read More »
The United States Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) launched a program this week to improve information sharing with financial institutions.
The FinCEN Exchange program will include regular briefings with financial institutions to share information on... Read More »
Legislation introduced in the House of Representatives on Tuesday would add chip technology to Medicare identification cards to better protect seniors and to prevent waste, fraud, and abuse.
Under the Medicare Common Access Card (CAC) Act, Medicare cards would use the same chip technology that... Read More »
Bipartisan leaders of the House Foreign Affairs Committee called on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and National Institutes of Health (NIH) on Tuesday to lead the investigation into sonic attacks on personnel at the U.S. Embassy in Havana, Cuba.
The State Department... Read More »
Customs and Border Protection officers at Arizona’s Port of Nogales recently arrested two individuals with “Trusted Traveler” status after finding drugs in their vehicles.
The two individuals were enrolled in the Secure Electronic Network for Travelers Rapid Inspection (SENTRI) program,... Read More »
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released Tuesday its end-of-year immigration enforcement statistics, which showed historically low border apprehension numbers but an increase in removals.
We have clearly seen the successful results of the President’s commitment to supporting the... Read More »
Efforts to enhance vetting of travelers to the United States, to intercept ISIS fighters fleeing Syria and Iraq, and to remain vigilant of “homegrown violent extremists” highlighted a Terror Threat Snapshot released by the House Department of Homeland Security on Tuesday.
Key developments... Read More »
The Bureau of Alcohol, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and Department of Justice (DoJ) initiated a regulatory process on Tuesday to determine if bump stocks are illegal under federal prohibitions on machineguns.
The ATF has submitted an advanced notice of proposed rulemaking to the Office of... Read More »
With billions of dollars flowing into a focus on artificial intelligence, China poses both a military and commercial threat to the United States where artificial intelligence is concerned, according to the Council on Foreign Relations.
While the exact amounts invested remain hazy, experts dub... Read More »
Mass amounts of marijuana and cocaine with an estimated street value of more than $1.3 million were recently intercepted by Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers at the Laredo Port of Entry in two separate seizures.
On Saturday, CBP officers found 53 pounds of cocaine hidden on a... Read More »
Despite gains made by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) in foreign airport assessments and air carrier inspections, a recent Government Accountability Office (GAO) study found “considerable regional variation” in compliance with security standards and recommended practices.... Read More »
Businesses would have to adhere to new customer notification requirements for data breaches under a bill introduced in the Senate on Thursday, and corporate employees could face new criminal penalties for deliberately concealing breaches.
Democratic members of the Senate Commerce, Science and... Read More »
During a 24-hour period last week, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers intercepted a total of 12,215 pounds of narcotics valued at more than $9.1 million at ports of entry along the California border with Mexico.
The officers seized 11,895 pounds of marijuana, 227 pounds of... Read More »
The Twenty-Second Session of the Conference of the States Parties to the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) recently appointed H.E. Ambassador Fernando Arias of Spain as the next director-general of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW).
Ambassador Arias will take over... Read More »
Efforts to modernize the Douglas Port of Entry in southeastern Arizona advanced on Friday with the General Services Administration (GSA) awarding a contract to Tuscon-based architectural firm Line and Space to conduct a feasibility study.
The feasibility study will aim to evaluate and identify... Read More »
With U.S. adversaries making steady gains in space capabilities in the decades following the first Gulf War, military leaders called for swifter action to secure U.S. space dominance and for reforms to procurement processes on Saturday.
Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson and Air Force Gen. John... Read More »
U.S. Border Patrol has effectively deployed surveillance technology like radars, sensors, and cameras along the southern border, but data quality and efforts to assess the effectiveness need to be improved, a recent Government Accountability Office (GAO) review found.
Although technology... Read More »
The Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America, with support from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, has published a new guidance document to aid hospitals’ response to disease outbreaks.
The new guide, published in Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology and titled,... Read More »
The response to the 2014 Ebola outbreak in Sierra Leone led to a less fragmented health system and the development of more effective mental health care services in the country, according to a World Health Organization (WHO) report released on Thursday.
Prior to the outbreak, one specialist... Read More »
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Acting Director Elaine Duke testified before a House committee on Thursday that the Diversity Visa Lottery Program is “rife with fraud,” backing a bill that would eliminate the program.
During a House Homeland Security Committee hearing, Duke said that... Read More »
Romania agreed to purchase Raytheon Co.’s Patriot integrated air and missile defense system from the U.S. Army on Wednesday, a move that sets the stage for contract negotiations between Raytheon and the U.S. government.
Under the letter of offer and acceptance that the Romanian government... Read More »
The National Nuclear Security Administration’s (NNSA) Radiological Assistance Program (RAP) team recently led three days of training on countering a potential nuclear threat for more than 70 local, state, and federal responders in Hawaii.
RAP held the event at the request of the state of... Read More »
A provision of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) used by the intelligence community to gather intelligence on terrorists located outside the United States would be amended under a bill introduced in the House of Representatives on Wednesday.
The FISA Amendments Reauthorization... Read More »
