Countermeasures
The University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB), in conjunction with the Southwest University in Chongqing, China and the University of Lueven in Belgium, recently developed a way to replicate the basic structure of the Zika virus without the genes that make the virus infectious.
The research... Read More »
The International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL) recently held a two-day workshop in Manila, Philippines on simplifying visa procedures for both Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and non-ASEAN nationals.
The workshop featured presentations from government, law enforcement,... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) recently opened a new temporary holding facility in Tornillo-Guadalupe, Texas in response to a recent surge in illegal border crossings by migrants along the southwest border of the United States.
The facility, housed at the CBP Tornillo-Guadalupe Port... Read More »
United Nations (UN) member states recently adopted a resolution by consensus to further strengthen collaboration between the UN and Interpol against transnational crime and terrorism.
Member states discussed issues related to counterterrorism during the 71st session of the UN General Assembly,... Read More »
The Edgewood Chemical Biological Center (ECBC) recently conducted a demonstration for U.S. senators on the latest defense technology: a state-of-the art head-mounted, augmented reality (AR) display.
ECBC initially developed the AR headset to be used for military training, however, the center... Read More »
According to a recent study by the University of North Carolina (UNC) at Chapel Hill, a particular malaria parasite affecting children in Africa is evading rapid diagnostic tests (RDT), threatening malaria eradication efforts.
Most RDTs rely on the detection of histidine-rich protein 2 (HRP2),... Read More »
A coalition of local and national agencies recently took part in a four-day, full-scale exercise in Omaha, Nebraska to evaluate and test the ability to provide international medical transport for multiple patients with a highly infectious disease.
The drill was developed by the National... Read More »
According to a new study conducted by the Stanford University School of Medicine, approximately 25 percent of individuals in a Sierra Leone village were infected with Ebola virus disease but showed no symptoms, which suggests a broader transmission of the virus than originally thought.
The... Read More »
As advancements are made in biotechnology and the treatment of diseases, the U.S. government must strengthen its security to combat the threat of states or individuals potentially launching a biological attack, argues the president’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST).
In a... Read More »
The U.S. Senate passed a bipartisan bill introduced by U.S. Sens. Kelly Ayotte (R-NH), Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Chris Coons (D-DE) that makes anthrax vaccines available to first responders.
The First Responder Anthrax Preparedness Act has been endorsed by the International Association of Fire... Read More »
The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) Ambassador Ahmet Üzümcü recently met with the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Worship of Costa Rica H.E. Alejandro Solano Ortiz to discuss a range of issues related to chemical weapons disarmament and the Chemical Weapons... Read More »
The House Subcommittee on Communications and Technology and the House Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing and Trade held a joint hearing on Wednesday that examined the recent distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) on Internet of Things (IoT) connected devices.
On Oct. 21, hackers infiltrated... Read More »
According to a recent clinical trial conducted by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the experimental Ebola virus disease (EVD) treatment ZMapp was found to be safe and well-tolerated amongst participants.
NIH said that while the treatment appeared to be effective for participants, the... Read More »
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) recently issued a guide for Internet of Things (IoT) cybersecurity to equip stakeholders with the knowledge to make risk-based decisions as they design, manufacture and use internet-connected devices and systems.
DHS issued the set of strategic... Read More »
The Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI) is hosting an event this week in Virginia to bring together international government officials and nuclear industry experts to discuss radiological, nuclear and cyber security priorities.
The project was initially launched to define the Nuclear Security Summit... Read More »
The Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) and the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (ASTMH) recently released new guidelines for preventing and combating an emerging parasitic infection called leishmaniasis.
The leishmania parasite is found in approximately 90 percent of... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) recently began recruiting military veterans under veterans’ recruitment appointment (RA) announcements for multiple CBP positions at the Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) and the Los Angeles/Long Beach seaport complex.
The announcements began on... Read More »
The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons’ (OPCW) executive council on Friday voted to adopt a decision that condemns, in the strongest possible terms, the use of chemical weapons in the Syrian Arab Republic.
OPCW called on all parties identified in OPCW-United Nations Joint... Read More »
Daniel Espejo Amos, a former officer with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), was sentenced to 33 months in federal prison on Friday for taking tens of thousands of dollars in bribes.
Amos was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald on charges stemming from a... Read More »
The MITRE Corporation recently elected former U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers (R-MI) and Cathy E. Minehan to its board of trustees.
Rogers previously served as a U.S. House member from Michigan’s eighth congressional district for a total of seven terms. In the House, he worked as a member of the Energy... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) recently began recruiting military veterans under veterans’ recruitment appointment (RA) announcements for multiple CBP positions at the Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) and the Los Angeles/Long Beach seaport complex.
The announcements began on... Read More »
The National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS) recently awarded $596,533 to Collaborations Pharmaceuticals Inc. (CPI) to develop a partnership with the Texas Biomedical Research Institute to repurpose an antimalarial for use against the Ebola virus disease.
Since the beginning... Read More »
The U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) on Friday announced the selection of Rick Bright for the position of Deputy Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response, and Director of the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA).
“BARDA succeeds through... Read More »
The United States Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) recently took proactive steps to disrupt al-Nusrah Front’s military, recruitment and financing operations.
OFAC blocked all property and interests in property of four key al-Nusrah Front leaders —... Read More »
A lack of biometric data sharing regarding terrorist groups at the international level creates a security gap that could be exploited by returning foreign fighters, Interpol said on Wednesday.
The Interpol General Assembly has said the threat needs to be addressed quickly, especially given that... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers apprehended a double homicide suspect at the San Ysidro PedWest crossing in San Diego this week.
Pete Flores, the director of field operations for CBP in San Diego said, "CBP officers perform the crucial job of inspecting every person that enters... Read More »
The International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) held a training course this week in Cambodia that focused on identifying fraudulent security documents.
Training was conducted by Interpol’s Counterfeit Currency and Security Documents Unit. Participants were updated on the latest... Read More »
U.S. Reps. Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ) and Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) recently urged the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to take action regarding consumer protections and Internet of Things (IoT) devices following a massive distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack last month that caused outages of many... Read More »
The National Security Agency (NSA), along with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), recently designated eight academic institutions as NSA/DHS National Centers of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense.
The designation is part of the president’s Cybersecurity National Action Plan... Read More »
The National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA) recently appointed Sami Nassar and Masha Sedova to its board of directors.
Nassar currently serves as vice president of cybersecurity solutions for NXP Semiconductors, while Sedona is a senior director of trust engagement at Salesforce.
"Not only... Read More »
The Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI) and representatives from 20 countries recently gathered for the fourth plenary meeting of the International Partnership for Nuclear Disarmament Verification (IPNDV) in Abu Dhabi to discuss technical challenges involved with nuclear verification.
The meeting... Read More »
PPL Electric Utilities, Southern Company, Louisville Gas and Electric Company, Kentucky Utilities, and the Tennessee Valley Authority on Tuesday announced a new initiative designed to enhance the reliability of the power grid by providing additional sources for obtaining critical equipment... Read More »
The George Washington University (GW) Center for Cyber and Homeland Security recently released a report that offers an assessment of the legal, policy and technological issues that involve private sector cybersecurity and active defense measures in response to cyber threats.
The report said a... Read More »
U.S. Rep. Bennie G. Thompson (D-MS) recently sent a letter to U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Jeh Johnson stressing the importance of information sharing between government agencies and critical infrastructure companies.
Thompson’s letter comes in the wake of a massive... Read More »
The International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL) and the World Customs Organization (WCO) recently conducted a global counter-smuggling operation that resulted in the seizure of more than $460 million in cash and bearer negotiable instruments (BNIs) and approximately 300 weapons.
The... Read More »
