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A bill that aims to strengthen the nation’s preparedness of its food, agriculture, and veterinary systems against terrorism and other high-risk events through the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) was recently signed into law by President Trump.
The bill was introduced by U.S. Rep.... Read More »
Following the international WannaCry ransomware attack, which has reportedly infected approximately 300,000 computer systems in more than 150 nations, a bipartisan group of lawmakers introduced a bill that aims to combat cyberattacks and cybercrime against U.S. computer networks.
The Promoting... Read More »
In the wake of a massive cyberattack that led to the closure of the largest terminal at the Port of Los Angeles, U.S. Rep. Norma Torres (D-CA) said she would be reintroducing a bill that aims to improve coordination between port landlords and tenants to address various cyber-related threats.
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Currently, Dr. Jeffrey Laskin, director of the Rutgers University CounterACT Research Center of Excellence, leads a team conducting research on the exposure and health effects of chemical warfare agents used by terrorists. The researchers are determined to develop medical... Read More »
To advance U.S. leadership in fighting threats against human health – potentially deadly threats that can be transmitted between people like HIV, malaria, tuberculosis and the Ebola and Zika viruses – requires Congress to “resolutely reject” the Trump administration’s proposed FY 2018... Read More »
U.S. Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI) recently introduced a series of amendments to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Reauthorization Act of 2017 that will help enhance the safety of airline passengers at local airports and ensure that relevant stakeholders are consulted when the FAA forms its new... Read More »
A bill that seeks to enhance Congressional oversight of future Guantanamo Bay (Gitmo) detainee transfers by closing a loophole that allowed the executive branch to keep secret the terms under which terrorist detainees were released was recently introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives by... Read More »
Joint efforts from university and federal researchers have prepared a checklist designed to help strengthen communities against infectious disease outbreaks – and what they’ve learned is it’s a messy web to navigate.
The report was prepared against the backdrop of the 2014 Ebola crisis,... Read More »
In a recent Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on the Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) gang and its role in proliferating illegal immigration along the country’s southern border, U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) addressed the fact that lawmakers need to tune out both the far left and far right of the... Read More »
In preparation for National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director Francis Collins’ testimony before the Senate Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Subcommittee on Appropriations, the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) released a public statement urging... Read More »
Efforts to protect the nation’s agriculture sector and food supply against terrorist attacks and high-risk events would be ratched up under a bill that the House approved on Monday.
The Securing Our Agriculture and Food Act, H.R. 1238, would direct the U.S. Department of Homeland Security... Read More »
Legislation from U.S. Rep. Dan Donovan (R-NY) that supports the nation’s efforts to prepare for and respond to terror attacks and emergencies cleared the House Homeland Security Committee last week as part of the Department of Homeland Security Authorization Act.
Donovan, who serves as... Read More »
In response to President Trump’s proposed FY2018 budget, which calls for approximately $847 million in cuts to grant programs administered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), U.S. Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) wrote a public letter that strongly urged against any cuts to the programs.... Read More »
In response to recent reports of an increase in assaults against law enforcement officials across the country, U.S. Sens. Claire McCaskill (D-MO) and Ron Johnson (R-WI) recently called for an investigation into ways to increase safety for agents within Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
... Read More »
As the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) locks in its budget priorities, on the potential chopping block is the National Biodefense Analysis and Countermeasures Center (NBACC)—a potentially devastating public health concern, one expert says.
That center, which aided governmental response... Read More »
The University of Nebraska Medical Center is transforming and centralizing infectious disease response and biodefense research with the creation of the Global Center for Health Security.
Such efforts are part of the brave new world of public health which, for years, has been plagued with... Read More »
Beginning this week, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) will be assessing new checkpoint screening technology at a designated TSA PreCheck lane at the Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in Atlanta.
The assessment is part of a proof-of-concept demonstration to evaluate both... Read More »
A Latvian man was recently extradited from Poland to face charges in Minneapolis regarding his involvement in a “scareware” hacking scheme, which targeted the website of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune and caused millions of dollars in losses.
Peteris Sahurovs, known by the hacker pseudonyms... Read More »
In a public letter to House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman U.S. Rep. Greg Walden (R-OR), a group of Democratic House members requested that the committee hold a hearing regarding the country’s ability to be prepared for and respond to various biological threats.
The group, which... Read More »
The International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) recently held an international counterterrorism meeting in Athens, Greece to discuss regional and global trends on foreign terrorist fighters (FTFs) and the threats they pose to their home countries.
The meeting was held under... Read More »
A bill that aims to strengthen Congressional oversight of sensitive military cyber operations and cyber weapons was recently introduced in the House by U.S. Reps. Adam Smith (D-WA), Mac Thornberry (R-TX), James Langevin (D-RI), and Elise Stefanik (R-NY).
In describing the bill, Smith said the... Read More »
After President Trump released his FY2018 budget, which called for cutting the number of Visible Intermodal Prevention and Response (VIPR) teams from 31 to just eight, U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-MO) publicly urged Secretary of Homeland Security John Kelly to maintain VIPR funding at current... Read More »
In recent tests of the Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), researchers from the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) observed radio chatter and flight data streams to help verify that the system could deliver a payload to target.
LLNL researchers were on hand at... Read More »
Members of the House Homeland Security Committee from both parties expressed opposition to the Trump administration’s proposed budget that would cut funding for training and deployment for local security programs by as much as 30 percent next year, even while the overall funding for the... Read More »
Persistent resource challenges combined with new and evolving cyber threats have limited various organization’s ability to defend themselves against cyber threats, according to a second installment of the Information Systems Audit and Control Association’s (ISACA) 2017 State of Cyber Security... Read More »
In the wake of the introduction of the Stop Dangerous Sanctuary Cities Act, which gives local police officers the ability to enforce federal immigration laws on undocumented immigrants, the National League of Cities (NLC) released a public statement coming out strongly against the legislation.
... Read More »
U.S. Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and Edward Markey (D-MA) recently sent a public letter to Secretary of Homeland Security John Kelly requesting information regarding airline bag fees and their impact on screening procedures within the Transportation Security Administration (TSA).
The letter... Read More »
A former member of the U.S. Air Force, Tairod Nathan Webster Pugh, was recently sentenced to 35 years in prison after being found guilty of attempting to provide material support to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and obstruction of justice.
Pugh first traveled from Egypt to Turkey... Read More »
A bill to establish a bounty program where white hats, also known as ethical hackers, identify bugs in computer systems at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in order to strengthen cyber defenses was recently introduced in the Senate by U.S. Sens. Rob Portman (R-OH) and Maggie Hassan... Read More »
In response to the President’s recently-proposed fiscal year 2018 budget, which includes zeroing out funding for and closing the National Biodefense Analysis and Countermeasures Center (NBACC) in Frederick, Maryland, U.S. Rep. John K. Delaney (D-MD) used a public letter to come out strongly... Read More »
A bill that would establish a process for federal, state and local governments to work together to manage the use of recreational and commercial drones was recently introduced in the Senate by U.S. Sens. Tom Cotton (R-AR), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Mike Lee (R-UT), and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT).
... Read More »
A leadership spot at the highest level in the United States government would be best positioned to harness and focus available resources and influence governors and the private sector on a common biodefense vision, a Texas A&M University (TAMU) international affairs expert said this... Read More »
In the wake of the deadly bombing in Manchester, England, which killed 22 people and injured dozens more, U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-NM) strongly warned against President Trump’s proposed FY2018 budget cuts to critical Transportation Security Administration (TSA) programs that safeguard... Read More »
Two bills that seek to improve law enforcement training and enhance information sharing in combating cyber terror threats were recently advanced by the U.S. House of Representatives.
The Strengthening State and Local Cyber Crime Fighting Act of 2017, authored by U.S. Rep. John Ratcliffe... Read More »
The United States appears ill-prepared to deal with a Zika virus outbreak although the nation’s federal public health agencies have learned valuable information during the last few years about the disease, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) says in a new report released on Tuesday to... Read More »
