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A bill, authored by U.S. Reps. Jim Langevin (D-RI) and John Ratcliffe (R-TX), to strengthen collaborative cybersecurity research initiatives between the United States and Israel was signed into law last week.
The bill, titled the United States-Israel Advanced Research Partnership Act of 2016,... Read More »
As the prevalence of smart meters has grown in recent years, utilities are now grappling with cybersecurity challenges presented by the need to protect large volumes of data.
The potential for security breaches can rise exponentially as more smart meters are implemented into utilities systems.... Read More »
President Barack Obama signed last week the Northern Border Security Review Act, which passed Congress with bipartisan support and aims to assess and strengthen security at the U.S. border with Canada.
The legislation would require the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to evaluate... Read More »
The First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet) released this week an outline for a public-private partnership to deploy the Nationwide Public Safety Broadband Network (Network), with provisions to ensure progress on key network components within the first 100 days of the new partnership.
The... Read More »
The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) recently began a fact-finding mission in Syria in the wake of allegations that chemical weapons have been used in the area of Uqayribat in the Hama Governate in Syria.
The area in question has been linked to the control of the... Read More »
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) recently began posting notices at airports to inform travelers that the agency will begin enforcing REAL ID requirements at airport security checkpoints beginning in Jan. 2018.
The REAL ID program stipulates that any traveler suing their... Read More »
The International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) recently held its 17th Global Programme on Anti-Corruption, Financial Crimes and Asset Recovery in Colombia, which focused on combating financial crimes associated with cocaine trafficking in Latin America.
The course drew more than 40... Read More »
President-elect Donald J. Trump recently selected General John Kelly as his nomination for Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
While serving as Commander of the U.S. Southern Command, Kelly oversaw U.S. military operations in Central and South America as well as the... Read More »
According to a recent report by the Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI), governments, industry and international organizations alike must accelerate response efforts to protect against cyberattacks to protect against catastrophic consequences.
The report, titled Outpacing Cyber Threats: Priorities... Read More »
Emergent Biosolutions said on Thursday it signed a $911 million contract with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to supply vaccines to the Strategic National Stockpile to bolster U.S. national preparedness efforts in the event of a biological attack.
The global biopharmaceutical... Read More »
The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) took action earlier this week to impede financial support networks of the terrorist group al-Qa’ida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP).
The department designated AQAP leaders Al-Hasan Ali Ali Abkar and Abdallah Faysal... Read More »
The Alliance for Biosecurity commended the U.S. Senate’s passage of the 21st Century Cures Act, which contains provisions to promote innovation and efficiency in the development of new medical countermeasures.
A key issue the organization cited in the bill was a provision for the development... Read More »
U.S. Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX), chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, released the December Terror Threat Snapshot earlier this week. The “snapshot” is a monthly assessment, which describes the growing terrorist threats the United States and its allies face from ISIS and other... Read More »
The U.S. House of Representatives recently passed the State Department Authorities Act, a bill to strengthen embassy security, enhances congressional oversight and advances multiples reforms within the U.S. State Department.
Much of the bill centers on the use of “best value” criteria when... Read More »
Multiple provisions introduced by U.S. Rep. Martha McSally (R-AZ) were included in the recently passed FY2017 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). They included full funding for two aircraft at the Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, the A-10 and EC-130H Compass Call, and stronger retention and... Read More »
Science Applications International Corp. (SAIC) was recently awarded a contract by the Naval Supply Systems Command Fleet Logistics Center to support the Joint Staff J6 Directorate’s command, control, communications and computers (C4), and cyber program.
The contract covers a five-year period... Read More »
U.S. Sen. Steve Daines (R-MT) recently said his amendment to elevate the U.S. Cyber Command (CYBERCOM) to a Combatant Command has been included in the 2017 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).
U.S. Cyber Command is currently a subordinate unit to U.S. Strategic Command, which was developed... Read More »
The European Commission (EC) recently proposed a European Defense Fund, which would support more efficient spending by Member States in joint defense capabilities and strengthen European citizens’ security.
“To guarantee our collective security, we must invest in the common development of... Read More »
Leidos recently received a $66 million delivery order from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to supply mobile scanning systems for vehicles and cargo to help officers identify illegal materials when facilitating international trade.
The order... Read More »
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) was recently informed that a resident of Brownsville, Texas, was diagnosed with the Zika virus without any other known risk factors, which suggests the virus may have been locally transmitted.
The recent diagnosis represents the first... Read More »
Legislation to protect first responders from anthrax exposure in the event of a biological attack passed the House on Tuesday and will now go to President Barack Obama to be signed into law.
The First Responder Anthrax Preparedness Act would authorize a pilot program for the Department of... Read More »
According to the Nuclear Threat Initiative, the Center for Nonproliferation Studies (CNS) recently called upon the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (BWC) to address security issues related to major developments in gene drive systems at its upcoming review conference.
Gene drive systems... Read More »
Bavarian Nordic A/S recently completed its enrollment of a Phase 3 clinical study designed to demonstrate non-inferiority between the company’s investigational, non-replicating smallpox vaccine called Imvamune and ACAM2000, the current U.S.-licensed and replicating smallpox vaccine.
The U.S.... Read More »
House Homeland Security Committee Chairman U.S. Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX) recently decried actions by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) that resulted in the mishandling of thousands of green cards over the past three years.
According to a DHS Office of the Inspector General (OIG)... 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 »
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 »
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 »
U.S. Sens. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) and Gary Peters (D-MI) expressed their concerns regarding recent changes to the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) station in northeast lower Michigan.
The agent at the Alpena County CBP station is retiring and CBP does not plan to hire a new agent for the... Read More »
U.S. Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX), chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, said in a November terror threat snapshot that the growing threat of ISIS’ messaging continues to resonate in America, while the terror group targets the West at an alarming rate.
So far this year, 34 people... 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 »
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 »
Members of the European Parliament’s Transport and Tourism Committee (MEPs) approved plans to update EU civil aviation safety standards on Thursday, implementing revisions that aim to address emerging risks and establish EU-level requirements for drones.
The updated plans would transfer... Read More »
U.S. Rep. Greg Walden (R-OR), chairman of the House Subcommittee on Communications and Technology, and U.S. Rep. Michael C. Burgess (R-TX), chairman of the House Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing and Trade recently scheduled a joint hearing on Nov. 16 to examine the role of connected devices... Read More »
A new study, which could lead to the development of vaccines to prevent the spread of the Zika virus, has found that administering a human antibody to both pregnant female and male mice neutralizes the virus.
Researchers isolated immune B cells from the blood of three people who contracted Zika... Read More »
