Policy
House bill aims to improve coordination among federal agencies to track, target domestic terrorist groups
Federal agencies would be given new tools to track white supremacist and other extremist groups and to coordinate multi-agency efforts under a bill introduced in the House of Representatives on Tuesday. Under the Domestic Terrorism Prevention Act, H.R. 4918, the Department of Homeland Security,... Read More »
New York man sentenced to 18 years in prison for attacking federal agents, supporting ISIS
A New York man who pleaded guilty to charges of attempting to provide material support to ISIS and conspiring to attack federal agents was sentenced to 18 years in prison on Tuesday in federal court. Munther Omar Saleh, 22, was arrested in 2015 after he allegedly attacked an FBI agent who was... Read More »
Nuclear weapon modernization, environmental cleanup face funding shortfalls, GAO reports
The National Nuclear Security Administration’s (NNSA) plans to modernize the nation’s nuclear weapons is not supported by the administration’s budget, and Department of Energy (DoE) environmental cleanup could cost billions more than projected, according to a recent Government Accountability... Read More »
Spending stalemate has costs at Department of Homeland Security
Top officials at the Department of Homeland Security conceded Wednesday to a weariness and anxiety about the repeated congressional efforts to agree to a longtime spending plan, resulting in recurring threats of a government shutdown until a budget is voted. Elaine Duke, deputy secretary of DHS,... Read More »
Lawmakers support Homeland Security lab funding
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) recently joined 10 congressional colleagues in demonstrating support for funding of three Homeland Security labs. Officials said correspondence to the Senate and House Appropriations Committees backs full funding of the National Urban Security Technology Laboratory... Read More »
Science and Technology Directorate highlights role of its Coast Guard Search and Rescue Visual Analytics system
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Science and Technology Directorate recently issued a press release highlighting its Coast Guard Search and Rescue Visual Analytics (cgSARVA) system. cgSARVA, a visual, user-centered platform, helps USCG decision-makers identify boat stations most... Read More »
California engineer sentenced for economic espionage
Gregory Allen Justice, an engineer who worked for a cleared government contractor in California, was recently sentenced to five years in federal prison after pleading guilty to attempting to commit economic espionage, attempting to violate the Arms Export Control Act and violating the International... Read More »
Senate bill aims to establish framework for US law enforcers to access information stored overseas
A framework would be established for law enforcers to legally access email communications stored on overseas cloud-based servers, and U.S. officials would be authorized to negotiate bilateral data sharing agreements with foreign countries, under a Senate bill announced on Monday. The Clarifying... Read More »
US, Canadian homeland security leaders eye raising global standards
A meeting between Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen and Canada’s Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Ralph Goodale on Monday focused on raising global security standards. Nielsen and Goodale discussed standards pertaining to cyber security, counterterrorism,... Read More »
Homeland Security chooses Booz Allen Hamilton as prime contractor for $621 million cybersecurity task order
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) recently selected Booz Allen Hamilton as the first prime contractor under the government-wide Continuous Diagnostics and Mitigation (CDM) Dynamic and Evolving Federal Enterprise Network Defense (DEFEND) Program. DHS gave Booz Allen a $621 million... Read More »
Treasury Department announces new sanctions on individuals, entities linked to Hezbollah
The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced new sanctions against six individuals and seven entities tied to Hezbollah on Friday in an effort to cripple the terrorist organization’s business operations. The six individuals targeted by OFAC sanctions, all... Read More »
IDSA, HIV Medicine Association capitalize on State of the Union to push for raise in budget caps, DACA action
Pointing to pledges made in the State of the Union speech earlier this week, both the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) and HIV Medicine Association have asked Congress and President Donald Trump to raise budget caps for both defense and nondefense spending. Their reasoning is that... Read More »
Researchers calculate expected number of deaths, economic losses in rare pandemic scenarios
A new study published in the Bulletin of the World Health Organization found that the global spread of a serious infectious disease could cause 700,000 deaths and annual economic losses of US$500 billion. "Pandemic risk: How large are the expected losses” applied a theoretical model to... Read More »
DEA to data-target opioid prescribers, pharmacies fueling nationwide epidemic
The Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) will begin to aggregate and analyze data to identify and target prescribers and pharmacies moving unusually large amounts of opioid drugs, Attorney General Jeff Sessions recently announced. Sessions said a “surge” of DEA agents would be directed to the... Read More »
OPCW holds second workshop on Schedule 1 facilities
The Federal Office for Civil Protection (FOCP) of Switzerland recently hosted, in collaboration with the Technical Secretariat of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), the second workshop on Schedule 1 facilities at Spiez Laboratory in Switzerland. The workshop... Read More »USCIS reverts to “last in, first out” prioritization of asylum applications to root out fraud, abuse
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) recently announced that newer applications for asylum will be processed before older filings in an effort to mitigate potential fraud and abuse in the backlog of pending asylum applications, The asylum applications backlog had reached 311,000... Read More »
Incoming ECBC Director Moore outlines vision for the future
After being sworn in as the director of the U.S. Army Edgewood Chemical Biological Center (ECBC) on Thursday, Dr. Eric Moore called for effective partnerships with chemical and biological defense stakeholders, academia and industry to develop technologies of the future for warfighters. Moore,... Read More »
Israeli cybersecurity firms expanding to New York City
At Cybertech TLV, the largest convening of cybersecurity industries held in Tel Aviv, Israel, New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) President and CEO James Patchett announced three Israeli cybersecurity firms had committed to expanding to New York City. Israel-based investment... Read More »
Patriot partner nations to invest $235 million in Patriot Air and Missile Defense System upgrades
Raytheon announced Wednesday that will be upgrading its Patriot Air and Missile Defense System under a $235 million modernization task order from the U.S. Army. The U.S. Department of Defense announced the task order Monday. The United States and the other 13 Patriot partner nations that rely on... Read More »
Lawmakers question Strava’s data security practices
In response to reports that the fitness-tracking platform Strava shared user information that could be used to identify military installations, members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee sought information about company data security practices and potential changes on Wednesday. Strava... Read More »
FCC sets November 2019 deadline for more precise targeting of wireless emergency alert system
Wireless providers taking part in the wireless emergency alerts (WEA) system will be required to deliver notification more precisely to geographical areas that are affected by the warning under action taken by the FCC on Tuesday. The FCC will require participating wireless carriers to target... Read More »
House panel probes government’s role in protecting small businesses from cyber attacks
The FBI does not currently have a hard-and-fast threshold or indicators to determine the appropriate response when America’s small businesses face cyber attacks, according to testimony before a House panel on Tuesday. The House Small Business Committee convened a hearing to probe the federal... Read More »
GAO recommends improvements to management of nuclear weapons life extension programs
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) recommended on Tuesday that the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) begin to independently validate that life extension programs (LEPs) for nuclear weapons are meeting management best practices. Given that LEPs used to refurbish or replace... Read More »
Homeland Security Department announces new security procedures for Refugee Admissions Program
Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen M. Nielsen announced Monday additional security procedures and recommendations for the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP). The additions include additional screening for certain nationals of countries identified as high-risk, a periodic review and... Read More »
Government-wide personnel security clearance process lands on GAO’s “High Risk List”
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) added government-wide personnel security clearance to its “High Risk List” on Thursday, which designates programs in need of transformational changes to reduce the risk of waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement. GAO typically updates the High Risk... Read More »
International public-private cybersecurity partnership launched at World Economic Forum
An international public-private partnership called the Global Centre for Cybersecurity was launched last week during the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, to assess and tackle global cybersecurity challenges. Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen highlighted U.S. efforts to... Read More »
Air Force requests additional funding for A-10C Thunderbolt squadrons in fiscal year 2019
After warning last year that lack of funding could force three of nine A-10C Thunderbolt squadrons to be grounded, the United States Air Force said that it would include funding for additional wings in its fiscal year 2019 budget request on Friday. To maintain current levels, Congress included... Read More »
Treasury Department sanctions six individuals for providing support to terrorist groups
The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) recently sanctioned six individuals, designating them as Specially Designated Global Terrorists (SDGTs) pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13224. OFAC designated four of the individuals -- Abdul Samad Sani, Abdul... Read More »
Rep. Royce calls for blacklisting, countermeasures to protect international financial systems from Iran
In order to shield international financial markets from Iranian money laundering and terrorist financing, U.S. Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA) said last week that the Financial Action Task Force must continue to blacklist Iran and re-impose countermeasures. Royce, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs... Read More »
Robles to serve as CBP director of field operations in Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands
After a career spanning more than 30 years with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and U.S. Customs Service, Alfonso Robles was tapped Thursday to serve as CBP’s director of field operations in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Robles’ appointment marks his second posting in... Read More »
Kansas Highway Patrol updates communications with FirstNet
The Kansas Highway Patrol recently announced its decision to subscribe to FirstNet, a nationwide public safety broadband network designed specifically for first responders, become the first agency in Kansas to do so. The update to their communications gives them access to a secure network that... Read More »
Senate report uncovers USPS, CBP flaws contributing to fentanyl trafficking
Chinese fentanyl sellers commonly use United States Postal Service (USPS) to traffic the drug into the United States because USPS and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) have not yet adopted widespread use of advanced electronic data (AED), according to a Senate report released on Wednesday. ... Read More »
Treasury imposes new sanctions on entities, individuals linked to North Korea
The U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned Wednesday 16 individuals, nine entities, and six shipping companies that have been linked to North Korea’s development of weapons of mass destruction and other illicit activities. The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) said... Read More »
Sen. Tester discusses border security plan with Homeland Security, Senate leaders
U.S. Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT) met this week with Homeland Security Secretary Kristjen Nielsen and a bipartisan group of Senators to develop a border security plan. Tester is the ranking member of the Senate Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee, which sets funding levels for security and... Read More »