Policy
Treasury sanctions illicit fentanyl network affiliated with the Sinaloa Cartel
The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) recently sanctioned 12 Mexico-based companies and eight Mexican nationals affiliated with the Sinaloa Cartel’s Los Chapitos faction for supplying illicit fentanyl precursor chemicals to the cartel. The U.S.... Read More »
FBI: Operation arrests 8,600 in three months for violent crime
The Federal Bureau of Investigation and its law enforcement partners made more than 8,600 arrests this summer as part of an initiative to crack down on violent crime, the agency said. Operation Summer Heat targeted violent crime across the country and resulted in 8,629 arrests, FBI director... Read More »
South Carolina National Guard Brigadier General selected for leadership role at Army Cyber Center
The U.S. Army Cyber Center of Excellence has named Brigadier General Linda J. Riedel of the South Carolina National Guard to serve as its deputy commanding general. Officials said Riedle is expected to begin serving as the DCG in addition to her Brigadier General role, in January 2026. A... Read More »
New York outlines impact of DHS cuts to counterterrorism funding
Deep cuts in funding from the federal government to the state of New York will negatively impact that state’s ability to carry out counterterrorism and response training. Earlier this month, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said the impact of the cuts, more than $187 million, would jeopardize... Read More »
U.S. Treasury targets those in connection with Iran’s Ministry of Defense
The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) recently identified 17 people and 21 entities that were involved in networks that facilitate the acquisition of sensitive goods and technology for Iran’s Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics. They also... Read More »
U.S., Bahrain sign agreement on secure travel
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem this week signed an Enhanced Border Security Partnership with General Shaikh Rashid bin Abdulla Al Khalifa, Minister of the Interior for Bahrain. The agreement strengthens the relationship between the U.S. and Bahrain, officials said, and... Read More »
Federal operation targets immigration fraud
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Federal Bureau of Investigation conducted Operation Twin Shield, an effort to conduct fraud detection and deterrence activities in Minneapolis-St. Paul and surrounding areas, on Sept. 19-28. The... Read More »
FEMA awards $3.5B to help states with emergency preparedness
In an effort to move disaster relief from Washington, D.C. to the states, U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) would return nearly $3.5 billion to local communities. Noem said FEMA is shifting from D.C.-centric bureaucracy to a... Read More »
Department of War awards $33.5M in defense grants to expand solid rocket motor industry
The Department of War recently awarded two companies $33.5 million in Defense Production Act Title III grants to expand the solid rocket motor industrial base. The grants also aim to boost supply chain resiliency and increase domestic production in strategic priority areas. "To meet the... Read More »
New York to award cybersecurity grants to local governments
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said the state would make more than $13.9 million in Infrastructure Act Grant funding available to eligible entities to apply for multi-factor authentication tokens. Hochul said New York is accepting request for applications for the tokens, and that the RFA was... Read More »
DHS Secretary Noem supports creation of U.S. Coast Guard secretary
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem publicly endorsed a letter delivered by Secretary of War Pete Hegseth supporting the creation of a secretary of the U.S. Coast Guard. The Coast Guard has duties as both a federal law enforcement agency and a branch of the U.S. military.... Read More »
Legislation addresses submarine cable infrastructure in national marine sanctuaries
Legislation recently introduced in the U.S. Senate would safeguard the U.S. submarine cable infrastructure. The Undersea Cable Protection Act would amend the National Marine Sanctuaries Act to prohibit the commerce secretary from requiring authorization for the installation, continued presence,... Read More »
House committee probes online platforms’ policies in wake of Kirk assassination
U.S. Reps. Andrew Garbarino (R-NY) and August Pfluger (R-TX) are requesting information about detecting and reporting extremist content from online platforms Discord, Twitch, Reddit and GitHub. Garbarino, the chair of the House Committee on Homeland Security, and Pfluger, chair of the subcommittee... Read More »
Tribes selected for Tribal Access Program for National Crime Information
The Justice Department recently selected six federally recognized tribes to participate in the Tribal Access Program (TAP) for National Crime Information. TAP provides training, the means to access and exchange data with national crime information systems, and software and biometric/biographic... Read More »
Sen. Peters urges Congress to extend expiring cybersecurity protections
U.S. Sen. Gary Peters spoke on the Senate floor Friday to advocate for the extension of cybersecurity protections that are set to expire on Oct. 1. Peters, the ranking member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, said the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act of 2015 has... Read More »
Coast Guard campaign seizes 75,000 pounds of cocaine
Since launching Operation Pacific Viper in early August, the U.S. Coast Guard seized more than 75,000 pounds of cocaine. Operation Pacific Viper is the Coast Guard’s counter-drug operation in the Eastern Pacific Ocean, the site of illicit narcotics transported from South America. It is... Read More »
Governors’ association joins local leaders in urging Congress to preserve state, local cyber security grants
On Wednesday, the National Governor’s Association joined local and state leaders to sign a letter pushing for the preservation of cyber security grants. The letter, sent to Congressional leaders, asks Congress to reauthorize the State and local Cyber Security Grant Program that provides local... Read More »
GAO report: Cybersecurity organizations in DOD have opportunities to consolidate
A new report from the U.S. Government Accountability Office has found that some organizations within the U.S. Department of Defense overlap and could benefit from consolidation. In a study of more than 440 organizations within the DOD that conduct cybersecurity operations, the GAO found that... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection names Houlton Sector chief patrol agent
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) recently named Derrick W. Stamper as chief patrol agent of the Houlton Sector, effective Sept. 1. Stamper began his career as a Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office sheriff’s deputy in Christiansburg, Va. He joined the U.S. Border Patrol in 2008 as a... Read More »
Legislation to protect shipyard workforce, national security introduced
Legislation from U.S. Reps. Jen Kiggans (R-VA) and Chris Pappas (D-NH) would exempt public shipyard workforces from federal hiring freezes and mass layoffs. The legislation, the Protecting Public Naval Shipyards Act, would protect the workforce responsible for repairing and retrofitting the... Read More »
University partnerships with China threaten national security, report says
A new report from U.S. Reps. John Moolenar (R-MI) and Tim Walburg (R-MI) has found that partnerships between U.S. universities with institutes and academic partners in China may threaten national security. Moolenaar, chair of the Select Committee on China, and Walburg, chair of the Committee on... Read More »
DHS cancels $31.7M in government contracts, grants
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has cancelled $31.7 million in government contracts and grants since Aug. 22. Noem reviews and approves or disapproves all U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) contracts totaling more than $100,000. “In just three weeks, Secretary Noem has... Read More »
Legislation would increase penalties for illegal aliens entering the United States
Legislation recently introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives would increase penalties for foreign residents who illegally enter or re-enter the United States. The goal is to discourage migrants from coming to the United States illegally and to keep criminals out of the country. The... Read More »
DEA engages in operation against Sinaloa Cartel
The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) conducted a week-long operation from Aug. 25 to Aug. 29 aimed at dismantling the Sinaloa Cartel, one of the world’s most violent and powerful drug cartels. DEA agents across 23 domestic field divisions and seven foreign regions carried out coordinated... Read More »
Treasury Department sanctions Southeast Asian network cyber scams
The U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control announced it has implemented sanctions against large scam centers across Southeast Asia. The centers allegedly use forced labor and violence to scam Americans out of billions of dollars, officials said. The latest action includes... Read More »
Legislation would create federal drone facility
Legislation recently introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives would ensure the United States can design, test and manufacture drones. The SkyFoundry Act would create a government-run facility that would be capable of producing 1 million small drones annually. The bill would shorten the... Read More »
Legislation would re-authorize cybersecurity tools
The House Committee on Homeland Security recently advanced two bills that would re-authorize and update two vital cybersecurity tools the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) uses before they expire. The Widespread Information Management for the Welfare of Infrastructure and Government Act... Read More »
Legislation to address online radicalism passes out of committee
U.S. Rep. August Pfluger (R-TX) said his bill to address terror threats posed by online radicalization has passed out of committee. The Generative AI Terrorism Risk Assessment Act passed advanced out of the House Committee On Homeland Security. The legislation requires the U.S. Department of... Read More »
Legislation would reform FEMA
Legislation recently introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives would reform the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and federal disaster assistance programs. The Fixing Emergency Management for Americans Act of 2025 would once again make FEMA a cabinet-level agency directly... Read More »
House passes bills that will reform foreign arms sales
The U.S. House of Representative recently passed several bills that would improve the foreign arms sales process and strengthen the U.S. defense industrial base. The bills were included in a legislation package the House Foreign Affairs Committee advanced and will codify reforms to the foreign... Read More »
Advisory counters Chinese actions to compromise networks worldwide
The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) joined the National Security Agency (NSA), FBI and international partners, to release a joint cybersecurity advisory on malicious activity by Chinese threat actors. According to the release, People’s Republic of China (PRC)... Read More »
Mexican national pleads guilty to RICO charge, leading drug cartel
Ismael Zambada Garcia, a Mexican national, recently plead guilty to being a principal leader of the Sinaloa Cartel, one of the most violent and powerful drug trafficking organizations in the world from January 1989 through January 2024, and to a Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO)... Read More »
Trump approves NSA deputy director
President Donald Trump recently approved Joseph Francescon to serve as the National Security Agency's (NSA) 21st deputy director and senior civilian leader. Francescon will be tasked with supporting the U.S. defense and intelligence enterprise in the formulation of national security policies,... Read More »FBI warns of Russian government cyber threats
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is warning of a threat from Russian government cyber actors that is impacting computer networks and critical infrastructure. The FBI has detected cyber actors Russian Federal Security Service's (FSB) Center 16 exploiting Simple Network Management Protocol... Read More »