News
McCaul praises DHS’s efforts to expand air preclearance to 11 foreign airports
House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Michael McCaul (R-TX) said efforts by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to possibly expand preclearance operations to 11 new foreign airports would bolster border security. Last week’s preclearance announcement by DHS aims to support the... Read More »Pallone, Schakowsky urge FTC action on IoT device security in wake of DDoS attack
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 »
NSA, DHS name eight new National Centers of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense
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 »
Del Rio Border Patrol Sector honors LiDrazzah for act of bravery in line of duty
The Del Rio Border Patrol Sector recently honored one of its agents, Julian LiDrazzah, for an act of heroism. LiDrazzah was presented with the Law Enforcement Congressional Badge of Bravery at a ceremony at the Del Rio Sector headquarters. South Texas Regional Director Ana Maria Garcia, from the... Read More »
GAO: USAID reimbursements did not comply with legislative requirements
The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently released a report on reimbursements for the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) for Ebola virus disease response efforts, particularly how those reimbursements did not comply with legislative requirements and needed to be... Read More »
TSA approves Smiths Detection X-ray scanner for air cargo screening technology list
Smiths Detection’s dual-view X-ray cargo scanner HI-SCAN 180180-2is recently became the latest system to be accepted into the qualified section of the Transportation Security Administration’s (TSA) air cargo screening technology list (ACSTL). “Dual-View technology has long been a part of... Read More »
Kansas State holds panel discussion on bioterrorist threats to crops and biosecurity
Kansas State University co-hosted a discussion at the Bipartisan Policy Center in Washington D.C. last month that focused on potential bioterrorist threats against agriculture and ways to ensure biosecurity. Included in the panel discussion was Interim President of Kansas State University Gen.... Read More »
United Kingdom launches public health response team for global disease outbreaks
The United Kingdom recently created a UK Public Health Rapid Response Team to respond to outbreaks and public health emergencies anywhere in the world within 48 hours. The team’s development comes in response to the deadly Ebola virus disease outbreak in West Africa, which claimed more than... Read More »House Democrats request hearing on recent DDoS attack
Democratic members of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce recently urged Committee Chairman Fred Upton (R-MI) and Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Chairman Tim Murphy (R-PA) to call for a hearing on the recent cyber attack that caused outages on many popular U.S. websites. The... Read More »
CBP appoints Ferrara as new director of field operations in Boston
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) recently sworn in William Ferrara as the new director of field operations in Boston, Massachusetts. CBP Field Operations Executive Assistant Commissioner Todd Owen led Ferrera in his reaffirmation. “Bill brings a wealth of knowledge and experience... Read More »
CBP AMO breaks ground on new Air and Maritime Operations Center in Riverside
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Air and Marine Operations (AMO) broke ground on its expansion of the Air and Marine Operations Center (AMOC) at the March Air Reserve Base in Riverside, California on Wednesday. “AMOC’s mission to secure America is much more complex than ever given... Read More »
Warner seeks information on cybersecurity vulnerabilities in IoT devices
U.S. Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) on Tuesday requested information from three federal agencies on the tools the federal government has available, and the tools that might be necessary, to prevent cybercrime affecting consumer products such as Internet of Things (IoT) devices. Warner, founder of the... Read More »
Erbelding appointed as new director of the Division of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases at NIAID
The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health, has appointed Dr. Emily Erbelding as the new director of the Division of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (DMID). The division provides monetary and other resources for global... Read More »
GAO report: government agencies could improve nuclear material inventory monitoring
According to a recent report by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), government agencies have sound procedures for managing nuclear material exchanges but an improvement in inventory monitoring is needed. The GAO report found that from Oct. 1, 2003 to Nov. 30, 2015, there were a total... Read More »
Saltysiak appointed as new ECBC military deputy director
The Edgewood Chemical Biological Center (ECBC) recently appointed Army Col. Thomas Saltysiak as the new military deputy director at ECBC. Prior to his new appointment, Saltysiak served as a product manager for Battlespace Management Integration (BMI) under the Integrated Air and Missile Defense... Read More »
Leidos awarded DHS CBP contract for technology and equipment maintenance support
Leidos was recently awarded a contract by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to provide systems administration and maintenance services for X-ray and imaging technology. The hybrid firm, fixed-price time and materials contract covers a one-year... Read More »INTERPOL secretary warns concerted effort needed to combat threat of foreign fighters
International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL) Secretary Jürgen Stock recently warned that greater coordination is needed for the global community to respond to the threat of foreign terrorist fighters.sWhile speaking at a G6 interior ministers meeting in Rome, Stock said the ongoing... Read More »Connecticut governor appoints House for role as state’s chief cybersecurity risk officer
Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy last week appointed Art House to the newly created position as Connecticut’s chief cyber risk officer, where he will work to strengthen the state’s cybersecurity prevention systems. “As technology expands into every segment of our lives and creates greater... Read More »ASPR holds six medical countermeasure summits across the country
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR) recently hosted a series of six medical countermeasure summits across the nation. Topics of the summits included tribal planning and preparedness, access and functional... Read More »
DoD launches MD5 National Security Technology Accelerator to address disaster relief challenges
The U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) recently launched the MD5 National Security Technology Accelerator to create solutions for humanitarian issues and natural disaster relief challenges. The MD5 program was launched by a public-private partnership between the DoD, New York University, Columbia... Read More »House Democrats urge FBI to investigate Trump campaign’s knowledge of email cyber hack
A coalition of House Democrats recently urged the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to examine the Donald Trump campaign’s claim that they knew about the cyber hack into John Podesta’s emails before they were publicly released. The group included U.S. Reps. Elijah E. Cummings (D-MD),... Read More »INTERPOL launches Operational Response Project to address bioterrorism response efforts
The International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL) recently conducted its Operational Response Project in Amman, Jordan, to identify best practices related to command and control, hazard risk assessment, and evidence exploitation. The project brought together 45 Jordanian law enforcement... Read More »DHS ISC certifies Alion’s CounterMeasures program as DoD-sponsored tool for risk assessment
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Interagency Security Committee (ISC) recently certified Alion Science and Technology’s CounterMeasures as the first Department of Defense-sponsored tool for risk assessment and analysis for federal facilities. CounterMeasures software,... Read More »
Gomez named new SIGA Technologies’ new CEO
SIGA Technologies, Inc. recently appointed Dr. Phil Gomez as the company’s new CEO. "I am so pleased to be joining SIGA at such an exciting time for the company,” Gomez said. “I look forward to working with Eric and the entire SIGA team to continue to grow our company and deliver our... Read More »Üzümcü meets with Finland’s Stenlund to discuss CWC implementation
Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) Director General Ahmet Üzümcü met with Finland’s Secretary of State at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs H.E. Peter Stenlund at OPCW headquarters in The Hague on Friday to discuss aspects of the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC). The... Read More »Ratcliffe holds first-ever Emergency Management Summit
U.S. Rep. John Ratcliffe (R-TX) recently hosted the first-ever Emergency Management Summit to help first responders in his district prepare for natural disasters that require federal assistance. The summit featured testimony and potential response plans from local emergency managers, country... Read More »Soligenix invited to present results from GI ARS program at Radiation Research Society meeting
Soligenix, Inc. was recently invited to the annual Radiation Research Society meeting to present preliminary results from its gastrointestinal acute radiation syndrome (GI ARS) program. Soligenix’s OrbeShield program is being evaluated as a potential medical countermeasure for both civilian... Read More »New nuclear weapons summit planned for Santa Fe, New Mexico
Creative Santa Fe (CrSF), the Nuclear Threat Initiative and N Square recently released plans for a new conference to discuss nuclear security and proliferation, called the Santa Fe Nuclear Weapons Summit. Former covert CIA operations officer Valerie Plame, actor Farshad Farat, data scientist... Read More »
NIAID Ebola study shows promise in ZMapp treatment
According to a recent clinical trial conducted by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), ZMapp was found to be a safe and effective treatment for Ebola virus disease, but more study remains. The trial, known as Partnership for Research on Ebola Virus in Liberia... Read More »Senators urge Obama administration to clarify position on Haiti in wake of cholera epidemic
A bipartisan coalition of U.S. senators recently urged the Obama administration in a letter to clarify their position on the growing cholera epidemic in Haiti. The group includes U.S. Sens. Marco Rubio (R-FL), Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Edward Markey (D-MA) and Robert Melendez (D-NJ). “The... Read More »
Border Patrol agents apprehend six after vehicle chase near Interstate 8 checkpoint
Agents with the U.S. Border Patrol recently apprehended an individual for alleged human smuggling, as well as five illegal migrants, near the Interstate 8 checkpoint. The incident began on Wednesday when Border Patrol agents observed a group of five individuals traveling northbound by foot from... Read More »Vaccine researchers share steps needed to develop safe and effective Zika virus vaccine
A group of international vaccine experts recently shared a series of requirements for the development of a safe and effective Zika virus vaccine. The research group features experts from the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) at Galveston, the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research and... Read More »
Soligenix invited to NORD conference to present preliminary Dusquetide, RiVax results
Soligenix, Inc. was invited to the National Organization for Rare Disorders’ (NORD) Rare Diseases and Orphan Products Breakthrough Summit on Tuesday to present preliminary data on the Dusquetide and RiVax programs. NORD’s Rare Diseases and Orphan Products Breakthrough Summit brings together... Read More »
ECBC demonstrates augmented reality technology for training exercises
The Edgewood Chemical Biological Center (ECBC) recently demonstrated its new augmented reality technology at the Association of the U.S. Army Annual Meeting and Exposition. ECBC’s augmented reality technology utilizes a head-mounted display to enable users to see virtual images for use as a... Read More »