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Threats
Sid Hanna, Transportation
Security Administration (TSA) Federal Security director in Sacramento, recently
presented Henry Li, general manager and CEO of the Sacramento Regional Transit
District (SacRT), with the Gold Standard Award.
The annual award
honors transit agencies that have high scores... Read More »
U.S. Sens. Cory Gardner (R-CO) and Mark Warner (D-VA) introduced
legislation this week to encourage state, local, and tribal governments to
strengthen their defenses against cybersecurity threats.
The State Cyber Resiliency Act would authorize the
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to run a... Read More »
The U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) recommends that military recruits entering basic training continue to be inoculated with a vaccine for the adenovirus, a DNA virus considered to be a major cause of febrile illness.
While adenoviruses are usually spread through coughing, sneezing or after... Read More »
Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) forwarded correspondence last week to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin seeking specific Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs) and Transnational Criminal Organization (TCO) designations.
In his letter, Rubio, chairman of the... Read More »
As a means of protecting controlled unclassified information throughout the supply chain, Defense Industrial Base Sector Coordinating Council (DIB SCC) officials have established a Supply Chain Cybersecurity Industry Task Force.
Founding members of Task Force are BAE Systems, Boeing, Lockheed... Read More »
INTERPOL took center stage in recent discussions between G7 Interior Ministers, who determined that increased cooperation and data sharing with the international police organization is critical to increased law enforcement efforts throughout the world.
“INTERPOL has the experience and the... Read More »
The
Transportation Security Administration (TSA) recently launched a public
awareness campaign to educate travelers on the agency’s new identification
requirements.
Starting Oct. 1,
2020, anyone who flies will be required to present a REAL ID-compliant driver’s
license, or another... Read More »
Rep. Michael Burgess (R-TX), reintroduced
legislation last week that would reduce foreign aid to El Salvador, Guatemala,
and Honduras by $30,000 for each of its unaccompanied alien children placed in
U.S. federal custody.
The Unaccompanied Alien Children Assistance
Control Act is designed to... Read More »
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) officials said they are expediting efforts to develop an African Swine Fever vaccine and diagnostic initiatives.
African Swine Fever is a viral disease capable of wreaking havoc in a pig’s body, causing... Read More »
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) personnel have reached an agreement designed to bolster public health and safety protection efforts.
The collaboration would maximize inspection and detection capabilities as a means of preventing illegal and... Read More »
A new, investigational and universal influenza vaccine candidate reached an important milestone this week, beginning its first human trial under the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID).
That test will examine its safety and tolerability, along with its ability to do... Read More »
The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently
issued three recommendations for the director of the Nuclear Regulatory
Commission (NRC) in regards to determining security measures for radioactive
material.
The GAO is required to review NRC's security requirements
for high-risk... Read More »
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is constantly working to identify screening issues, but while covert tests have improved, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) attests that operations could be bettered, especially since one new process used by TSA is not working... Read More »
Applied science and technology development company Battelle has deemed the recent three-week testing of its Common Analytical Laboratory System (CALS) with users a success.
CALS, described as three variants of mobile laboratories providing on-site analytical capabilities to any incident... Read More »
A new, $22 million grant-driven project will lead an international consortium of scientists to develop antibody-based means of combating Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus (CCHFV), Andes virus (ANDV), Sin Nombre virus (SNV) and the Puumula virus (PUUV) over the next five years.
The effort,... Read More »
The House Congressional Joint Strike Fighter Caucus
recently sent a letter to the chairmen and ranking members of the House Armed
Service Committee and the House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee urging them
to support the F-35 Lightning II program.
The F-35 is a stealth military aircraft.... Read More »
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is seeking proposals for the fourth swarm sprint in its OFFensive Swarm-Enabled Tactics (OFFSET) program.
“With OFFSET, we are expanding the tactics available to warfighters, leveraging advances in autonomous systems to address complex... Read More »
A pair of studies conducted by scientists from the United States, United Kingdom, Thailand, Bangladesh, Namibia and Norway suggest that combining data of parasite genetics and human movement could improve efforts at tracking and fighting malaria transmission.
"Countries and regional blocs are... Read More »
The number of nonimmigrant visa (NIV) applications issue by U.S.
State Department consular officers decreased in fiscal
year 2017 to 880,000 after increasing annually from fiscal years 2012 through
2016, according to a U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) report.
Applications... Read More »
U.S. Sens. Tom Cotton (R-AR) and Doug Jones (D-AL)
introduced a bill to create pilot scholarship programs for qualified members of
the Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps (JROTC).
The Ceiling and Visibility Unlimited (CAVU) Act is named
after the renowned pilots' acronym to describe ideal... Read More »
The National
Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism (START)
recently named Amy Pate as its new executive director.
Pate is a political
scientist with a doctorate in government and politics specializing in
international relations and comparative politics. She will... Read More »
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Monday issued a final rule that restricts both the use and distribution of Bacillus bacteria detection devices, which are prescribed to preliminarily identify and diagnose cases of anthrax and other infectious diseases.
“The FDA plays a critical... Read More »
A $96.8 million computed tomography (CT) systems contract from the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) was awarded last week to Smiths Detection, Inc.
The contract will cover the next five years, over which 300 CT systems and their affiliated equipment will be deployed at various... Read More »
A Mississippi-based ambulance company is espousing the benefits of partnering with the First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet) to enhance communication and coverage.
AAA Ambulance Service in Hattiesburg, Miss., subscribed to FirstNet to aid in connecting its 24-hour emergency and... Read More »
Marine Corps Logistics Base personnel in Barstow, Calif., recently conducted a training exercise designed to enhance both man-made and natural emergency preparedness.
The Exercise Haber Rail effort involved a simulated rail tanker car carrying thousands of cubic feet of chlorine gas... Read More »
A mission by agents of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Air and Marine Operations (AMO) seized more than three tons of drugs from a vessel off the coast of Central America last week.
The drugs, estimated to be worth $17 million, were plucked from a moderately-sized, open-bed fishing... Read More »
Auburn University has secured $564,988 in Department of Homeland Security (DHS) funds to develop projects designed to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of canines trained to detect explosives.
The funding allotment was provided through the DHS Science and Technology Directorate... Read More »
Customs and Border Protection (CBP) personnel at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) recently led other agencies in conducting an active shooter drill at the airport's Terminal 4.
The CBP's Office of Field Operations at LAX joined forces with other federal and local law enforcement... Read More »
Rising temperatures brought on by climate change could expose as many as a billion more people to disease-carrying mosquitoes, according to a new study published in PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases.
As temperatures rise across the globe, the territory of these mosquitoes expands, as well as the... Read More »
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds declared a public health
disaster emergency for the state following the widespread flooding and flash flooding
that began March 13.
The declaration authorizes the Iowa Department of
Public Health to take the necessary actions to protect the public’s health. It
also... Read More »
Rep. John Katko (R-NY) introduced legislation to
create a cybersecurity advisory committee to help fight cyberattacks.
The Cybersecurity Advisory Committee (CSAC) would
be comprised of cybersecurity professionals from every major business sector
that are responsible for protecting... Read More »
As the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) continues to deal with the most recent Ebola epidemic, a study from the Lancet Infectious Diseases journal shows that lack of trust might be a contributing factor.
Violent episodes have complicated matters in the DRC, but one bad turn tends to foster... Read More »
A U.S. Senate
bill aims to address the growing threat of white supremacists and other violent
right-wing extremists by requiring federal law enforcement agencies to
regularly assess this threat and provide training and resources to officers.
The bill, the Domestic Terrorism Prevention Act,... Read More »
Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT) recently visited McAllen, Texas, to assess the situation along the southern border, meeting with law enforcement officials, landowners, agriculture producers, and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers.
Challenges and resources needed to secure the border in a... Read More »
A group of lawmakers recently questioned the Department of Defense's transfer of $1 billion in military personnel funding to an account designated for border wall funding.
Democratic members of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense and the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on... Read More »