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A bipartisan coalition of lawmakers introduced legislation on Wednesday to protect critical energy infrastructure from potentially catastrophic cyber attacks.
The Securing Energy Infrastructure Act of 2016 was co-sponsored by U.S. Sens. Jim Risch (R-ID), Angus King (I-ME), Martin Heinrich (D-NM)... Read More »
The U.S. House of Representatives passed two cybersecurity bills on Tuesday that were authored by U.S. Rep. John Ratcliffe (R-TX).
“Over the last several years we’ve witnessed evolving cybersecurity threats from nation-states such as China, Russia, North Korea and Iran, and from criminal... Read More »
The National Institutes of Health (NIH), along with the scientific research organization Fundacao Oswaldo Cruz-Fiocruz, began a multi-country study on Tuesday to evaluate the magnitude of the health risks that Zika virus infection poses on pregnant women and their developing fetuses and infants.... Read More »
U.S. Rep. Donald Payne, Jr. (D-NJ), held a field hearing on Tuesday on how to better understand how transit operators and first responders prevent, prepare for and respond to incidents on mass transit.
The hearing, titled “Protecting Our Passengers: Perspectives on Securing Surface... Read More »
U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-SD) renewed his call last week for the U.S. House of Representatives to take up the bipartisan Federal Aviation Reauthorization Act of 2016 following a new report on aviation security by the Government Accountability Office (GAO).
“This new GAO report further... Read More »
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which operates one of the busiest networks of aviation, ground, rail and seaport facilities in the nation, is preparing to deliver a new counter-terrorism and personal safety-training program for its employees.
“We always tell people, if you see... Read More »
The European Union (EU) Civil Liberties Committee endorsed a plan by the EU Commission on Tuesday that will systematically check all EU citizens entering or leaving the EU against wide and national security databases.
The plan, authored by Monica Macovei and approved by a vote of 48-6, also... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Commissioner R. Gil Kerlikowske named Mark Morgan as chief of the U.S. Border Patrol on Monday.
Kerlikowske said that Morgan’s selection was based off of a nationwide search process that produced a qualified group of law enforcement executives within... Read More »
U.S. Rep. Loretta Sanchez (D-CA) questioned cybersecurity experts on Friday during a hearing conducted by the Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, Infrastructure Protection and Security Technologies.
The hearing, titled “Oversight of the Cybersecurity Act of 2015,” saw private sector industry... Read More »
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) completed its Pre-Approval Inspection (PAI) of Emergent BioSolutions, Inc.’s Building 55 for the large-scale manufacturing of BioThrax (anthrax vaccine adsorbed).
Following the PAI’s conclusion, Emergent BioSolutions received a No Action Indicated... Read More »
The World Health Organization (WHO) Strategic Advisory Group of Experts (SAGE) on Immunization presented evidence on Friday that yellow fever vaccine given at one-fifth of the regular dose could be used to control an outbreak in case of vaccine shortages.
The reduced dose, known as fractional... Read More »
The Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) exercised an option on Wednesday for the supply of 171,000 doses of Bavarian Nordic’s Imvamune smallpox vaccine to the national stockpile at a total value of up to $7.7 million.
Imvamune is a non-replicating smallpox vaccine that is being stockpiled... Read More »
The National International Health Regulations (IHR) of the United States notified the Pan-American Health Organization (PAHO) and the World Health Organization (WHO) on Tuesday of the first confirmed case of locally-acquired Chikungunya virus in the state of Texas.
The patient became ill in... Read More »
The U.S. Border Patrol El Paso Sector held a border safety initiative (BSI) on Tuesday to raise awareness about the dangers posed by swift-moving canal systems and the barren desert terrain in border communities in an effort to save lives.
The border patrol was joined by representatives of... Read More »
U.S. Sens. Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Bill Nelson (R-FL) urged the president on Wednesday to reevaluate the Relative Risk Score Threat Level applied to the Orlando area so that it qualifies for funding under the Urban Area Security Initiative.
The two senators sent letters to the Obama... Read More »
Emergent BioSolutions, Inc.’s supplemental Biologics License Application (sBLA) seeking approval for the manufacture of BioThrax (anthrax vaccine adsorbed) at the company’s Building 55 was accepted for review by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) this week.
“Emergent’s... Read More »
The House Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee held a hearing on Tuesday concerning the U.S. public health response to antibiotic resistant bacteria, otherwise known as “superbugs.”
The hearing was initiated after the discovery of the MCR-1 gene in a Pennsylvania woman who contracted... Read More »
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted orphan drug status to Emergent BioSolutions, Inc., on Wednesday for BioThrax (anthrax vaccine adsorbed) for post-exposure prophylaxis of anthrax disease from suspected or confirmed exposure to Bacillus anthraces.
BioThrax is the only... Read More »
The Biomedical Advance Research and Development Authority (BARDA) recently said that it is anticipating a threat posed by the bacterial gene mcr-1, which confers resistance to the antibiotic colistin and was found in a bacterium isolated from a patient in the United States.
While the bacteria is... Read More »
The European Commission (EC) presented further steps on Tuesday to support member states in preventing and countering violent radicalization leading to terrorism.
The steps are part of the EC’s European Agenda on Security.
“Recent terrorist attacks have shown how some young Europeans... Read More »
Lockheed Martin entered into a partnership with Interset’s insider threat detection solution on Monday.
The decision was announced at the 2016 Gartner Risk and Security Summit conference in National Harbor, MD.
“Insider threats pose one of the highest risks to an organization, and... Read More »
INTERPOL recently conducted Operation Red Lotus, which seeks to build closer collaboration between immigration and police agencies by utilizing INTERPOL’s global policing capabilities to carry out enhanced passenger screenings.
Approximately 3.5 million passenger checks were conducted during... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents stationed in New Mexico arrested several people, including a convicted murderer, a sex offender and drug smugglers, in a series of incidents last week.
The first incident occurred on Monday when horse patrol agents detected suspicious activity... Read More »
The House Homeland Security Committee on Friday unanimously passed legislation authored by U.S. Rep. Will Hurd (R-TX) that enhances U.S. visa screening procedures at posts overseas.
The Strong Visa Integrity Secures America Act of 2016, H.R. 5253, seeks to deploy trained law enforcement... Read More »
House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce (R-CA), along with Speaker of the House Paul Ryan (R-WI), unveiled the House Republicans’ blueprint for security at home and abroad on Friday.
The blueprint is part of the House GOP’s “A Better Way” initiative, which outlines ideas to... Read More »
The Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) launched a new initiative on Thursday with Huntsville City Schools in Alabama to provide strategic support to the school system’s Cyber Academy.
The initiative is part of a three-year, $300,000 commitment, with SAIC providing cyber... Read More »
U.S. Sen. Tom Carper (D-DE) expanded his ongoing investigation on Wednesday into steps federal agencies are taking to better protect banks around the world against cybersecurity threats after multiple attacks against the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT) system.... Read More »
Lawrence Livermore National Lab (LLNL) researchers took to the New York City subway system last month to aid in conducting a series of tests on how a biological agent, such as anthrax, might disperse throughout the rapid transit system as a result of a bioterrorism attack or accidental release.... Read More »
U.S. Sens. Gary Peters (D-MI) and David Vitter (R-LA) introduced the Small Business Cyber Security Improvement Act of 2016 on Tuesday to enable the U.S. Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Small Business Development Centers (SBDC) to work with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to assist... Read More »
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report on Tuesday detailing the security gaps in counterterrorism operations with overseas partners.
The report warns that many countries involved with the visa waiver program (VWP) are not holding to the agreements they made to exchange... Read More »
The U.S. House of Representatives unanimously passed bipartisan legislation on Tuesday to address growing Transportation Safety Administration (TSA) wait times at the nation’s airports.
The Checkpoint Optimization and Efficiency Act of 2016, authored by U.S. Rep. John Katko (R-NY), seeks to... Read More »
Northrop Grumman Corp. entered into a collaboration on Monday with NEC Corp. to deliver the Japan-Cyber Operations Research, Training and Experimentation (J-CORTEX) system.
The system is a private, cloud-based cyber range that quickly and effectively emulates customer environments for the... Read More »
The Information Systems Audit and Control Association (ISACA) released a study on Tuesday with findings that more than half of United Kingdom office workers say their employers have provided no cyber awareness training.
The study, entitled “2016 Cyber Security Perceptions,” surveyed more... Read More »
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report on Tuesday that found that the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has taken steps intended to improve the security effectiveness of expedited passenger screening since GAO last reported on it in Dec. 2014.
Steps the agency... Read More »
The House Energy and Commerce Committee held a Health Subcommittee markup on Tuesday, discussing the Strengthening Public Health Emergency Response Act, H.R. 3299.
"There is a clear role for the federal government to play in creating medical countermeasures and contributing to our nation's... Read More »
