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Colleges embrace homeland security curriculum
Hundreds of community colleges, four-year universities and postgraduate programs have begun offering degrees and certificates in emergency preparedness, counterterrorism and security. Students study topics from political science and psychology to engineering and biotechnology to prepare for possible disasters. "Homeland security will be the biggest government employer in the next decade or so," says Steven David, chair of the graduate certificate program in homeland security at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, which also offers a master's in government with a concentration in homeland security. "America continues to face threats, and terrorism will never go away," David says. Interest in homeland security proliferated after the 9/11 attacks, but efforts to increase awareness in the field were underway long before, says William Kelley, a researcher working with the Office for Domestic Preparedness in the federal government's Department of Homeland Security.
www.usatoday.com
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Homeland Security begins air surveillance of Canadian border
As part of a dramatic boost in surveillance of the Canadian border, federal customs and immigration officials on Friday dedicated the first of five planned bases for regular flights to look for drug runners and others crossing illegally. The Bellingham Air Marine Branch is scheduled to throw 69 people, two helicopters, a new airplane and a high-speed boat into the border enforcement effort. Although similar bases have policed the Mexican border for three decades, the new facility is the first on the Canadian border. Previously, customs and immigration service aircraft have patrolled the border only sporadically, even though much of the border is in rugged and largely empty country that presents little challenge to a determined smuggler.
seattlepi.nwsource.com
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TSA readies security systems rollout
The Transportation Security Administration yesterday announced a series of pilot tests of IT-based programs to bolster airport security, and TSA Administrator David M. Stone said the agency is only "days or weeks" away from deploying a revamped version of its controversial passenger-screening system. The TSA selected two additional airports -- Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International Airport in San Jose and the Helena Regional Airport in Montana -- to participate in its Access Control pilot program. That brings the total number of airports in the program, which began in April, to 10. The pilot program will test a wide range of technologies, including radio frequency identification (RFID) systems, anti-piggybacking technology, advanced video surveillance technology and various biometric technologies. The goal of the test programs, which will run through the end of the year, is to identify technologies that allow only authorized airport personnel and vehicles access to secure areas of an airport.
www.computerworld.com
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Security Preps Begin for the RNC
With protesters expected by the tens of thousands, local police and federal authorities have more than the possibility of terrorism to keep them on edge. Just a few days before the Republican Convention, this is the calm before the storm. But Homeland Security director Tom Ridge came to New York to say that law enforcement is ready for whatever storm might come. "Our goal is that any attempt on the part of terrorists to attack us will be frustrated and repelled by multiple layers of security that they will encounter all around the city," said Ridge. Extra police are already taking to streets, 10 thousand police will help protect Madison Square Garden while some 5 thousand Republican delegates meet inside. The Garden will be a fortress: traffic kept off the streets nearby and undercover cops riding the subways below. City officials showed off some new gadgets they have to help keep the city safe; including urban assault vehicles, and mobile command centers. Menacing equipment for the purpose of safety.
abclocal.go.com
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Pentagon developing system to protect buidlings from bio, chem attacks
A protective system being developed by the Defense Department could soon render it pointless for terrorists to attack U.S. buildings with biological or chemical agents, the lead official in the effort told Global Security Newswire last week. Researchers are developing a ventilation-based system to protect Defense Department buildings that is also intended for widespread use outside the military, Immune Building Program Manager Wayne Bryden wrote in an e-mail to GSN. "The DARPA Immune Building Program has developed the machinery and the industrial base to provide protection against C/B attack for all buildings in the nation. When Immune Building technology is widely implemented, this attack option will effectively be removed from the arsenal of our enemies," wrote Bryden, whose program is part of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency's Special Projects Office.
www.govexec.com
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US arrests 150 in cybercrime bust
US authorities have arrested more than 150 people in one of the world's largest crack downs on ID theft, hacking and other web crimes. 'Operation Web Snare' has already led to 53 convictions and is a clear warning to cybercriminals that US authorities will be as tough on them as they are physical world villains. 'This effort shows how effective law enforcement can be against online crime when all levels of government - domestically and internationally - work together,' said attorney general John Ashcroft. The three-month operation, headed by the Justice Department, the US Postal Inspection Service and the Federal Trade Commission, investigated 150,000 cases, which amounted to losses of over £215m.
www.vnunet.com
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Long arm of port security
Terrorists have boarded an oil tanker at sea and commandeered it, heading for the Port of Houston. Back on land, a button is pushed, and the pirated vessel's engines are shut down by remote control, allowing authorities time to mount a defense. A Houston-based company says that would be possible with a unique global security surveillance system it created that allows authorities to peer directly into ships at sea and take action if necessary. The satellite-driven security program offered by VIP Systems and its partners combines the use of video surveillance and biometrics technology. VIP Systems is working with the Coast Guard and the Maritime Administration, called MARAD, on a test project using the technology. As part of its pilot project, the company hooked up with MARAD to install cameras and other equipment on the vessel Cape Texas, currently docked at the Port of Houston. MARAD has just expressed interest in buying the security application, according to VIP Systems, which is looking to outfit the administration's fleet nationwide. Company officials maintain the technology will allow monitoring of vessels by video in real-time virtually anywhere. The technology includes use of biometrics devices that crew and passengers would need to access secure areas. The biometrics system uses a device that scans the face and finger. If implemented, the security system is expected to be most beneficial for the security of the vessels.
www.chron.com
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Professor Warns About Farm Security
Terrorists can focus on a number of targets. Financial centers and military buildings might be among the first places on your mind -- but an attack also could affect the food we eat. One Auburn University professor has built a web site to alert you about that possibility. Dr. Robert Norton has built a web site specifically for agricultural security. He says while most people would not typically think of that industry as a target, the threat is very real. "It's a very non-traditional view of agriculture," Norton says. "These are issues that have really evolved in the last few years. They've always been present, but they've really become a prominent issue within the last few years." The web site Ag-Security.com has become a very useful tool for that industry. Not only does it provide information about crops and farms; it also deals with cyber-security, building and equipment-related issues as well.
www.wtvm.com
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Pilots concerned about terrorists
The head of the nation's largest pilots group raised the possibility Wednesday that terrorists posing as passengers could be openly rehearsing for more attacks on American planes. His testimony came at a hearing where experts and lawmakers said the government agencies responsible for safeguarding the flying public are using outdated methods and are woefully unprepared to prevent the next assault. Too much emphasis is being placed on scanning airline customers' bare feet with metal detectors or confiscating their household items at security checkpoints, while most travelers and cargo loaded onto passenger planes are not screened for explosives, authorities testified at the first congressional hearing on aviation security since the Sept. 11 commission issued its recommendations.
www.buffalonews.com
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Border and customs officials cite low morale, security gaps
A majority of border and customs officials surveyed earlier this month by the American Federation of Government Employees said they are demoralized and not getting the full support they need to protect the country, according to a new report released Monday. Sixty percent of officials surveyed said they have very low or somewhat low morale, while 64 percent said they are not satisfied or are only somewhat satisfied with the tools, training and support they have been given by the Homeland Security Department to fight terrorism. The survey, sponsored by AFGE, the National Border Patrol Council and the National Homeland Security Council, questioned 250 Border Patrol agents and 250 Customs and Border Protection officers. "We are here today to give our nation's policymakers, lawmakers and all Americans a message: The war on terror is in danger of being lost at the borders, the airports and the seaports," Charles Showalter, president of AFGE's National Homeland Security Council, said in releasing the survey.
www.govexec.com
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