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National News
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NSA Has Massive Database Listing Americans’ Phone Calls
(USA Today)
“The National Security Agency has been secretly collecting the phone call records of tens of millions of Americans, using data provided by AT&T, Verizon and BellSouth, people with direct knowledge of the arrangement told USA TODAY.… This program does not involve the NSA listening to or recording conversations. But the spy agency is using the data to analyze calling patterns in an effort to detect terrorist activity … The agency’s goal is ‘to create a database of every call ever made’ within the nation’s borders,” one source said.
[View article]
Fatal Contact Stokes Fears of Flu (Medical News Today) “After watching the ABC movie ‘Fatal Contact: Bird Flu in America’” Tuesday night, anxious viewers all over the USA were calling telephone helplines, according to Medical News Today. Fatal Contact depicts “an unlikely scenario.” True, “the world is facing a probable flu pandemic. The H5N1 bird flu virus strain will probably mutate. However, it will not spread like wildfire the minute one man flies in from Hong Kong to America and coughs.”
[View article]
U.S. Notifies Mexico of Civilian Border Patrol Acts
(San Diego Union-Tribune)
“The U.S. Border Patrol is alerting Mexican officials when civilian border patrol groups detain or allegedly mistreat suspected illegal immigrants,” reports the Associated Press, citing the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin of Ontario, CA. “… The policy is meant to assure the Mexican government that migrants’ rights are being observed.” The Bulletin cited “interviews with Border Patrol agents” and “also cited three documents on the Web site of the Mexican Secretary of Foreign Relations that say Mexican consulates are in close contact with Border Patrol officials regarding the safety of border crossers who have been stopped by civilian groups.” The U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency “issued a statement disputing the newspaper’s report.” [View article]
Minutemen Ride to Washington
(Christian Science Monitor)
“Members of the Minuteman Project set off from Los Angeles [on 3 May] on a cross-country trip that they hope will be a counterpoint to the immigrants-rights rallies that have lately flooded the streets of American cities,” reports the Christian Science Monitor. “The group, which has dispatched hundreds of volunteers to patrol the US-Mexico border to help prevent illegal crossings, filled only a handful of cars, small trucks, and minivans at the outset—but insists that a majority of Americans are fellow travelers when it comes to controlling immigration.” The caravan is scheduled to arrive in Washington today. President “Bush has labeled the Minutemen a vigilante group.”
[View article]
Cops Track People Via Their Cell Phones
(Wired)
“The cell-phone industry and privacy advocates are calling on Congress to clarify the widespread police practice of using mobile phones to track suspects without probable cause,” reports Wired. “The industry wants clear, standardized rules governing cell-phone tracking.” And it wants Congress to “write rules governing what level of suspicion cops need to have before tracking people through their cell phones.” [View article]
Judges Challenge Internet Wiretap Rules
(Yahoo! News)
“A U.S. appeals panel sharply challenged the Bush administration [on 5 May] over new rules making it easier for police and the FBI to wiretap Internet phone calls,” reports the Associated Press. In contention is the 1994 Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act, “which excluded categories of companies described as information services.” The Federal Communications Commission “asserted that providers of high-speed Internet services should be covered under the 1994 law because their voice-transmission services can be considered separately from information services.” [View article]
Did Zotob Virus Hit US-VISIT? (Wired) An August 2005 “computer failure” affecting the Homeland Security Department’s US-VISIT system “led to long queues at airports across the country,” reports Wired. “… DHS initially said a computer virus had infected one of the mainframe servers … Later, the agency reversed itself and claimed there was no virus.” Wired writer Kevin Poulsen filed a Freedom of Information Act request to obtain “666 pages of documents about the virus infection that they’ve publicly denied ever occurred.’” DHS is “claiming that these, and other documents, are exempt from disclosure.”
[View article] [View Focus on US-VISIT]
Some Immigrants Want to Restrict Newcomers
(Washington Post)
“Last week, as thousands of mostly Hispanic protesters boycotted work and economic activity, a smaller number staged a news conference in Washington to deride their fellow immigrants under the newly named group ‘You Don’t Speak for Me,’” reports the Washington Post. “… According to a survey conducted by the Pew Hispanic Center last year, 23 percent of the 1,200 Hispanics surveyed thought unauthorized migration was hurting the U.S. economy and driving down wages.… Beyond the economic impact, though, some immigrants accuse more recent waves of not properly assimilating.”
[View article]
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International News
Iran’s Leader Willing to Discuss Nuclear Program: U.S. Pressured to Talk
(Denver Post;
Washington Post)
“Iran’s president said [Thursday] he was ready to negotiate with Western powers over Tehran’s nuclear program but warned that threats would make any talks more difficult,” reports the Associated Press. “Mahmoud Ahmadinejad made his comments after key U.N. Security Council members agreed to present Tehran with a choice of incentives or sanctions in deciding whether to suspend uranium enrichment.” Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, “hosting his Iranian counterpart on a state visit, offered Wednesday to mediate the Islamic republic’s deadlock with the United States and European Union over its nuclear program,” reports the Washington Post. “The Bush administration is facing pressure both in the United States and overseas to drop its long-standing refusal to talk directly with Iran about its nuclear program, particularly in the wake of the unusual 18-page letter sent this week to President Bush by Iran’s president,” reports the Washington Post in a separate story. “The administration has dismissed the letter from Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad—the first such communication since U.S.-Iranian relations were broken more than a quarter of a century ago—as not a serious diplomatic overture.”
[View AP article]
[View Post article]
[View 2nd Post article]
Suicide Bombings Are Increasing
(Washington Times)
“A quarter century into the modern age of suicide terrorism, specialists say the grim tactic is being used more frequently than ever before,” reports the Washington Times. “The State Department, in its latest annual report on global terrorism, said a surge in suicide attacks—at sites ranging from the London subway to the Middle East to Afghanistan—pushed the number of attacks to record heights last year. The report counted some 3,000 deaths attributed to 360 suicide bombings last year. That compares with 472 suicide attacks in five years from 2000 to 2004 documented in a study by the Center for Strategic and International Studies; another study estimated 300 suicide attacks in all the years up to the middle of 2001.”
[View article]
21 Asian-Pacific Countries Plan Long-Term Fight Against Avian Flu
(Reuters AlertNet)
“Health and agriculture ministers from” the 21-member Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation group met in the Vietnam city of Danang on 4-6 May and “agreed to an ‘action plan’ that promotes early detection, sharing biological specimens, fighting illegal chicken trade and reforms of poultry production,” reports Reuters.
[View article]
Ivory Coast Confirms Bird Flu
(Reuters AlertNet)
“Tests at a reference laboratory have confirmed deadly H5N1 bird flu in Ivory Coast, triggering extra control measures in the sixth African country hit by the virus,” reports Reuters.
[View article]
Migrating Birds Return to Europe Without Flu (International Herald Tribune) “The flocks of migratory birds that winged their way south to Africa last autumn and then back over Europe in recent weeks did not carry the H5N1 flu virus or spread it during their annual journey, scientists have concluded, defying health officials’ dire predictions,” according to the International Herald Tribune. “International health officials had feared that the disease was likely to spread to Africa during the winter migration and return to Europe with a vengeance during the reverse migration this spring. That has not happened.”
[View article]
Poorly Protected Oil Facilities Vulnerable to Attack
(Lebanon Daily Star)
“With oil prices already stretched to record highs, a terrorist attack targeting vital oil installations would have immediate global consequences, experts say,” reports Agence France-Presse. “Wells, pipelines, refineries and tankers have all been targeted in recent years by Al-Qaeda-linked groups, or by local armed militants … and many of the facilities remain poorly protected against potential attacks.”
[View article]
Egyptian Police Kill Militant Wanted in Sinai Blasts
(Toronto Globe and Mail)
“Police killed” Nasser Khamis el-Mallahithe, “leader of an al-Qaeda-inspired Islamic extremist group on Tuesday who was wanted for the terrorist attacks that killed 21 people in a Sinai beach resort town [Dahab] last month,” reports the Associated Press.
[View article]
Notorious Abu Sayyaf Leader Captured
(Manila [Philippines] Times)
Philippine authorities arrested “Komoni Pael, also known by his nom de guerre, Abu Bara, … after civilians reported his presence to the military,” reports the Manila Times. Pael, a member of Abu Sayyaf, was behind “the 2001 kidnappings of more than a dozen farmers, many beheaded.”
[View article]
British Reports Fault Intelligence for London Blasts
(New York Times)
“British counter-intelligence agencies failed to understand the ‘development of the home-grown threat and the radicalization of British citizens’ before last July’s bombing, carried out by four young men on a shoestring budget with uncertain links in Pakistan, according to two long-awaited British reports published” separately on Thursday, reports the New York Times. The documents “drew a picture of a security elite dismissive of the likelihood of suicide bombing in Europe.”
[View article]
British al-Qaeda Suspects Triple (New Zealand Herald) “At least 700 people suspected of being involved in al Qaeda terrorist plots have been identified by” British security agency “MI5 and the police,” reports Independent News & Media. “… There has been a threefold increase in the number of terror suspects identified since” 11 September 2001.
[View article]
Australia Helps Philippines Stop Bombs (New Zealand Herald) Australian experts are helping the Philippines “beef up its controls against the possible entry of explosives and biological viruses into Manila’s ports,” reports Reuters.
[View article]
China Left Out of U.S.-Hosted Anti-Terror Meeting
(Yahoo! News)
“U.S. generals did not invite China to a meeting … attended by 91 countries and aimed at boosting cooperation in the U.S.-declared global war on terrorism,” reports Reuters. “… China was not invited ‘because the (U.S.) inter-agency coordination requirement and timeline didn’t allow sufficient time to extend an invitation,’ Maj. Almarah Belk of the Air Force” said. China made no comment.
[View article]
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State and Local News
National Capital Region Emergency Systems Need a Common Language
(Government Computer News)
Emergency communication across local, state, and federal departments and jurisdictions is critical for first responders, and the “police and other emergency response departments in the national capital region of Virginia, Maryland and Washington have standardized on common 800-MHz communications systems …” reports Government Computer News. “‘What’s missing now is the training, the standards and a common language protocol,’ [Capt. Eddie] Reyes [of the Alexandria, VA, police department] said.”
[View article]
DHS Will Rate Local Interoperability Plans (Government Computer News) “The Homeland Security Department plans to issue public scorecards of the effectiveness of interoperable first-responder communications in cities and regions across the country by the end of this year,” reports Government Computer News. Homeland Security Secretary Michael “Chertoff emphasized that interoperable radio communications have stalled mainly because of problems cities and regions have in agreeing on ‘governance’ plans for the systems. Such plans include protocols for which types of communications have priority in a disaster situation. They also specify frequencies and communication codes that all participating first-responder organizations use. The state and local agencies also need to adopt training programs so first responders can use the equipment.”
[View article]
Hurricane Drills Catch Local Officials by Surprise
(Government Executive)
“The Homeland Security Department last week kicked off a series of regional hurricane preparedness exercises, but some local officials have yet to be notified about the drills,” reports Government Executive. “Atlanta will be at the center of an emergency preparedness exercise” that begins on 31 May, but officials at the “Atlanta-Fulton County emergency management office … said they have not received notice of the drill.” The “series involves drills in San Juan, Puerto Rico; New Orleans; Atlanta and a still-to-be-disclosed location that would involve New York, New Jersey and much of New England.”
[View article]
Arizona Ramps Up Immigration Crackdown
(Arizona Republic)
Phoenix-area “law enforcement agencies are ramping up efforts to combat illegal immigration, but they are using the state’s anti-human-smuggling statute to tackle the problem from two different directions,” reports the Arizona Republic. “… a multi-agency financial crimes task force has been using surveillance and undercover operations for the past two months to target smugglers and cripple them financially.” And “a posse to seek out and arrest undocumented immigrants for conspiracy to smuggle themselves into the United States” was mobilized. “Task force officials from Phoenix police, the state Department of Public Safety and the Arizona Attorney General’s Office announced [that] their investigation into human-smuggling operations and money laundering has netted 62 arrests, along with weapons, cars and cash.”
[View article]
Technology Aids Border Patrol
in Arresting 40 Felons
U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Rio Grande Valley Sector Border Patrol agents in
Texas arrested 40 aggravated felons in seven days using the Integrated Automated
Fingerprint Identification System database to identify extensive criminal histories
and prior deportations. The ID database allows the agents to quickly compare a live-scanned,
10-fingerprint entry against a comprehensive national database of previously
captured fingerprints.
[View news
release]
Illinois Nuclear Plant Alert Was Unnecessary
(Chicago Tribune)
“The ‘emergency’ declared at Exelon Corp.’s LaSalle nuclear plant in February greatly overstated the situation, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission said,” and the company “has changed its policy to help avoid future exaggerated warnings,” reports the Chicago Tribune. “The NRC since has requested that reactor operators around the country review policies on what constitutes an emergency to ensure they are sufficiently flexible. LaSalle’s employees followed company procedure to the letter Feb. 20, the NRC said,” but the “problem with the plant’s reactor was under control and posed no threat.”
[View article]
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Federal News
HHS Awards Bird Flu Vaccine Funding
(USA Today)
The Health and Human Services Department “signed more than $1 billion in contracts [on 4 May] with vaccine-makers to develop flu vaccines using cell-based technology, rather than the method used for more than 50 years: growing virus in chicken eggs,” reports USA Today. “… the goal is to provide enough flu vaccine for every American within six months of the start of a flu pandemic. The funds are part of the $3.3 billion that Congress authorized for preparations for a pandemic.” [View article]
CIA Focuses on Using Spies on the Ground
(Washington Times)
“The Central Intelligence Agency will continue a shift toward developing networks of agents overseas while losing some of its role in analyzing intelligence,” reports the Washington Times. “Some CIA analytic units will be moved to other agencies, such as the new National Counterterrorism Center … CIA analysis will remain a ‘center of excellence’ for all intelligence agencies.”
[View article]
Federal Agencies Should Prepare for Telework to Improve Continuity of Operations in Disruptions, Says GAO Federal Emergency Management Agency “guidance states that in their continuity planning, agencies should consider the use of telework—that is, work performed at an employee’s home or at a work location other than a traditional office,” according to the Government Accountability Office. The Office of Personnel Management has reported that 43 agencies have identified staff eligible to telework, and that more than 140,000 federal employees used telework in 2004. And while more federal agencies plan to use telework in the event of a disruption, few have made preparations to do so effectively, David M. Walker, U.S.
Comptroller General, testified before the House of Representatives Government Reform Committee yesterday.
[View abstract]
Pentagon Team Surfs Jihad Websites
(Forbes)
“A Pentagon research team monitors more than 5,000 jihadist Web sites, focusing daily on the 25 to 100 most hostile and active, defense officials say,” reports the Associated Press. “The team includes 25 linguists, who cover multiple dialects of the Arabic language and provide reports on events sparking anger on extremist Web sites.”
[View article]
Pandemic Influenza Implementation Plan Last week’s newsletter contained a link to last year’s report on pandemic flu. The new report can be downloaded from the federal PandemicFlu site.
[View website]
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Dual-Benefit Solutions
Rail Rescue Vehicle Gets Responders to Off-Road Sites Pierce Manufacturing, builder of fire and rescue apparatus, has created Rail Rescue, a fire truck that can travel on railroad tracks. Recent fires and accidents in areas accessible only by rail prompted customers to ask for a vehicle like Rail Rescue. Rail Rescue vehicles are custom built for the rails they must travel on.
[View press release]
| Dual-benefit news archive |
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Private-Sector News
Mass. Crafts Website Hacked by Terrorists
(Detroit News)
Regular visitors to the Carriage House Glass website “could never see the hidden material”--“the radical writings of a top aide to Osama bin Laden, including ‘The International Islamic Resistance Call,’ Abu Musab al-Suri’s 1,600-page manifesto advocating jihad,” reports the Boston Globe. The website’s owners knew nothing of the extremists’ “piggybacking” until informed by researchers. “The website was hacked a year ago by followers of Suri,” who used it as “an online reading room for aspiring mujahadeen … A link to the hidden files on the website was circulated on bulletin boards frequented by Muslim extremists for a year.”
[View article]
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Please submit events and educational programs by noon Wednesdays for consideration as items in that week’s newsletter.
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Education
The Homeland Security Institute lists these education programs as a service to readers who may be interested; it does not endorse them or
their courses.
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New
SANS Security 401: Security Essentials with Bootcamp (19-24 June; Philadelphia)
The SANS Institute and the University of Pennsylvania are sponsoring this introductory course to computing security. Faculty and staff of accredited educational institutions and law enforcement agencies will receive a discount of more than 75%. Registration deadline is 30 May.
[View conference website]
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Upcoming Events
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New Events (After two weeks, new events will be moved to the list below, in chronological order)
(5-13 July; Washington, DC) This conference will offer nine days of information security classes, exhibits, and keynote talks on “Networks Under Fire: The SANS Internet Storm Center” and “Network Early Warning Systems.”
[View conference website]
Technologies for Critical Incident Preparedness Conference & Expo (6-8 September; Atlanta) This 8th annual conference is presented by the National Institute of Justice in association with the Public Safety Technology Center. It will focus on prevention, preparedness, response, and recovery and will highlight the technology and training tools available and being developed for emergency responders to deal with major threats to lives and property; 1,000 attendees and over 150 exhibits are expected.
[View conference website]
(19-21 September; Baltimore)
This multiple-track conference will feature 2½ days of presentations, seminars, and panel discussions with internationally recognized experts in biometric technologies, system and application developers, IT business strategists, and government and commercial officers;
technology seminars and biometric technology exhibits (open during the entire conference); and a special session on research. [View conference website]
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May
Risks and Economic Impacts of Terrorism (17 May; Los Angeles) This conference, sponsored by the Homeland Security Center for Risk and Economic Analysis of Terrorism Events, will focus on improving homeland security through risk-based decision making. Panel discussions and keynote presentations will feature policy makers, private industry leaders, and researchers.
[View conference website]
IEEE Intelligence and Security Informatics 2006 (23-24 May; San Diego) Sponsored by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, the conference will be co-located with the 7th Annual National Conference on Digital Government Research.
[View conference website]
June
2006 Techno Security Conference (4-7 June; Myrtle Beach, SC) The conference will bring together private industry, government and law enforcement decision makers, and technical enthusiasts in the fields of information and network security, digital forensics, incident response, operational and physical security, auditing, and cyber-crime. Eight simultaneous tracks will feature interactive high-intensity training sessions, hands-on labs, and opportunities for professional certification and networking. Topics will include homeland security; wireless security; web hacking; contingency planning; vulnerability assessments; incident response; computer, personal digital assistant, and enterprise forensics; password recovery and disk-wiping tools; intrusion prevention; Internet investigation techniques; street smarts for investigators; biometrics; and steganography.
[View conference website]
Homeland Port Security Conference (7 June; New York) This conference sponsored by the U.S. Naval Institute will feature senior U.S. Navy and Coast Guard officers, as well as civilian, political, and business leaders, thrust into real-time simulations of simultaneous terrorist attacks against key maritime assets in the United States, requiring panelists to identify critical issues and challenges:
- Lessons learned: How do agencies disseminate unclassified information?
- Communication logistics during emergencies: Is everyone on the same page?
- Command and control: Who’s in charge in a layered-response scenario?
- Secure shipping: How do we monitor and secure the supply chain?
- Terrorist attacks on commerce and energy: What are the financial implications?
[View conference website]
Terrorism Research Symposium (12-13 June; Denver) Law enforcement officials who deal with terrorism in their states, cities, and communities will learn what works to prevent and respond to terrorism. The conference is hosted by the National Institute of Justice’s International Center. Panelists will discuss research findings about common issues and invite state and local officials to describe their challenges and experiences in interactive, dynamic sessions.
[View conference website]
Explosives Detection Conference (12-16 June; Miami) This conference, sponsored by the Combating Terrorism Technology Support Office Technical Support Working Group, focuses on large vehicle bomb detection, short-range detection, canines, and suicide bomber detection. Attendance is by invitation only. To request an invitation, register on the website. There is no fee for the conference. For further information, email detection_conference@bah.com. The registration deadline is 5 June. [View conference website; enter code TSW73414]
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Air & Port Security Expo
Asia (13-14 June; Hong Kong) The conference, held at the AsiaWorld Expo, will feature a two-day aviation security conference, a two-day maritime security conference, and a two-day new technologies seminar. More than 60 suppliers of security equipment and services to the transportation sector are expected to exhibit, and over a thousand heads of security from airports, airlines, seaports, shipping, supply chain operatives, government agencies, and integrators of security are expected to attend.
[View conference website]
6th International Conference on Complex Systems (25-30 June; Quincy, MA)
This conference will investigate the properties or characteristics that appear to be common to the
very different complex systems now under study and will encourage cross-fertilization among the many disciplines involved.
[View conference website]
July
4th TICS and TIMs Symposium (11-13 July; Richmond, VA) Scentczar’s symposium will provide an overview of perceived threats, equipment requirements, and tools for identifying, defending against, and remediating incidents involving toxic industrial chemicals and toxic industrial materials.
[View conference website]
INFORMS Military Applications Society (24-26 July; Mystic, CT) The Military Applications Society, a technical arm of the Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences, will hold a conference with the theme “Homeland Security for the 21st Century.”
[Register online]
September
Air & Port Security Expo Europe (13-14 September; Brussels, Belgium) The conference will cover airport, port, supply chain industry, passenger, cargo, and terminal security. It will feature a two-day aviation security conference, two-day maritime security conference, and two-day new technologies and solutions seminar. More than 100 suppliers of security equipment and services to the transportation sector are expected to exhibit, and over 2,000 heads of security from airports, airlines, seaports, shipping, supply chain operatives, government agencies, and integrators of security are expected to attend.
[View conference website]
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U.S. Maritime Security Expo (19-20 September; New York) The expo will address the protection of ports, harbors, bridges, cargo containers, powerplants, offshore oil rigs, railroads, and cargo and passenger ships. In-depth workshops will cover port and maritime investigations, pre-employment screening, and radio-frequency identification and supply chain software.
[View conference website]
December
Society for Risk Analysis (3-6 December; Baltimore) This year’s conference theme is “Risk Analysis in a Dynamic World:
Making a Difference.” The society’s annual meeting brings together nearly 1,000 international scientists and practitioners from a wide range of disciplines who share an interest in risk analysis and represent academia, government, industry, non-governmental organizations, private firms, and themselves.
[View conference website]
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Calls for Papers
Society for Risk Analysis (3-6 December; Baltimore) This year’s conference theme is “Risk Analysis in a Dynamic World:
Making a Difference.” The deadline for submitting abstract, symposia, and workshop proposals is 1 June.
[View conference website]
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