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More attention paid to luggage security at airports
The recent evacuation of a terminal at San Francisco airport draws even more attention to the need for explosive detection at airports
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Analysis: Environmental regulations cause risky concentration of critical infrastructure
It used to be the case that environmental concerns appeared to clash with economic growth and job creation; now an argument is being made that environmental concerns leading to the concentration of critical infrastructure facilities may clash with security
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BlackBerry as part of the U.S. critical infrastructure?
BlackBerry, in desperate effort to ward off court injunction, claims to be an integral part of U.S. critical infrastructure
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U.K. in ambitious road surveillance scheme
All roads may lead to Rome, but all surveillance roads surely lead to England, as government launches nationwide road surveillance program
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U.K. government, service providers discuss data retention strictures
U.K. pushed hard to increase amount of time phone companies should retain phone call information, but providers complain that more attention should be paid to the costs they must shoulder as a result
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Johns Hopkins home to fifth Homeland Security Center of Excellence
Last month Johns Hopkins joined other academic centers to harness its considerable intellectual firepower on behalf of the nation’s security
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RuggedCom shows ROS v. 3, addressing critical infrastructure needs
In the 1960s, Rober McNamara’s Whiz Kids used to ask: How Much Security Is Enough? When it comes to network security, especially networks which govern the country’s critical infrastructure, there is no such thing as enough security, and the ruggedized switches from RuggedCom would help in this regard
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Israel shuts down chlorine storage near Ashkelon owing to terrorism threat
In the United States it has taken years to begin introducing meaningful security measures at chemical plants; in Israel it has taken no more than half a dozen inaccurate Kassam rockets to be fired from the Gaza Strip for chlorine storage facility to be shut down
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Congressional report cites 33 promises DHS failed to keep
Minority staff of House Homeland Security Committee lists 33 specific promises and pledges DHS made since 2003 and failed to meet
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DHS pushes cities to develop regional disaster recovery plans
DHS insists that cities applying for urban security grants coordinate their disaster and recovery programs with neighboring cities so that they can present a regional disaster recovery plans in their application
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DHS invites comments on SAFECOM
DHS invites public comments on program to coordinate public safety communications and interoperability
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The long view
U.S. contemplates responses to a cyber-Pearl Harbor attack on critical infrastructure
Cybersecurity experts often contemplate how U.S. security agencies would react to a cyber-9/11 or a digital Pearl Harbor, in which a computer attack would unplug the power grid, disable communications lines, empty bank accounts, and result in loss of life. “Ultimately, it absolutely could happen,” says one expert. “Yeah, that thought keeps me up at night, in terms of what portion of our critical infrastructure could be really brought to its knees.”
Protecting the U.S. power grid
The U.S. power grid is made up of complex and expensive system components, which are owned by utilities ranging from small municipalities to large national corporations spanning multiple states. A National Academy of Sciences report estimates that a worst-case geomagnetic storm could have an economic impact of $1 trillion to $2 trillion in the first year, which is twenty times the damage caused by a Katrina-class hurricane.
More than 143 million Americans at risk from earthquakes
More than 143 million Americans living in the forty-eight contiguous states are exposed to potentially damaging ground shaking from earthquakes, with as many as twenty-eight million people in the highest hazard zones likely to experience strong shaking during their lifetime, according to new research. The research puts the average long-term value of building losses from earthquakes at $4.5 billion per year, with roughly 80 percent of losses attributed to California, Oregon, and Washington. By comparison, FEMA estimated in 1994 that seventy-five million Americans in thirty-nine states were at risk from earthquakes. In the highest hazard zones, the researchers identified more than 6,000 fire stations, more than 800 hospitals, and nearly 20,000 public and private schools that may be exposed to strong ground motion from earthquakes.
Coastal communities can lower flood insurance rates by addressing sea-level rise
City leaders and property developers in Tampa Bay are urging coastal communities to prepare today for sea-level rise and future floods in order to keep flood insurance rates low in the future. FEMA, which administers the National Flood Insurance Program(NFIP), is increasing flood insurance premiums across the country, partly to offset losses from recent disasters such as hurricanes Katrina and Sandy. Cities can reduce insurance premiums for nearly all residents who carry flood coverage by improving storm-water drainage, updating building codes to reflect projected rise in sea-levels, moving homes out of potentially hazardous areas, and effectively informing residents about storm danger and evacuation routes.