United States

Connecticut State’s Attorney Report on Sandy Hook Elementary School Mass Shooting

The purpose of this report is to identify the person or persons criminally responsible for the twenty-seven homicides that occurred in Newtown, Connecticut, on the morning of December 14, 2012, to determine what crimes were committed, and to indicate if there will be any state prosecutions as a result of the incident. Since December 14, 2012, the Connecticut State Police and the State’s Attorney’s Office have worked with the federal authorities sharing responsibilities for various aspects of this investigation. Numerous other municipal, state and federal agencies assisted in the investigation. The investigation materials reflect thousands of law enforcement and prosecutor hours. Apart from physical evidence, the materials consist of more than seven-hundred individual files that include reports, statements, interviews, videos, laboratory tests and results, photographs, diagrams, search warrants and returns, as well as evaluations of those items.

Department of Transportation Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) Service Demand 2015-2035

This report assesses opportunities, risks, and challenges attendant to future development and deployment of UAS within the National Airspace System (NAS) affecting UAS forecast growth from 2015 to 2035. Analysis of four key areas is performed: technology, mission needs, economics, and existing or anticipated challenges to routine use in NAS operations. Forecast effects of emerging technologies as well as anticipating new technological innovations in areas of airframes, powerplants, sensors, communication, command and control systems, and information technology and processing are evaluated. Anticipated mission needs include intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR), as well as new areas such as stores delivery, cargo transport, search and rescue, and pilot augmentation; example business case models are developed for each of these areas. Challenges to routine UAS usage in the NAS include: absence of legislation and regulations for safe flight in integrated airspace; pilot training and certification; regulatory, policy, and procedural issues; social issues, such as privacy and nuisance concerns; environmental issues, such as noise and emissions; and safety.

San Francisco Bay Area Regional Interoperable Communications Systems Authority (BayRICS) Facial Recognition Presentation

A presentation presenting an overview of the Bay Area Regional Interoperable Communications System Authority (BayRICS), a 13-member Joint Powers Authority (JPA) serving the San Francisco Bay Area, established in August 2011. The presentation lists license plate readers, facial recognition and field fingerprint scanning as potential uses of the BayRICS network.

(U//FOUO) DHS National Cybersecurity and Communications Integration Center (NCCIC) Capabilities Guide

The National Cybersecurity and Communications Integration Center (NCCIC) Resource and Capabilities Guide is intended to enhance cross-sector cyber security efforts and collaboration by better informing our cybersecurity and communications partners of the NCCIC’s tools, assets, and collaboration mechanisms offered. This guide also identifies the Center’s resources and capabilities as well as describes the processes for accessing NCCIC information portals and products, incident reporting systems, and relevant point of contact information for our community of partners.

DHS National Cybersecurity and Communications Integration Center Bulletin: Destructive Malware

As related to malware which may exhibit a potentially destructive capability, organizations should increase vigilance and evaluate their capabilities encompassing planning, preparation, detection, and response for such an event. Destructive malware presents a direct threat to an organization’s daily operations, directly impacting the availability of critical assets and data. In addition, the response required for such an event can be extremely resource intensive.

DHS National Cybersecurity and Communications Integration Center Bulletin: Cryptolocker Ransomware

The following product is a coordinated effort between NCCIC, U.S. Secret Service and The Cyber Intelligence Network (CIN), provided to assist in prevention, detection and mitigation of a new ransomeware campaign. Ransomware is malware that restricts access to infected computers and requires victims to pay a ransom in order to regain full access. Cryptolocker is particularly interesting in that it functions by encrypting victims computer files with a combination of RSA-2048 and AES-256 encryption. Once encrypted, victims are provided a window of time in which they can pay the actors to receive the key needed to decrypt their files.

Oakland Domain Awareness Center Purchasing Invoices March-July 2013

Scans of all invoices related to the City of Oakland’s contract with Science Applications International Corporation for the construction of the City/Port of Oakland Joint Domain Awareness Center. The documents were collected in a binder held by the City of Oakland and obtained via a public records request made by members of Occupy Oakland. The invoices are organized by month and range in date from March to July 2013.

GAO Report: TSA Should Limit Future Funding for Behavior Detection Activities

Available evidence does not support whether behavioral indicators, which are used in the Transportation Security Administration’s (TSA) Screening of Passengers by Observation Techniques (SPOT) program, can be used to identify persons who may pose a risk to aviation security. GAO reviewed four meta-analyses (reviews that analyze other studies and synthesize their findings) that included over 400 studies from the past 60 years and found that the human ability to accurately identify deceptive behavior based on behavioral indicators is the same as or slightly better than chance. Further, the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) April 2011 study conducted to validate SPOT’s behavioral indicators did not demonstrate their effectiveness because of study limitations, including the use of unreliable data. Twenty-one of the 25 behavior detection officers (BDO) GAO interviewed at four airports said that some behavioral indicators are subjective. TSA officials agree, and said they are working to better define them. GAO analyzed data from fiscal years 2011 and 2012 on the rates at which BDOs referred passengers for additional screening based on behavioral indicators and found that BDOs’ referral rates varied significantly across airports, raising questions about the use of behavioral indicators by BDOs. To help ensure consistency, TSA officials said they deployed teams nationally to verify compliance with SPOT procedures in August 2013. However, these teams are not designed to help ensure BDOs consistently interpret SPOT indicators.

Restricted U.S. Army All Source Intelligence Technician Officer Training Standards

This publication is for officers holding military occupational specialty (MOS) 350F and their trainers or first-line supervisors. It contains standardized training objectives, in the form of task summaries, which support unit missions during wartime. Officers holding MOS 350F should be issued or have access to this publication. It should be available in the officer’s work area, unit learning center, and unit libraries. Trainers and first-line supervisors should actively plan for officers to have access to this publication.

NASA Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Integration in the National Airspace System (NAS) Project Presentations

A collection of presentations from June 2012 detailing the NASA Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Integration in the National Airspace System (NAS) Project’s efforts to integrate drones into the national airspace including technical problems with frequency allocation as well as technologies designed to avoid mid-air collisions.

FAA Integration of Civil Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) in the National Airspace System (NAS) Roadmap

Since the early 1990s, unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) have operated on a limited basis in the National Airspace System (NAS). Until recently, UAS mainly supported public operations, such as military and border security operations. The list of potential uses is now rapidly expanding to encompass a broad range of other activities, including aerial photography, surveying land and crops, communications and broadcast, monitoring forest fires and environmental conditions, and protecting critical infrastructures. UAS provide new ways for commercial enterprises (civil operations) and public operators to enhance some of our nation’s aviation operations through increased operational efficiency and decreased costs, while maintaining the safety of the NAS.

(U//FOUO) Central Florida Intelligence Exchange Bulletin: Smoking Alcohol

This Brief was produced to alert emergency medical responders and healthcare providers to the dangerous levels of toxicity that can be presented by patients who have smoked alcohol. Although this practice is dangerous, it is not illegal. It is being practiced by young adults all over the country and causing serious medical emergencies and deaths as a result. Because this is a returning trend, unfamiliar to health care providers, there is no statistical data available concerning hospitalizations and deaths. The below information was assembled from open source research and can be duplicated and shared for the purposes of awareness and education.

U.S. Army Africa Pamphlet: Cultural, Historical, and Natural Resource Protection During African Operations

This pamphlet is applicable to United States (US) forces conducting operations in Africa operating under the control of US Army Africa (USARAF) or applicable joint task forces (JTF). The intent of this pamphlet is to provide guidance on the protection and management of recognized cultural, historic, and natural resources that may be placed at risk due to the conduct of the full spectrum of US ground operations and associated close air/naval support operations.

Domestic Operational Law Handbook for Judge Advocates 2013

The Domestic Operational Law (DOPLAW) Handbook for judge advocates is a product of the Center for Law and Military Operations (CLAMO). Its content is derived from statutes, Executive Orders and Directives, national policy, DoD Directives, joint publications, service regulations, field manuals, and lessons learned by judge advocates and other practitioners throughout federal and state government. This edition includes substantial revisions. It incorporates new guidance set forth in Department of Defense Directive 3025.18 (Defense Support of Civil Authorities), Department of Defense Instruction 3025.21 (Defense Support of Civilian Law Enforcement Agencies), numerous new National Planning Framework documents, and many other recently updated publications. It provides amplifying information on wildfire response, emergency mutual assistance compacts, the role of the National Guard and Army units in domestic response, and provides valuable lessons learned from major incidents such as the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill and Hurricane Sandy of 2012.

Defense Science Board Report: Understanding Human Dynamics

Understanding human dynamics is an essential aspect of planning for success across the full spectrum of military and national security operations. While the adage that “warfare is political conflict by other means” is widely recognized, combatants who underestimate the impact of the human element in military operations do so at their risk. During the Second World War and the reconstruction that followed, as well as during the Cold War, understanding human dynamics was considered essential. As conceptualized in this report, the term “human dynamics” comprises the actions and interactions of personal, interpersonal, and social/contextual factors and their effects on behavioral outcomes. Human dynamics are influenced by factors such as economics, religion, politics, and culture. Culture is defined herein as the particular norms and beliefs held by every human, that impacts how individuals, groups and societies perceive, behave and interact.

Sociocultural Behavior Research and Engineering in the Department of Defense Context

Significant progress has been made toward building a DoD capability for understanding sociocultural behavior, and some solutions have been delivered to military end users. However, there is much work to be done. The complexity of human behavior defies easy understanding or reliable forecasting. In the context of irregular warfare, counterinsurgency, post-conflict recovery, or any other mission setting of the Armed Forces, technology—including computational models—is essential to support decision making. That technology must be rooted in well-validated, inter-disciplinary theory, and applied appropriately, with recognition of its strengths and limitations.