California

California

(U//FOUO) California State Warning Center Situation Cell Incident Report 2020 novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) February 9, 2020

Outbreaks of novel virus infections among people are always of public health concern. The risk from these outbreaks depends on characteristics of the virus, including whether and how well it spreads between people, the severity of resulting illness, and the medical or other measures available to control the impact of the virus. Investigations are ongoing to learn more, but some degree of person-to-person spread of 2019-nCoV is occurring. It is not clear yet how easily 2019-nCoV spreads from person-to-person. While CDC considers this as a serious public health concern, based on current information, the immediate health risk from 2019-nCoV to the general American public is considered low at this time.

Read more →

Afghanistan, California, Intelligence Fusion Centers

(U//FOUO) San Diego Fusion Center Bulletin: Ambulance Used to Conceal Improvised Explosive Device in Afghanistan

On January 27, 2018 at approximately 12:15pm local time, a vehicle resembling an ambulance and laden with explosives detonated after it passed through a police checkpoint in Kabul, Afghanistan. The explosion killed more than 100 people and wounded approximately 235 others. According to the deputy spokesperson for the Afghanistan Interior Ministry, the vehicle was painted to resemble an ambulance and had successfully passed through a checkpoint after the attacker allegedly told police he was transporting a patient to a nearby hospital. While stopped at a second checkpoint farther inside the city limits, the attacker detonated the explosives concealed in the vehicle.

Read more →

California, Intelligence Fusion Centers

(U//FOUO) California Cybersecurity Integration Center Advisory: Security Concerns with Kaspersky Labs Products

On 11 July, the United States Government removed Moscow-based Kaspersky Lab from two lists of approved vendors used by government agencies to purchase technology equipment, amid concerns the cyber security firm’s products could be used by the Kremlin to gain entry into U.S. networks. Last month the Senate Armed Services Committee passed a defense spending policy bill that would ban Kaspersky products from use in the military. The move came a day after the FBI interviewed several of the company’s U.S. employees at their private homes as part of a counterintelligence investigation into its operations.

Read more →

California

San Bernardino DA Report on Sheriff’s Department Response to 2015 Terror Attack

On December 2, 2015 at about 10:58 am San Bernardino Police began to receive numerous calls of shots fired at the Inland Regional Center located at 1365 South Waterman Avenue in San Bernardino. Initial calls indicated that there were several gunshots heard. Another call reported that there were two or possibly three subjects in all black clothing and masks armed with assault weapons. Within a matter of three to four minutes there were multiple calls reporting that multiple masked subjects had entered in the conference room, located in Building 3 of the Inland Regional Center, and opened fire in the main conference room.

Read more →

California, Intelligence Fusion Centers

(U//FOUO) Los Angeles Joint Regional Intelligence Center: Vehicle Ramming Attacks Increasing

Use of vehicles by violent extremists for ramming attacks has increased steadily, while use of vehicle-borne improvised explosive devices (VBIEDs) remains rare outside the Middle East. Given the ease with which ramming attacks can be accomplished, it is likely use of this tactic will continue to rise. Unlike VBIEDs, ramming attacks require little specialized training or skill, present minimal risk of detection when acquiring the weapon, and offer flexibility with regard to preparation, timing, and target. Foreign terrorist organizations (FTOs) have pointedly encouraged use of vehicle ramming attacks, offering explicit tactical advice on vehicle selection, driving tips to maximize fatalities, and targeting suggestions that include parades, festivals, street fairs, outdoor markets or conventions, political rallies, and other crowded targets of opportunity.

Read more →

California

(U//FOUO) California Fusion Center: California Leads in Unauthorized UAS Encounters, Risk to Public Safety

California has had more disclosed unauthorized Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) encounters than any other state between October 2015 and September 2016—accounting for 21 percent of the reported encounters nationwide—according to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). These encounters continue to pose a direct risk to public safety air assets.

Read more →

California, Department of Homeland Security

DHS San Francisco Earthquake Study Hayward Fault Magnitude 7.0 Scenario

The results of this analysis show a strong earthquake will likely cause significant damage to critical infrastructure in the area affecting 547 dams or water control structures, render approximately 300 roadway segments unusable, and cause damage to 172 water and wastewater treatment systems. The scenario earthquake will likely cause damage to 154 dams in the area. Seven of the dams will likely experience Extensive or Complete damage. The Ward Creek Dam, which is used for flood control, is likely to incur Complete damage. Extensive damage to the James H. Turner Dam poses the greatest risk to downstream population. The earthquake will cause damages to many road segments, bridges, and tunnels in the area. As a result, travel times on these roadways and others will increase significantly. Multiple areas on freeways such as I–680, I–880, and I–580 will have the highest above normal traffic volumes. Several bridges on these freeways will also likely incur Extensive damage. Tunnels in the area will likely have less damage with bores in the Caldecott Tunnel on State Route 24 experiencing only Moderate damage.

Read more →

California, Department of Justice

Department of Justice Report on San Francisco Police Department Reform Initiative

As a result of an extensive independent assessment of the San Francisco Police Department’s (SFPD) activities and operations, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office) presents findings and recommendations on how to address the agency’s needs proactively in a long-term manner to improve trust between the SFPD and the communities it serves.

Read more →

California, Intelligence Fusion Centers

(U//FOUO) California Fusion Center: Drone Threats to Public Safety Personnel, Assets and Response

Encounters in 2015 of unauthorized unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), also known as drones, with public safety aircraft during emergency events underscore the potential threats UAS pose to response efforts—notably search-and-rescue, firefighting and police air assets—as well as the lives, property and natural resources already at risk.

Read more →

California

Modesto Police Department Correspondence with Predictive Policing Company PredPol, Inc.

A collection of correspondence and contract information between the Modesto Police Department and PredPol, Inc., a company that sells software used for so-called predictive policing. The material was obtained by journalist Darwin BondGraham via the California Public Records Act. BondGraham’s Twitter account was suspended following a complaint issued by PredPol, Inc. after he posted images of a few pages from the documents. It is unclear what specific content was the reason for the complaint.

Read more →

California

San Diego Regional Facial Recognition System Policy

These policies are intended to provide law enforcement agencies uniform guidance regarding their appropriate use of a facial recognition field identification tool. Nlets sponsored the preparation of its Privacy Impact Assessment Report for the Utilization of Facial Recognition Technologies to Identify Subjects in the Field to better describe the privacy issues surrounding law enforcement agencies’ utilization of facial recognition technologies in the field. These policies were generated in response to the discussions contained in that report.

Read more →

California, Intelligence Fusion Centers

(U//LES) Northern California Fusion Center Bulletin: Recreational Drones Create Problems for Law Enforcement

The expansion of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) operations for military purposes in the last decade has driven growth in the commercial UAV industry where. the casual enthusiast can now purchase a ready-to-fly system for less than $300. These UAVs can be accessorized for varied purposes such as cinematography, agricultural monitoring, wildlife tracking, site surveillance, and potentially even for kinetic attacks with a firearm or improvised explosive. This Advisory Bulletin addresses an observed increase in UAV use by ordinary citizens, outlining capabilities and implications for the law enforcement community. The NCRIC has not received any specific or credible UAV threats in our 15-county AOR and presents the following information for situational awareness purposes.

Read more →

California, Intelligence Fusion Centers

(U//LES) Los Angeles Fusion Center: Identifying Mexican Mafia Members and Associates

Humming bird and Marilyn Monroe tattoos may have a nexus to the Mexican Mafia, while “G Shields” (Aztec warrior shields) and mariposas (butterflies) may be decreasing in popularity. As certain tattoos sported by Mexican Mafia members and supporters become mainstream, and because California Department of Corrections is known to use certain tattoos as validation points, Mexican Mafia members may introduce new tattoos to make it difficult for law enforcement and correctional officers to identify membership or affiliation with the group. Tattoos are also increasingly disguised within other tattoos, which can make them more difficult to easily identify.

Read more →

California

Oakland Domain Awareness Center Draft Privacy and Data Retention Policy

The Joint City-Port Domain Awareness Center (interchangeably referred to in this document as “Joint City-Port Domain Awareness Center”, “Domain Awareness Center,” or “DAC”) was first proposed to the City Council’s Public Safety Committee on June 18, 2009, in an information report regarding the City of Oakland partnering with the Port of Oakland to apply for Port Security Grant funding under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, 2009. Under this grant program, funding was available for Maritime Domain Awareness (MDA) projects relative to “maritime” or “waterside”. The Port and City were encouraged to consider the development of a joint City Port Domain Awareness Center. The joint DAC would create a center that would bring together the technology, systems and processes that would provide for an effective understanding of anything associated with the City of Oakland boundaries as well as the Oakland maritime operations that could impact the security, safety, economy or environment.

Read more →

California

Oakland Police Department Urban Shield 2013 Protest Documentation

The following documents were obtained via a public records request made by members of Occupy Oakland. The documents concern the Oakland Police Department response to protests against the 2013 Urban Shield homeland security exercise held in Alameda County. Urban Shield is an annual exercise series that features nearly fifty different training scenarios for law enforcement ranging from terrorist attacks conducted by “homegrown extremists” to hostage situations, fires and even natural disasters. The 2013 Urban Shield exercise involved dozens of federal, state and local law enforcement organizations, representatives of foreign countries such as Switzerland, Brazil, Bahrain, Jordan, as well as more than a dozen corporations including FedEx, Cisco Systems and Verizon Wireless. The documents are heavily redacted and include an operations plan, a presentation on Occupy Oakland, arrest reports and other miscellaneous documentation related to the protests.

Read more →

California, Intelligence Fusion Centers

City of Oakland Domain Awareness Center Emails

Hundreds of emails from the City of Oakland relating to the construction of the City/Port of Oakland Joint Domain Awareness Center. The files were scanned from printouts held in a series of folders by the City of Oakland and were obtained via a public records request made by members of Occupy Oakland. The emails were the source material for a recent story in the East Bay Express by Darwin BondGraham stating that the City of Oakland had allowed the Domain Awareness Center’s prime contractor Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) to perjure themselves by signing a disclosure form claiming that the company was in compliance with the city’s Nuclear Weapons Free Zone Ordinance which prohibits the city from doing business with contractors that are connected to the production or use of nuclear weapons. According to the article, SAIC has had a number of contracts relating to nuclear weapons for more than a decade, including a May 2013 U.S. Navy contact for “engineering services, testing, and integration for nuclear command control and communication (NC3) messaging systems.”

Read more →

California

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.

Read more →

California, Corporate, Intelligence Fusion Centers

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.

Read more →