Federal Bureau of Investigation

(U//FOUO) FBI Bulletin: Threat of Cyberterrorist and Hacktivist Activity in Response to U.S. Military Actions in the Middle East

The FBI has no information at this time to indicate specific cyber threats to US networks or infrastructure in response to ongoing US military air strikes against the terrorist group known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Shams (ISIS) or the Islamic State (IS). However, the FBI assesses extremist hackers and hacktivist groups, including but not limited to those aligned with the ISIL ideology, will continue to threaten and may attempt offensive cyber actions against the United States in response to perceived or actual US military operations in Iraq or Syria. The FBI bases this assessment on recent, nonspecific, and probably aspirational threats made on social media platforms to carry out cyber as well as physical attacks in response to the US military presence in the Middle East.

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Canada, European Union

Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) Consolidated Text

The text of the CETA agreement is made public here exclusively for information purposes. The text presented in this document is the text at the end of the negotiations conducted by the European Commission. It will be subject to legal revision in order to verify the internal consistency and to ensure that the formulations of the negotiating results are legally sound. It will thereafter be transmitted to the Council of the European Union and to the European Parliament for ratification. The text presented in this document is not binding under international law and will only become so after the completion of the ratification process.

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Federal Reserve Bank of New York

Federal Reserve Bank of New York Report on Systemic Risk and Bank Supervision

The 2007-2009 financial crisis was a systemic collapse – a sudden collapse of asset prices and the failure or near-failure/rescue of almost all large financial institutions. The United States has not witnessed a systemic collapse since the 1930s, and many thought it was impossible for the United States to have such an event, given the apparent advances in risk management that preceded it. However, the collapse occurred and was very large, damaging to the real economy and extremely expensive to resolve. A desire not to let such an event happen again pervades the body politic, indeed is demanded by many. But preventing such an event is neither easy nor costless. Financial crises typically follow large economic booms. While such booms may be characterized as bubbles in retrospect, they are extremely popular while they are occurring. The Federal Reserve has long seen its mission against inflation “to take away the punch bowl just when the party is getting good”; if it now becomes the systemic risk regulator it must be prepared to do the same against rising systemic risk, using tools beyond monetary policy. This is likely to be unpopular unless the ground is extremely well prepared and broadly understood. We return to this threshold problem in more detail below.

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Iran, United Nations

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani Speech to UN General Assembly Transcript September 25, 2014

Extremism is not a regional issue that just the nations of our region would have to grapple with; extremism is a global issue. Certain states have helped creating it and are now failing to withstand it. Currently our peoples are paying the price. Today’s anti-Westernism is the offspring of yesterday’s colonialism. Today’s anti-Westernism is a reaction to yesterday’s racism. Certain intelligence agencies have put blades in the hand of madmen, who now spare no one. All those who have played a role in founding and supporting these terror groups must acknowledge their errors that have led to extremism. They need to apologize not only to the past but also to the next generation.

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Intelligence Fusion Centers, New Jersey

(U//FOUO) New Jersey Fusion Center Special Events List September 2014

The NJ Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness (OHSP) compiles a statewide list of special events that provides situational awareness to law enforcement, as well as to assist in local planning requirements. Special events include any event that attracts large numbers of participants and spectators in both a public or private venue. Examples include concerts, marathons, firework displays, community celebrations, visits by VIPs, sporting events, holiday gatherings, etc.

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General Services Administration

General Services Administration 1122 Program Equipment and Supplies Catalog

Section 1122 of the fiscal year 1994 National Defense Authorization Act established the authority for State and local governments to purchase law enforcement equipment through Federal procurement channels, provided that the equipment is used in the performance of counter-drug activities. The “1122 Program” affords State and local governments the opportunity to maximize their use of taxpayer dollars, by taking advantage of the purchasing power of the Federal Government to receive discounts commensurate with large volume purchases.

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News

Joint Chiefs of Staff Guide Offers Blunt Assessment of Afghan National Police

“First time I ever saw an Afghan Police Station I thought it was something straight out of the dark ages, complete with zero electricity, mud structure, and no sewage drainage. Immediately I knew this mission would be challenging and wondered what the heck I got myself into?” This quote from a U.S. Army Captain is just one example of the unusually blunt assessments contained in the Joint Center for International Security Force Assistance (JCISFA) guide for advising the Afghan National Police (ANP). The 2010 version of the JCISFA ANP Mentor Guide, which was obtained by Public Intelligence along with a guide for troops assisting the Afghan National Army (ANA), contains a number of revealing observations on the often poor condition of Afghan National Security Forces, in particular the ANP.

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Afghanistan, Joint Chiefs of Staff

(U//FOUO) Joint Center for International Security Force Assistance Afghan National Police Mentor Guide

In order to develop the ANP, the Combined Security Transition Command-Afghanistan (CSTC-A) uses Police Mentor Teams to help develop them. A shortage of PMTs across the country, however, has led to the formation of in-lieu of advisor teams comprised of Soldiers from land owning units or attached Military Police units. The purpose of this document is to help provide those additional advisory teams with information they need to develop the skills required to effectively augment the CSTC-A program. This handbook will provide an overview of the entire police program including current goals, relationships to other organizations, the Focused District Development Program, key challenges that may be encountered and the duties of key members of the police advising teams including how to work with the team’s enablers.

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Afghanistan, Joint Chiefs of Staff

(U//FOUO) Joint Center for International Security Force Assistance Afghan National Army Mentor Guide

This guide is a JCISFA publication on mentoring the Afghan National Army and is applicable to advisors, mentors and partner forces executing Security Force Assistance (SFA) operations. The guide is a companion to the May 2009 JCISFA Afghan National Police Mentor Guide and addresses identified gaps in mentoring Afghan National Security Forces. The guide offers cultural background information, partner security force challenges, advisor/mentor best practices, and challenges. As the United States assists other nations, our forces must adopt a “by, with, and through” strategy to enable a supported nation and its security forces to generate and sustain capabilities institutionally and operationally. We can achieve this by advising and mentoring them, partnering with the supported nation and through development of the supported nation and its security forces so that they can do it themselves.

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U.S. Army

Megacities and the U.S. Army: Preparing for a Complex and Uncertain Future

Cities with populations of ten million or more are given a special designation: megacity. There are currently over twenty megacities in the world, and by 2025 there will be close to forty. The trends are clear. Megacities are growing, they are be-coming more connected, and the ability of host nation governments to effectively deal with their explosive growth and maintain security is, in many cases, diminishing. Megacities are a unique environment that the U.S. Army does not fully understand.

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Federal Bureau of Investigation

FBI Cyber Bulletin: Malicious Actors Targeting Protected Health Information

The FBI is providing the following information with HIGH confidence. The FBI has observed malicious actors targeting healthcare related systems, perhaps for the purpose of obtaining Protected Healthcare Information (PHI) and/or Personally Identifiable Information (PII). These actors have also been seen targeting multiple companies in the healthcare and medical device industry typically targeting valuable intellectual property, such as medical device and equipment development data.

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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.

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Department of Justice

Department of Justice Review of FBI Use of National Security Letters 2007-2009

This review is a follow-up to three previous OIG reports concerning the FBI’s use of national security letter authorities. In our first and second NSL reports, issued in March 2007 and March 2008, the OIG found repeated instances of the FBI’s misuse of NSL authorities during 2003 through 2006. During our first NSL review we also discovered the FBI’s practice of issuing exigent letters and using other informal methods to obtain telephone records, instead of using NSLs or other legal process. We addressed these practices in a separate report issued in January 2010.

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