The DHS/Office of Intelligence and Analysis and the FBI are releasing this Joint Homeland Security Note to raise security awareness regarding terrorist interest in targeting luxury hotels.
Tag Archive for Department of Homeland Security
Department of Homeland Security, Federal Bureau of Investigation
(U//FOUO) Potential Threats to Popular Sport and Entertainment Venues
The DHS/Office of Intelligence and Analysis and the FBI are releasing this Joint Homeland Security Note to raise security awareness regarding terrorist interest in targeting sport and entertainment venues.
Department of Homeland Security
DHS Federal Medical Readiness Responsibilities and Capabilities
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has the responsibility to prevent, protect, respond to, and recover from major terrorist attacks or natural disasters, but currently lacks a clearly-defined and unified medical capability to support this mission. Additionally, it lacks the capability to properly support DHS personnel operating in field units and hazardous conditions by providing little or no medical support.
Intelligence Fusion Centers
GISAC Fire, Haz Mat, and EMS Intelligence Bulletin
A news article from July 18, 2009 highlights a new medication has been developed which reportedly can protect people exposed to normally lethal doses of radiation from a nuclear or a “dirty” bomb.
The article cited tests involving 650 monkeys exposed to radiation equivalent to that recorded during the Chernobyl nuclear reactor disaster in 1986, 70 per cent died while the rest suffered serious maladies, the newspaper Yediot Achronot said yesterday.
Department of Homeland Security, Federal Bureau of Investigation
Homeland Security Advisory System Increased to Orange for Mass Transit and Passenger Rail
Federal Departments and Agencies, State Homeland Security Advisors, Security Managers, State and Local Law Enforcement, and Information Sharing and Analysis Centers (ISACs). Secondary release, dissemination or sharing of this product is authorized by Federal Departments and Agencies within their respective departments and agencies, and by State Homeland Security Advisors within their state and local jurisdictions to authorized homeland security partners, that have an official valid need-to-know.
Department of Homeland Security
Protective Security Advisor Analyst Brief
Office of Infrastructure Protection (IP):Lead the coordinated national effort to reduce the risk to our critical infrastructures and key resources (CIKR) posed by acts of terrorism, and strengthen national preparedness, timely response, and rapid recovery in the event of an attack, natural disaster, or other emergency.
Customs and Border Protection, Department of Homeland Security
DHS/CBP Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS)
Provides Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS), operations, maintenance, technical support, pilots, and sensor operators to surveil the Southwest border of the United States. Over the next several years UAV border surveillance will improve sensor/video surveillance capabilities of the current, monitored base system through persistent 24 hours per day / 7 days per week surveillance; integrate new surveillance technologies (aerial sensor suites), and increase interoperability with other law enforcement agencies and initiatives.
Department of Homeland Security
Catastrophic Incident Supplement to the National Response Plan
This Catastrophic Incident Supplement provides the operational framework for implementing the strategy contained in the National Response Plan Catastrophic Incident Annex, and is effective upon issuance.
Department of Homeland Security
FY 2006 Urban Areas Security Initiative (UASI) Award for the Las Vegas Area
DHS defines risk by three principal variables: threat, or the likelihood of a type of attack that might be attempted, vulnerability, or the likelihood that an attacker would succeed with a particular attack type, and consequence, or the potential impact of a particular attack. The risk model used to allocate HSGP funds includes both asset-based and geographically-based terrorist risk calculations. DHS combines these complementary risk calculations to produce an estimate of the relative risk of terrorism faced by a given area.
Department of Homeland Security
Vigilant Guard 08 Full Scale Exercise Plan
The National Planning Scenarios (NPS) and the establishment of the National Preparedness Priorities have steered the focus of homeland security toward a capabilities-based planning approach. Capabilities-based planning focuses on planning under uncertainty, since the next danger or disaster cannot be forecasted with complete accuracy.
Department of Homeland Security, FEMA
Exercise DETERMINED ACCORD Situation Manual (SITMAN)
The Situation Manual (SITMAN) with Facilitator notes provides guidance in conducting the Determined Accord influenza pandemic tabletop exercise (TTX). This guide is for “Facilitator Use Only” and provides more detailed information on the guidelines for conduct of the TTX, as well as the exercise objectives, scenario, and discussion topics.
Department of Homeland Security
2006 & 2007 Pre-Hurricane Scenario Analyses
The National Infrastructure Simulation and Analysis Center (NISAC) is a modeling, simulation, and analysis program comprised of personnel in the Washington D.C. area as well as at the Sandia and Los Alamos National Laboratories. NISAC is mandated by Congress to be a “source of national expertise to address critical infrastructure protection” research and analysis.
Department of Homeland Security
Securing the Chemical Sector
Of the 3 major areas of activity; this briefing focuses on Field Operations:
* Development of the Regulation and supporting tools, rules, guidelines, etc.;
* Development of an organizational/program structure to include Field
* Operations that can implement the Regulation; and
* Development of administrative structures that are necessary to support the regulatory environment established within the sector.
U.S. Army
Mortuary Affairs – Is USNORTHCOM and the Department of Homeland Security Positioned for Contaminated Mass Fatality Management?
The Global War on Terrorism has emphasized homeland defense and security as a priority for the Nation. U.S. Northern command (USNORTHCOM) recently attained its initial operational capability as the Department of Defense executive agent for Homeland Defense. Terrorists have demonstrated the ability and willingness to obtain and use Weapons of Mass destruction to further their goals.
Department of Homeland Security
Strategic Sector Assessment: Commercial Facilities Sector
(U//FOUO) This Strategic Sector Assessment is one in a series that provides an overall assessment of the potential terrorist threats to critical infrastructure and key resources, and provides decision makers with the broad, analytically-based threat information necessary to inform investment priorities and program design.
Department of Homeland Security
National Planning Scenarios
The Federal interagency community has developed fifteen all-hazards planning scenarios (the National Planning Scenarios or Scenarios) for use in national, Federal, State, and local homeland security preparedness activities. The Scenarios are planning tools and are representative of the range of potential terrorist attacks and natural disasters and the related impacts that face our nation. The objective was to develop a minimum number of credible scenarios in order to establish the range of response requirements to facilitate preparedness planning.
Congressional Research Service
The Department of Homeland Security Intelligence Enterprise: Operational Overview and Oversight Challenges for Congress
A primary mission of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS, Department) is to “prevent terrorist attacks within the United States, reduce the vulnerability of the United States to terrorism, and minimize the damage, and assist in the recovery from terrorist attacks that do occur in the United States.” Since its inception in 2003, DHS has had an intelligence component to support this mission and has been a member of the U.S. Intelligence Community (IC).
Department of Homeland Security, Federal Bureau of Investigation
Recent Terrorist Plots Highlight Insider Threat
Information from several recent planned or thwarted terrorist plots shows the importance of the use of insiders to gain access to targets and collect preoperational information. Al-Qa‘ida planner Dhiren Barot, whom UK authorities arrested in 2006, had tasked a member of his group to secure employment at a hotel in the United Kingdom to learn how to deactivate fire and security systems.
Alaska, Department of Homeland Security
Alaska State Homeland Security Strategy 2009
Through this State Homeland Security Strategy (SHSS), Alaska will improve its protection of the people, its economy, and its culture. The State of Alaska will reduce vulnerabilities to terrorist attacks, major disasters, or emergencies. This vital mission requires coordination, cooperation, and a focused effort throughout the state, federal agencies (military and civilian), State agencies, local jurisdictions, tribal, private, and non–profit organizations.
Department of Homeland Security
Swine Influenza Outbreak
The outbreak is affecting adults and spreading through human-to-human transmissions, which is atypical as influenza typically targets young children and elderly individuals, and human contraction of swine influenza is normally associated with close contact with pigs.
Department of Homeland Security
DHS Coordinates National Level Exercise to Prevent Terrorist Attacks with Federal, State, Local Tribal, Private Sector, and International Partners
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will launch on Monday the five-day National Level Exercise 2009 (NLE 09)—the first national level exercise to focus on terrorism prevention—in conjunction with federal, state, local, tribal, private sector and international partners.
Department of Homeland Security
Oral Testimony of Secretary Napolitano Regarding “Identification Security”
Pass ID is a bill that I support. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) worked with governors and other stakeholders to provide technical assistance in its drafting and—so the approach that Pass ID takes to fix REAL ID is one that I support. I think it makes sense. This is an important piece of national security legislation that is designed to help fulfill the 9/11 Commission’s recommendation that the Federal Government set security standards for driver’s licenses.
Department of Homeland Security
United States Computer Emergency Readiness Team Operations
The National Cyber Security Division (NCSD) United States Computer Emergency Readiness Team (US-CERT) is a partnership between the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the public and private sectors. Established in 2003 to protect the nation’s internet infrastructure, US-CERT coordinates defense against and responses to cyber attacks across the nation. The organization interacts with federal agencies, state and local governments, industry professionals, and others to improve information sharing and incident response coordination and to reduce cyber threats and vulnerabilities.
Department of Homeland Security
DHS Senior Leadership Brief 2009 H1N1 Flu
As of Monday, 04 May 09, 698 schools in 33 States were closed due to confirmed and probable cases of H1N1 Flu. The closures impacted over 358,220 students and 20,684 teachers. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): Reports 403 confirmed cases of H1N1 Flu in 38 States; 702 probable cases of H1N1 Flu in 41 States and the District of Columbia. Number of deaths remains at 1 (Texas). A state-by-state breakdown is listed in Table 1.
Government Accountability Office
Cybersecurity: Continued Federal Efforts Are Needed to Protect Critical Systems and Information
Since 2005, GAO has reported that DHS has yet to comprehensively satisfy its key cybersecurity responsibilities, including those related to establishing effective partnerships with the private sector. Shortcomings exist in key areas that are essential for DHS to address in order to fully implement its cybersecurity responsibilities (see table). DHS has since developed and implemented certain capabilities, but still has not fully satisfied aspects of these responsibilities and needs to take further action to enhance the public/private partnerships needed to adequately protect cyber critical infrastructure. GAO has also previously reported on significant security weaknesses in systems supporting two of the department’s programs, one that tracks foreign nationals entering and exiting the United States, and one for matching airline passenger information against terrorist watch-list records. DHS has corrected information security weaknesses for systems supporting the terrorist watch-list, but needs to take additional actions to mitigate vulnerabilities associated with systems tracking foreign nationals.