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Texas A&M scientist tracks origins of bootleg honey from China
The United States has imposed a 500 percent tariff on honey from China two years ago because the Chinese government is subsidizing Chinese honey makers so they can drive U.S. producers out of the market; the practice has almost ruined the market for domestic U.S. honey; China is trying to get around the anti-dumping measure by putting labels such as “Product of Thailand” or “Product of Indonesia” on Chinese honey; a Texas A&M honey specialist stands in their way by doing melissopalynology — the study of pollen in honey
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Large U.S. companies allocate less money to executive security
The money spent on protecting senior executives in crime-ridden countries such as South Africa and Brazil, and in many Central American countries, is increasing every year; in these countries, targeting executives and their families for ransom is now a profitable industry; in the United States, however, the trend is in the other directions - companies pay less and less to protect their executives, evidence that executive-security is one perk corporate boards are scrutinizing more closely
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Gulf of Mexico oil reaches coast; White House calls spill event of "national significance"
Gulf oil spill reaches Louisiana shore; cost of clean up is estimated at $8 billion; DHS secretary Napolitano declares the spill an event of “national significance,” opening the door for increased federal involvement; Louisiana declares state of emergency
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IT group urges government to strengthen industry
TechAmerica says the U.S. federal government needs to update policy, extend tax credits, and invest in cybersecurity to pull the technology industry out of the recession; one thing policy makers should do right away is renew the research and development tax credit, which legislators failed to do during the recession, and then to give it up-to-date-enhancements
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U.K. launches competition to find cyber security experts
The United Kingdom suffers from a dearth of cybersecurity experts; several private and public organizations have launched the Cyber Security Challenge competition — a series of challenges and games that would test the talent and skills of people; the challenges will be built around eight key skill areas which include digital forensics, network analysis and logical thinking
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Northrop Grumman delivers mine detection pods ahead of schedule
Here are words you do not read every day: a government defense contractor delivers what it was contracted for ahead of schedule; this is what Northrop Grumman did, delivering the mine detection system it has developed for the U.S. Navy three weeks ahead of schedule
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Mobile communications helps in business continuity
The essential step for companies to survive disasters: enable people to work from home; instead of using technology to recover from an incident, we are now at the point where we can use it to prevent the incident having much of an effect; the key is to build technology into the company’s operations from the start
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A first: Engineers build giant dome to contain Golf oil spill
Engineers have began to construct a giant dome over a large oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico; the dome would capture or gather the oil and allow it to be pumped out of that dome structure; the dome would be similar to welded steel containment structures called cofferdams used in oil rig construction, but it would be an original design never fabricated or tested before
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Passwords may be passé, but biometrics is not yet viable for portable devices
Passwords may be heading toward extinction, but biometric identification is not yet a viable means of authentication for mobile devices; smart phones and other portable devices do not currently have the sophistication to be adapted easily for biometric technology, and users are likely to be reluctant to carry yet another device and its electrical charger along with their smart phone simply to login to their bank account when not at their desktop computer
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Data protection manager for the cloud
More and more companies begin to offer cloud security solutions; Iron Mountain offers CloudRecovery links into DPM; Seagate’s i365 business has launched the EVault for DPM 2010 backup and recovery appliance
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Drivers can now guide a car using their eyes, not hands
German researchers develop a system which allows drivers to steer their cars using only their eyes: the wheel is turned in the direction the driver is looking; if the driver is distracted, the car begin to drive autonomously; and this, too: drivers may opt to use an iPhone application which lets them to control the car remotely
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Companies ignore cloud security
New study finds that few businesses build security into cloud contracts; in fact, three-quarters of businesses surveyed said they had no procedures and policies for using cloud computing; Sixty-eight percent said end users and business managers — not the organization’s IT professionals — are made responsible for evaluating cloud computing vendors
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Debate over chemical plant security heats up -- again, II
Some lawmakers want to toughen up the chemical plant safety legislation, due for renewal before it expires this fall; the chemical industry prefers the continuation of the current measure, which was passed in 2007; the key debate is over whether or not DHS should be in a position to impose the use of safer and less volatile chemical on those plants closest to large urban centers; the industry points out that many plants have already made the switch voluntarily
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Debate over chemical plant security heats up -- again, I
The current chemical plant security law was passed in 2006 and expires in October; some lawmakers want to strengthen it, while the chemical industry want the law renewed without changes, saying chemical plants have taken steps to prevent accidental or terrorist-induced releases of dangerous compounds
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National Security Agency holds 2010 Cyber Defense Exercise
NSA, service academy experts test advanced tactics and technologies for cyber security in 2010 Cyber Defense Exercise; teams will compete in real-world strategies and tactics for building smart cyber defenses, fending off hackers, and eradicating malware; the West Point teams have won the competition in the last three years
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More headlines
The long view
Ransomware Attacks: Death Threats, Endangered Patients and Millions of Dollars in Damages
A ransomware attack on Change Healthcare, a company that processes 15 billion health care transactions annually and deals with 1 in 3 patient records in the United States, is continuing to cause massive disruptions nearly three weeks later. The incident, which started on February 21, has been called the “most significant cyberattack on the U.S. health care system” by the American Hospital Association. It is just the latest example of an increasing trend.
Chinese Government Hackers Targeted Critics of China, U.S. Businesses and Politicians
An indictment was unsealed Monday charging seven nationals of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) with conspiracy to commit computer intrusions and conspiracy to commit wire fraud for their involvement in a PRC-based hacking group that spent approximately 14 years targeting U.S. and foreign critics, businesses, and political officials in furtherance of the PRC’s economic espionage and foreign intelligence objectives.
European Arms Imports Nearly Double, U.S. and French Exports Rise, and Russian Exports Fall Sharply
States in Europe almost doubled their imports of major arms (+94 per cent) between 2014–18 and 2019–23. The United States increased its arms exports by 17 per cent between 2014–18 and 2019–23, while Russia’s arms exports halved. Russia was for the first time the third largest arms exporter, falling just behind France.
LNG Exports Have Had No Impact on Domestic Energy Costs: Analysis
U.S. liquified natural gas (LNG) exports have not had any sustained and significant direct impact on U.S. natural gas prices and have, in fact, spurred production and productivity gains, which contribute to downward pressure on domestic prices.