• Terrorism insurance should cover cyberterrorism: industry

    The Terrorism Risk Insurance Act(TRIA) is a federal backstop designed to protect insurers in the event an act of terrorism results in losses above $100 million. Industry officials question whether cyber terrorism is covered by the program, which is administered by the Treasury Department. Industry insiders note that terrorism risks have evolved since TRIA was enacted and cyberterrorism is now a real threat. TRIA should thus not simply be reauthorized with a blanket stamp of approval; instead there should be a discussion about whether acts of cyberterrorism should be explicitly included in TRIA.

  • NIST releases Preliminary Cybersecurity Framework

    The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) on Tuesday released its Preliminary Cybersecurity Framework to help critical infrastructure owners and operators reduce cybersecurity risks in industries such as power generation, transportation, and telecommunications. In the coming days, NIST will open a 45-day public comment period on the Preliminary Framework and plans to release the official framework in February 2014.

  • Violin Memory: Winning over the intelligence community

    Violin Memory (NSYE: VMEM) is a recently IPO’d enterprise flash memory provider that has won installations across the most demanding branches of government, particularly in intelligence and homeland security. One advantage the company holds is a partnership with Toshiba, the world’s #2 manufacturer of NAND, which reportedly gives Violin insider-access to the unpublished R&D data, allowing for a product that has steadily performed steps ahead of the competition. The partnership also allows Violin to buy NAND at special “producer-like” prices from Toshiba, which in turn has enabled Violin to price more competitively, up to 50 percent lower than other providers. What is clear is that Violin’s technology adoption is growing exponentially within the security sector and other areas where data performance cannot be compromised and is mission critical.

  • Cybersecurity specialist Bromium raises $40 million Series C funding

    Cupertino, California-based Bromium, Inc. has raised $40 million in an Series C funding round led by new investor Meritech Capital Partners, with participation from existing investors Andreessen Horowitz, Ignition Partners, Highland Capital Partners, and Intel Capital. Bromium offers advanced malware protection and automated forensic intelligence products. Bromium’s vSentry uses Intel CPU and chipset features to hardware-isolate tasks that access the Web, attachments, and files that might contain malware, protecting the desktop by design.

  • Unexpected pleasures: a new airport security-check experience

    If airport security checks cannot be made to move at a quicker pace, how about making them more comfortable, even pleasant? This is what a pilot project at the Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) International Airport’s Terminal E is trying to do. SpringHill Suites by Marriott has brought its hotel experience to E18 security check point, where passengers will now be welcomed by a stylish decor, soothing wall art, vibrant lighting, and relaxing ambient music in a setting that spans the entire checkpoint area. Lounge seating at the entrance and a furnished area for customers to gather their belongings after the screening process.

  • Irish heritage groups sues U.K. over nuclear power plant

    An Taisce, an Irish charity group promoting the preservation of Ireland’s heritage, is taking the British government to the High Court in London in December seeking a judicial review of the legality of British energy minister Ed Davey’s decision to approve the construction of a nuclear power plant just 150 miles from the Irish coast without consulting the Irish public.

  • Small changes in agricultural practices reduce produce-borne illness

    Foodborne illness sickens an estimated 9.4 million and kills around 1,300 annually in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Produce accounts for nearly half the illnesses, and 23 percent of the deaths. Researchers have identified some agricultural management practices in the field that can either boost or reduce the risk of contamination in produce from two major foodborne pathogens: salmonella, the biggest single killer among the foodborne microbes, and Listeria monocytogenes.

  • Police departments adopt sophisticated, cheap-to-operate surveillance technology

    Advancements in surveillance technology have been adopted not only by the National Security Agency (N.S.A) or other federal intelligence agencies. Local police departments have also incorporated the latest surveillance technologies into their work, allowing them to track individuals for different purposes.

  • Better protective shield material for nuclear waste

    The integrity and survivability of a nuclear waste package is critically important in the transport of nuclear fuel and high-level waste. Research are working on developing an outer shield material for use in packaging which is resistant to corrosion, radiation, diffusion, and thermal cycling processes that affect fuel packages during long-term storage. The material will also need to be wear-tolerant and mechanically robust so that it can survive repeated handling and transportation.

  • Number of university-hosted start-up incubators grows

    U.S. colleges and universities increasingly resemble business incubators, as the number of school-supported startups is rising.Of the 1,195 incubator programs in North America in 2012, about 400 – or a third — were primarily sponsored by a college or university, an increase from just 20 percent in 2006.In 2012, U.S. higher education institutions earned $2.6 billion in license income, and helped launch 705 startups.

  • S&P: U.S. government shutdown shaved 0.6 percent off Q4 annualized GDP

    Standard & Poor’s said the U.S. government shutdown trimmed 0.6 percent off fourth quarter growth, taking $24 billion out of the economy. S&P notes that in September, the rating agency expected 3 percent annualized growth of the U.S. economy in the fourth quarter, but that that expectation was based on the assumption that “politicians would have learned from 2011 and taken steps to avoid things like a government shutdown and the possibility of a sovereign default. Since our forecast didn’t hold, we now have to lower our fourth-quarter growth estimate to closer to 2 percent.” S&P warns that “If people are afraid that the government policy brinkmanship will resurface again, and with it the risk of another shutdown or worse, they’ll remain afraid to open up their checkbooks. That points to another Humbug holiday season.”

  • U.S. formulates strategy for a new Arctic landscape

    U.S. national security officials have become increasingly concerned about the national security implications of an ice-free Arctic. The Arctic will become ice-free during the summer by mid-decade. In a strategy document, the Pentagon says: “Melting sea ice in the Arctic may lead to new opportunities for shipping, tourism, and resource exploration, but the increase in human activity may require a significant increase in operational capabilities in the region in order to safeguard lawful trade and travel and to prevent exploitation of new routes for smuggling and trafficking.”

     

  • U.S. nuclear power industry facing growing challenges

    The U.S. nuclear industry is scaling back expectations on the future of the industry, expectations which only a few were soaring. The availability of cheaper energy alternatives, a growing trend toward energy conservation, and renewed safety and health worries as a result of the 2011 Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plantaccident, are all reasons for why active nuclear plants are being forced to close, and why fewer energy companies are investing in new nuclear plants or upgrading existing ones.

  • The Red Cross wants video games to incorporate the Geneva Convention

    Approximately 600 million video-gamers worldwide may be violating the laws of war – at least virtually. For the past two years, a unit of the ICRC has been working on discouraging video game creators from allowing players to disregard the rules of war – that is, disregard the rules of war while playing a video game, not in real life — without consequences. ICRC calls for gamers to be “rewarded for respecting the law of armed conflict and there should be virtual penalties for serious violations of the law of armed conflict, in other words war crimes.”

  • Shutdown shuts down E-Verify

    The law requires that businesses verify the work eligibility of new hires within three days of hiring. Staffing companies which place employees with companies do the verification before placing employees. E-Verify has been turned off as a result of the government shutdown, causing headaches for businesses, boosting their administrative costs, and possibly landing them in legal trouble.