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Millimeter-wave imaging comes to Cleveland, Houston airports
TSA expands its testing of millimeter wave and backscatter imaging systems, deploying them in Cleveland and Houston; TSA claims passengers’ privacy is guaranteed, but passengers can opt out of being screened and choose body pat instead
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Anti-theft software creates security hole
A piece of anti-theft software built into many laptops at the factory opens a serious security hole
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U r pwned: text messaging as a hacking tool
Text messages appear on mobile phones without any interaction from the user, and sometimes with limited interference from the cellular network operators — giving criminals an opening to break into those devices
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New technology locks up Biometrics
Communication encryption relies on authentication being symmetric to work: the user’s password or PIN must match the password or PIN stored by the recipient (online shop, bank, etc.) to lock and unlock the data; biometric may be used for encryption — but biometrics is not a symmetric process; South African researchers now show how biometrics can nevertheless be used to make a consistent secret key for encryption
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Encouraging student technology start-ups
Wolverhampton University’s program gives students the opportunity to set up their own business while they are still at university
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Soldiers, first responders will self-power their gear
Soldiers and first responders will soon power electronic devices such as personal radios using just their own movements
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Life-saving location device to help in rescuing trapped disaster victims
There is usually a 24-hour window when people that are injured and trapped can be saved, followed by a three-day window for those that are unhurt; by analyzing the levels of carbon dioxide and ammonia, chemical sensors could detect whether a trapped person is still alive faster than traditional methods
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IBM acquires Ounce Labs
Securing software code is a growing business, and IBM is buying code security specialist Ounce Labs
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TSA's new lab tests new bomb detection technologies
The Transportation Security Laboratory in Atlantic City uses the latest intelligence from the military, CIA, FBI, and friendly foreign governments to manufacture improvised explosive devices like those being built by terrorists — in order to defeat them
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Biometrics tunnel helps identify individuals' unique walking patterns
The University of Southampton’s biometric tunnel provides the technology to analyze the way people walk as a unique identifier; university researchers have developed a technology which captures the unique walking patterns, and then characterizes and records them to a database
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South Korean researchers turn science fiction into fact
The state-financed Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) was set up in 1971; its new leaders wants it to lead the nation in innovation and education; among the center’s projects: a computer screen that folds up like a pocket handkerchief, a harbor that goes out to a ship, and a road which recharges electric vehicles
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Israel successfully tests anti-ship missile defense
During the summer 2006 Israel-Hezbollah war, the Shi’ia organization almost sank an Israeli ship with an advanced Iran-made anti-ship missile; Israel has now successfully tested a sophisticated defense against anti-ship missile — a defensive system which should be of interest to U.S. Navy ships on patrol at the Persian Gulf
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Defcon, Black Hat to open this week
Leading cybersecurity events to open in Las Vegas this week; if you prefer security shows at which the speakers favor black T-shirts and dyed hair over suits and ties, and where goth-attired groupies and script kiddies hunkered over laptops line the hallways at all hours of the night, you should attend
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GAO slams choice of Kansas as location of new BioLab
In a critical report, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) says that the process by which DHS selected Kansas as the site for the $450 million BioLab was not “scientifically defensible”; GAO said DHS greatly underestimated the chance of accidental release and major contamination from such research; Tornado Alley may not be safe
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Vcom3D's iPod translator device is a valuable tool for U.S. soldiers
Florida-based Vcom3D developed software which was used in conjunction with Apple’s iPod to teach sign language to hearing-impaired students; now, the U.S. military and UN peacekeepers use the device as an instant translator in war-torn regions
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More headlines
The long view
Autonomous Vehicle Technology Vulnerable to Road Object Spoofing and Vanishing Attacks
Researchers have demonstrated the potentially hazardous vulnerabilities associated with the technology called LiDAR, or Light Detection and Ranging, many autonomous vehicles use to navigate streets, roads and highways. The researchers have shown how to use lasers to fool LiDAR into “seeing” objects that are not present and missing those that are – deficiencies that can cause unwarranted and unsafe braking or collisions.
Tantalizing Method to Study Cyberdeterrence
Tantalus is unlike most war games because it is experimental instead of experiential — the immersive game differs by overlapping scientific rigor and quantitative assessment methods with the experimental sciences, and experimental war gaming provides insightful data for real-world cyberattacks.
Prototype Self-Service Screening System Unveiled
TSA and DHS S&T unveiled a prototype checkpoint technology, the self-service screening system, at Harry Reid International Airport (LAS) in Las Vegas, NV. The aim is to provide a near self-sufficient passenger screening process while enabling passengers to directly receive on-person alarm information and allow for the passenger self-resolution of those alarms.
Falling Space Debris: How High Is the Risk I'll Get Hit?
An International Space Station battery fell back to Earth and, luckily, splashed down harmlessly in the Atlantic. Should we have worried? Space debris reenters our atmosphere every week.
Testing Cutting-Edge Counter-Drone Technology
Drones have many positive applications, bad actors can use them for nefarious purposes. Two recent field demonstrations brought government, academia, and industry together to evaluate innovative counter-unmanned aircraft systems.
Strengthening the Grid’s ‘Backbone’ with Hydropower
Argonne-led studies investigate how hydropower could help add more clean energy to the grid, how it generates value as grids add more renewable energy, and how liner technology can improve hydropower efficiency.