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Drone security questions raised years ago
Questions about the security of drone communications were raised years ago; in 2004, U.S. officials raised concerns about Russia and China intercepting and manipulating video from drone aircraft, but the military believed it was facing more pressing issues; officers at the time were not concerned about communications being intercepted in Iraq or Afghanistan because they believed militants were technically unsophisticated.
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U.S. Army working to encrypt UAV video feeds
The Army is scrambling to secure the live video feeds from its UAVs from being intercepted by insurgents in Iraq and Afghanistan; Raven drones will be retrofitted with encryption technology as early as this month; the U.S. Air Force has known for more than a decade that the live video feeds from its unmanned aerial vehicles can be intercepted by the enemy but opted not to do anything about it until this year.
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Safer ride: Lockheed ,A-V deliver vehicle-mounted anti-IED devices
IEDs kill more U.S. and coalition soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan than any other weapon used by militants; Lockheed Martin received a $940 million contract to produce a counter-IED jamming device, and the first of these vehicle-mounted systems are being delivered to the theater.
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Handheld touch screen device may lead to mobile fingerprint ID
The FBI’s Hostage Rescue Team wanted to replace the 20-pound rugged laptop plus fingerprint scanner their hostage rescue teams lug around with a smaller and lighter device; NIST researchers develop one
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DHS investigates counterfeit operation
DHS suspects that there is a connection between the sale of counterfeit clothing and funding of terrorist actitivites; the Fresno police raids a clothing store in Fresno, California, and confiscated half a million dollars worth of phony designer jeans, T-shirts, handbags,
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HIV-as-terrorism case draws national attention
Two Michigan neighbors got into a fight, and one of them bit the other; when prosecutors learned from a TV report that the man who bit his neighbor was HIV positive, they added the charge of bioterrorism to the charges of assault and assault with intent to maim; prosecutors say the new charge is based on a 2004 Michigan law, passed in the wake of 9/11, which speaks of “possession or use of a harmful device,” and they point to a Michigan Court of Appeal’s ruling that HIV-infected blood was a “harmful biological substance” under Michigan law.
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IDF aims for quieter, sturdier UAVs
The IDF has issues an RFP for a stealthy UAV; the quiet UAV will be attached to battalions in the theater to provide surveillance on a tactical, pinpointed level; also, in an effort to increase its intelligence-gathering capabilities, the IAF will in the coming months establish a new squadron of Heron TP UAVs, called the Eitan, manufactured by IAI
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Russia wants more Israeli spy UAVs
Russia tried, but failed, to develop its own fleet of advanced UAVs; it has purchased a dozen UAVs from Israel already, and now wants Israel to sell it the most advanced UAVs in Israel’s arsenal; the Russian publicly say that they will reverse-engineer the technology, and Israel is going along because this the price the Russians demanded for not supplying Iran with advanced S-300 air defense systems
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Battlefield walker machines received $3 million for more studies
DARPA wants a robotic walker – in fact, a robotic pack mule — to help soldiers in the field by carrying their heavy gear; Boston Dynamics, the company developing the robot, has spoken previously of using the same walker technology in urban environments or indoors, and it has already developed a fairly advanced two-legged machine.
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U.S. Air Force offers more details on stealth UAV
After much speculation and many rumors, the USFA reveals that it has been using a new-design UAV — deep, fat centerbody blended into the outer wings – for surveillance missions in Afghanistan; observers note that with its low-observable design, the aircraft could be useful for flying the borders of Iran and peering into China, India, and Pakistan for useful data about missile tests and telemetry, as well as gathering signals and multi-spectral intelligence
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Columbus debates security cameras' costs
The mayor of Columbus, Ohio, wants CCTVs installed in the city; a $250,000 deal with a consulting firm has been approved to study the issue, and a $1.25 million pilot project is likely to move forward; still, civil libertarians ask whether this is a wise – and effective — investment
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Rio to hire Giuliani as security consultant for 2016 Olympics
Giuliani will serve as a security adviser to the Brazilian state of Rio de Janeiro; In a meeting with Brazilian officials, Giuliani said he would bring to Rio’s favelas the same zero-tolerance policy he implemented in New York City while mayor.
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Napolitano details DHS counter-IEDs measures
Terrorists are trying to import IED technology and methods from Iraq and Afghanistan into the United States; Napolitano said that effective defending against IED attacks means American collective responsibility: Individual citizens need to say something when they see something suspicious and everyone needs to do their part to strengthen the preparedness of their families, their communities, and their businesses.
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NIST develops validation tool for cell phone forensics
Cell phones reveal much about our daily communications — the who, when, and what of our calls and texts; for this information to be used as evidence in court or other formal proceedings, however, the software tools that forensic teams employ are normally validated to determine suitability for use
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Arkansas officer fired after using a taser on a 10-year old girl
A policeman in a small Arkansas town is fired after he used a taser gun to subdue an unruly 10-year old girl; the policeman used the stun gun after the girl kiced him “in the groin area”
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More headlines
The long view
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.
Using Drone Swarms to Fight Forest Fires
Forest fires are becoming increasingly catastrophic across the world, accelerated by climate change. Researchers are using multiple swarms of drones to tackle natural disasters like forest fires.
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.
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.
How Climate Change Will Affect Conflict and U.S. Military Operations
“People talk about climate change as a threat multiplier,” said Karen Sudkamp, an associate director of the Infrastructure, Immigration, and Security Operations Program within the RAND Homeland Security Research Division. “But at what point do we need to start talking about the threat multiplier actually becoming a significant threat all its own?”
The Tech Apocalypse Panic is Driven by AI Boosters, Military Tacticians, and Movies
From popular films like a War Games or The Terminator to a U.S. State Department-commissioned report on the security risk of weaponized AI, there has been a tremendous amount of hand wringing and nervousness about how so-called artificial intelligence might end up destroying the world. There is one easy way to avoid a lot of this and prevent a self-inflicted doomsday: don’t give computers the capability to launch devastating weapons.