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A first: Criminals steal nuclear material, than demand ransom for its return
Criminals in Argentina steal cesium-137 from a drilling company, then demand $500,000 and threaten “to make this city glow” if they did not get the money
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U.S. cannot track foreign visitors who overstay their visas
Last year, 39 million foreign travelers were admitted into the United States on temporary visas; based on the paper stubs, homeland security officials said, they confirmed the departure of 92.5 percent of them; most of the remaining visitors did depart, officials said, but failed to check out because they did not know how to do so; more than 200,000 of them are believed to have overstayed intentionally
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TSA allows law enforcement personnel to carry fire-arms on board
TSA has created a secure registration facility which allows state, local, territorial, and tribal Law Enforcement Officers (LEOs) to pre-register with the agency — and then fly armed
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Packing heat may backfire
New study finds that people who carried guns were 4.5 times as likely to be shot and 4.2 times as likely to get killed compared with unarmed citizens; the authors of the study say it is not clear why this is the case, but suggest that it may be the case that guns give a sense of empowerment that causes carriers to overreact in tense situations, or encourages them to visit neighborhoods they probably should not
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DHS, FBI worried about home-grown terrorists
The risk of al-Qaeda has not disappeared, but in a testimony on the Hill, Napolitano and Mueller say that the United States is facing an increased risk from home-grown terrorists and radicalized immigrants
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Philadelphia schools deploy sex offender screening software
Adults wishing to enter schools in the Philadelphia area are now screened to make sure they are not sex offenders; the V-Soft solution created by Houston-based Raptor Technologies can also warn administrators or police of problem students, fired employees, and parents in custody disputes
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Clayton Consultants on kidnapping and ransom
In many developing countries, kidnapping the family members of rich individuals and then asking for ransom has become a small industry; a specialist offers ideas about what to do to prevent kidnapping — and deal with it when it happens
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Mafia's new business: sinking nuclear waste at sea
The Sicilian Mafia had muscled in on the lucrative business of radioactive waste disposal; to increase the profit margin, mafia operatives blow up and sink the ships at sea rather than process the nuclear waste on board
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California police employs nonlethal weapon used against pirates
ATC’s long range acoustic device (LRAD) blast sounds at 150 decibels — 50 times the human threshold of pain — to fend off approaching pirates or massing insurgents; California law enforcement is now using the device at local political events
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NRC moves to allow more heavily armed nuclear facility guards
The U.S. Nuclear regulatory Commission (NRC) has moved to allow guards at U.S. nuclear facilities to be equipped with more “enhanced weapons,” including machine guns, short-barreled shotguns, or short-barreled rifles
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Troy, N.Y. police uses biometrics system to secure weapons
Police personnel in Troy, New York, will have to provide a a thumbprint for identification before checking out a Taser or a rifle to take on patrol
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ShotSpotter, Inc. says its technology saves lives
The Mountain View, California-based company says that in the first half of 2009 its technology saved the lives of 57 gunshot victims; this represents a 138 percent increase from the first half of 2008
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U.S. to increase reliance on private security contractors
Scandals involving activities of private security firms in Afghanistan notwithstanding, the U.S. government is increasing its reliance on these firms; last week five firms were awarded contracts totaling $485 million
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NYC rabbi teaches synagogue self-defense
Fearing jihadists will attack synagogues during Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, a group of rabbis has developed a program to turn your average shul-goer into a lean, mean fighting machine
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Los Angeles councilman wants ATM "duress code" system
In the wake of Lily Burk’s slaying, Councilman Greig Smith urges citywide anti-robbery effort; under one system, ATM users could enter their PIN backward to covertly notify police that they were being robbed
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The long view
Need for National Information Clearinghouse for Cybercrime Data, Categorization of Cybercrimes: Report
There is an acute need for the U.S. to address its lack of overall governance and coordination of cybercrime statistics. A new report recommends that relevant federal agencies create or designate a national information clearinghouse to draw information from multiple sources of cybercrime data and establish connections to assist in criminal investigations.
Twenty-One Things That Are True in Los Angeles
To understand the dangers inherent in deploying the California National Guard – over the strenuous objections of the California governor – and active-duty Marines to deal with anti-ICE protesters, we should remind ourselves of a few elementary truths, writes Benjamin Wittes. Among these truths: “Not all lawful exercises of authority are wise, prudent, or smart”; “Not all crimes require a federal response”; “Avoiding tragic and unnecessary confrontations is generally desirable”; and “It is thus unwise, imprudent, and stupid to take actions for performative reasons that one might reasonably anticipate would increase the risks of such confrontations.”
Luigi Mangione and the Making of a ‘Terrorist’
Discretion is crucial to the American tradition of criminal law, Jacob Ware and Ania Zolyniak write, noting that “lawmakers enact broader statutes to empower prosecutors to pursue justice while entrusting that they will stay within the confines of their authority and screen out the inevitable “absurd” cases that may arise.” Discretion is also vital to maintaining the legitimacy of the legal system. In the prosecution’s case against Luigi Mangione, they charge, “That discretion was abused.”
Are We Ready for a ‘DeepSeek for Bioweapons’?
Anthropic’s Claude 4 is a warning sign: AI that can help build bioweapons is coming, and could be widely available soon. Steven Adler writes that we need to be prepared for the consequences: “like a freely downloadable ‘DeepSeek for bioweapons,’ available across the internet, loadable to the computer of any amateur scientist who wishes to cause mass harm. With Anthropic’s Claude Opus 4 having finally triggered this level of safety risk, the clock is now ticking.”
How DHS Laid the Groundwork for More Intelligence Abuse
I&A, the lead intelligence unit of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) —long plagued by politicized targeting, permissive rules, and a toxic culture —has undergone a transformation over the last two years. Spencer Reynolds writes that this effort falls short. “Ultimately, Congress must rein in I&A,” he adds.