• India equipped to protect the October Commonwealth Games against WMD attacks

    India will have a big security challenge when the Commonwealth Games begin in October; Indian security agencies say they are equipped to face chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear (CBRN) terrorist threats during the games; intelligence agencies have been working on the possibility of attacks from Kashmiri groups like the Hizbul Mujahidden, the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), the Taliban from Pakistan or Afghanistan, and even Al Qaeda; militant outfits of various other ideological hues are also on the police radar

  • Hi-tech navies protect shipping from Somalia's pirates

    The six ship EU force and other Western-led forces patrolling the Gulf of Aden have disrupted fifty-nine pirate groups in April and May alone; some naval forces in the region concentrate on escorting convoys of their own national vessels, while the Western-led forces spread themselves across the region saying they want to protect all shipping regardless of flag

  • Engineers to enhance crane-mounted cargo scanning system

    VeriTainer, a venture-backed specialist in crane-based radiation detection technology for scanning shipping containers, enters into a three-and-a-half years, $4 million n R&D agreement with Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory to enhance the gamma and neutron detection sensitivity of the company’s radiation scanners

  • Cruise ships may be required to hand over passenger reservation data

    Security experts worry about a waterside attack using a waterborne improvised explosive device; such an attack could conceivably come while the ship was in transit or docked at port; to address this worry, DHS will require cruise ships departing and entering the United States to provide Customs and Border Protection (CBP) with passenger reservation data

  • CBP deploys radiation detection portals at Port Hueneme, California

    During fiscal year 2009, CBP deployed 179 new radiation portal monitors (RPMs) throughout the U.S. ports of entry, bringing the number of RPMs to 1,354 at the U.S. land and sea ports of entry; the latest RPM were deployed at Port Hueneme, California

  • The Los Angeles-Long Beach port complex uses a variety of means to detect WMD

    The Los Angeles-Long Beach port complex uses the latest — together with the simplest — technology in trying to prevent weapons of mass destruction from being smuggled through the port; among these means used: a $3 million high-tech screening ship, a radiation-detecting helicopter and a badge-carrying black Labrador retriever that can sniff out chemical and biological weapons

  • Incentives for private industry, risk-based inspection for cargo containers

    There is no consensus on the number of cargo containers entering U.S. ports each year — the figures quoted range from 11.6 to 15 million; there is a consensus, however, that implementing the Congressionally mandated 100 percent inspection of these containers is a Herculean task; some suggest instead a risk-based inspection combined with more incentives to the private sector to make containers secure

  • U.S.-bound ship cargo to get more scrutiny

    The goal of screening 100 percent of U.S.-bound cargo containers is may not be reached any time soon, but new cargo-reporting requirement stipulates that ocean carriers and importers submit additional details about U.S.-bound cargo twenty-four hours before it is loaded onto vessels in foreign seaports

  • Researchers propose a new way to scan cargo containers

    In 2007 the U.S. government set itself the goal of screening all aviation cargo loaded onto passenger planes and all maritime cargo entering the country for both explosives and nuclear materials; this is an ambitious goal: there are more than ten millions containers entering the United States every year through sea ports and land border crossings, and there are more than 28,000 commercial flights

  • NICTA gets AU$1.01 million for advanced video surveillance system at Port of Brisbane

    R&D body developing advanced system to help ports monitor activities in their locations; the Port of Brisbane is 110 km long and will host around 40 to 60 cameras; the movement of boats will be visible in the system along with the cargo they are carrying and tidal/wind information.

  • SRI to open new facility in Tampa, Florida

    California-based SRI will tomorrow open a new research facility in Tampa, Florida; the company says that the many organizations in the area doing marine research will help it in developing maritime security technologies – among them underwater sensors to improve security at U.S. ports, which the company describes as the “soft underbelly of the soft underbelly” of the United States; SRI is also active in luring other technology companies to the Tampa area for the purpose of creating a technology cluster there.

  • U.K. forwarders “not surprised” by U.S. climbdown on 100 percent container scanning

    U.K. shippers say that rather than push back the deadline for 100 percent screening, as requested by DHS, the U.S. government ought to undertake a pragmatic review of the whole 100 percent screening initiative and create a revised program on a risk assessed, commercially practical, and technologically feasible basis

  • The solution for Jamaican ports’ security problems: Change the scanners; consolidate security duties

    Security in Jamaica’s ports has suffered as a result of antiquated scanning equipment and the fragmentation of security responsibilities; the director of customs want to make changes on both fronts

  • DHS looks to tamper-proof cargo containers

    DHS has been looking into many different technologies to protect U.S. boarders since 9/11. Now, the department is looking to the for ideas to help enhance security where some argue it is needed most — down by the docks.

  • GAO finds large gaps in 100 percent container scanning

    GAO says that CBP has made but “limited progress” in implementing the 100 percent container scanning mandate; CBP has not been able to achieve 100 percent scanning at any participating port; it has scanned a majority at some low-volume ports but only about 5 percent at the larger ports.