NEWS...: July 2008 Archives

The National Emergency Communications Plan (NECP) sets strategic goals and identifies national objectives to enhance governance, planning, technology, training and exercises, and disaster communications capabilities.   To read, click here...

The U.S. national security system is broken and needs major changes, according to a recent congressional mandated study.

To view the Project on National Security Reform (PNSR) news release, click here...

To download the Project on National Security Reform (PNSR) report, click here...

A disgruntled city computer systems administrator has been arrested and accused of commandeering San Francisco's new multimillion-dollar computer network, altering it to deny access to other administrators. To read more, click here...

Follow-Up / July 17, 2008 - Experts say lax security allowed San Francisco network hijacking.  To read more, click here...

Follow-Up / July 23, 2008 - Jailed systems administrator gives SF Mayor the passwords.  To read more, click here...

Follow-UP / July 23, 2008 - Bail reduction denied.  To read more, click here...

Follow-Up / July 24, 2008 - SF computer system was rigged to fail during back-up power test.  To read more, click here...

President signs H.R. 6304, FISA Amendments Act of 2008.  To read more, click here...

BACKGROUND - "The Intelligence Consensus"  - a Wall Street Journal Opinion by Congresswoman Anna Eshoo and Director of National Intelligence Mike McConnell. To read, click here...

UPDATE:  22 July 2008 - Review of FISA Amendments Act of 2008, click here ...

The Santa Cruz Consolidated Emergency Communications Center (9-1-1) has launched a new Emergency Notification system to send important messages to residents and businesses within Santa Cruz County via their cell phone and email. The system has the capability of sending thousands of messages in a very short time based on geographic location of the incident. For more info and to register, click here...

This new DHS activity is organized as part of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and appears to be focused on the proliferation of counterfeit products.

To see the remarks by Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff at the Inauguration of the National Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center, click here...

National Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center web site, click here...

The threat assessment equation that DHS uses to calculate "RISK" addresses international terrorism and not domestic terrorism or natural hazards..  To read more, click here...

EDITORIAL COMMENT:  This type of funding used to be evenly split between the states with some high risk regions getting an additional supplement. That approach resulted in a per-capita skew to the funding.  Ignoring domestic terrorism and especially natural hazard risks is very short sighted.  Although the Bay Area gets its fair share of international terrorism related funding it needs even more funding in this regard because of the earthquake risk.  Fortunately the local end users of this funding are beginning to take an all-hazards approach to the actual investments in disaster mitigation, response, recovery and preparation funding ... for example improvements in first responder communication systems helps disaster prepardness for all-hazards.

For more info see the GAO report, DHS Risk-Based Grant Methodology Is Reasonable, But Current Version's Measure of Vulnerability is Limited, June 2008, GAO-08-852.  To downlpoad this report, click here...

F. Hoffmann-La Roche, the manufacturer of the antiviral Tamiflu, has launched a program under which US companies that have a designated person on staff skilled with flu diagnosis can stockpile supplies of the drug in preparation for distribution to employees in the event of a pandemic. To read more, click here...

To read the F. Hoffmann-La Roche press release, click here...