Search Results from beSpacific
Country Reports on Terrorism 2009 "The Department of State’s Country Reports on Terrorism 2009 covers events from January 1 to December 31, 2009. This publication, which fulfills a Congressional requirement, aims to enhance our collective understanding of the international terrorist...
Facts and Figures on Drawdown in Iraq - “Let me say this as plainly as I can: by August 31, 2010, our combat mission in Iraq will end.” - President Barack Obama, Camp Lejeune, February 27, 2009. When President Obama...
A hidden world, growing beyond control, by Dana Priest and William M. Arkin: "The top-secret world the government created in response to the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, has become so large, so unwieldy and so secretive that no...
Measuring the Effectiveness of Border Security Between Ports-of-Entry, by Henry H. Willis, Joel B. Predd, Paul K. Davis, Wayne P. Brown "This report offers research and recommendations on ways to measure the overall efforts of the national border-security enterprise between...
National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism [START] - Background Report: On the Fifth Anniversary of the 7/7 London Transit Attack, July 2010 "July 7, 2010, marks the fifth anniversary of the 2005 terrorist attacks on...
News release: "The Department of Justice challenged the state of Arizona’s recently passed immigration law, S.B. 1070, in federal court today. In a brief filed in the District of Arizona, the Department said S.B. 1070 unconstitutionally interferes with the federal...
Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC): "After several months of moderation, U.S. federal immigration prosecutions have returned to the high levels of last summer. According to the most recent figures released by the Department of Justice, there were 8,287 immigration prosecutions...
RAND Corporation: Incidents of Jihadist Terrorist Radicalization in the United States Since September 11, 2001 "This paper examines the extent of jihadist radicalization in the United States, discusses who is being recruited, and assesses the domestic terrorist threat posed by...
News release: "Two days after the failed Times Square terrorist was arrested, Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Joe Lieberman, ID-Conn., and Ranking Member Susan Collins, R-Me., Wednesday heard top New York City officials advocate for barring terrorist suspects...
Afghanistan's Security Environment, GAO-10-613R, May 05, 2010 Child Care: Multiple Factors Could Have Contributed to the Recent Decline in the Number of Children Whose Families Receive Subsidies, GAO-10-344, May 05, 2010 Terrorist Watchlist Screening: FBI Has Enhanced Its Use of...
Statement of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York, The Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the New York City Police Department on an Arrest in the Times Square Investigation , May 4, 2010. Photos from the...
How Insurgencies End, by Ben Connable, Martin C. Libicki This study tested conventional wisdom about how insurgencies end against the evidence from 89 insurgencies. It compares a quantitative and qualitative analysis of 89 insurgency case studies with lessons from insurgency...
Combating Terrorism: Planning and Documentation of U.S. Development Assistance in Pakistan's Federally Administered Tribal Areas Need to Be Improved, GAO-10-289, April 15, 2010 Defense Acquisitions: Opportunities and Challenges for Army Ground Force Modernization Efforts, GAO-10-603T, April 15, 2010 Defense Management:...
DOD: Nuclear Posture Review Report (NPR), April 2010: "The 2010 Nuclear Posture Review (NPR) outlines the Administration’s approach to promoting the President’s agenda for reducing nuclear dangers and pursuing the goal of a world without nuclear weapons, while simultaneously advancing...
Follow up to previous postings on government implementation of whole body scanning technology at airports, via EPIC: "A meeting between top United States counter-terrorism officials and European counterparts ended in Madrid today with no agreement to restart a program that...
GAO Review of the Department of Homeland Security's Certification of the Secure Flight Program--Cost and Schedule Estimates, GAO-10-535R, April 05, 2010 "The matching of airline passenger information against terrorist watchlist records (watchlist matching) is a frontline defense against acts of...
OIG-10-68 - TSA's Preparedness for Mass Transit and Passenger Rail Emergencies (PDF, 30 pages) "The Transportation Security Administration can better support passenger rail agencies by improving its assessments of emergency preparedness and response capabilities. The agency can also improve its...
News release: "Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Janet Napolitano today announced that the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) will begin implementing new enhanced security measures for all air carriers with international flights to the United States to strengthen the safety...
WSJ: "In a bid to rebut Republican criticism of the efficacy of civilian trials for prosecuting terrorism suspects, the Justice Department on Friday unveiled the most complete list to date of terrorism convictions won in civilian courts. The release of...
A Growing Terrorist Threat? Assessing “Homegrown” Extremism in the United States, A Report of the CSIS Homeland Security and Counterterrorism Program, March 2010. "This report probes last fall’s five major cases [of “homegrown” terrorism or extremist violence perpetrated by U.S....
Combating Nuclear Terrorism: Actions Needed to Better Prepare to Recover from Possible Attacks Using Radiological or Nuclear Materials, GAO-10-204, January 29, 2010 Emergency Preparedness: FEMA Faces Challenges Integrating Community Preparedness Programs into Its Strategic Approach, GAO-10-193, January 29, 2010 DOD...
News release: "Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) on Thursday sent a letter to President Barack Obama endorsing the longstanding use of federal criminal courts to prosecute terrorists. Leahy and Feinstein chair the Senate Judiciary Committee and...
Follow up to previous postings on Terrorist Watchlist see the following related CRS reports: Terrorist Watchlist Checks and Air Passenger Prescreening, December 30, 2009: "Considerable controversy continues to surround U.S. air passenger prescreening and terrorist watchlist checks. In the past,...
The Next Challenge in Healthcare Preparedness - Catastrophic Health Events, Preparedness Report | January 2010. Prepared for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR). "The report finds that, while...
The Department of Homeland Security delivered to Congress the Quadrennial Homeland Security Review (QHSR) Report, A Strategic Framework for a Secure Homeland, Februaru 10, 2010 on February 1, 2010. The QHSR outlines the strategic framework to guide the activities of...
UK DirectGov - Crime justice and the law - Reporting hate, extremism and terrorism online: "Some people use the internet to spread hate and violent extremism. They chat with their supporters, share their beliefs and hope to gain new followers...
New York Times: "The nation’s main counterterrorism center is creating new teams of specialists to pursue clues of emerging terrorist plots as part of a rapid buildup that will sharply increase its analyst corps, perhaps by hundreds of people over...
News release: "Former Senator Bob Graham (D-FL) and former Senator Jim Talent (R-MO), chair and vice chair of the bipartisan Commission on the Prevention of Weapons of Mass Destruction Proliferation and Terrorism, today released a report card indicating that the...
Terrorist Attacks on Commercial Airlines: Federal Criminal Prohibitions. Charles Doyle, Senior Specialist in American Public Law, January 22, 2010 "A handful of terrorists have been prosecuted in federal court for attacks on commercial airlines or their passengers. Most often they...
January 15, 2010 - The National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC)--Responsibilities and Potential Congressional Concerns "The National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC) was established in 2004 to ensure that information from any source about potential terrorist acts against the U.S. could be made available...
Medicaid and CHIP: Enrollment, Benefits, Expenditures, and Other Characteristics of State Premium Assistance Programs, GAO-10-258R, January 19, 2010 Status of the Small Business Administration's Implementation of Administrative Provisions in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, GAO-10-298R, January 19,...
Obama’s War Over Terror: "Barack Obama was inaugurated as the first president to take office in the Age of Terrorism. He inherited two struggles — one with Al Qaeda and its ideological allies, and another that divides his own country...
CRS: International Terrorism and Transnational Crime: Security Threats, U.S. Policy, and Considerations for Congress, January 5, 2010. "This report provides a primer on the confluence of transnational terrorist and criminal groups and related activities abroad. It evaluates possible motivations and...
News release: "...the Transportation Security Administration issued new security directives to all United States and international air carriers with inbound flights to the U.S. effective January 4, 2010. The new directive includes long-term, sustainable security measures developed in consultation with...
"Guided by Security Council resolutions 1373 (2001) and 1624 (2005), the CTC has been working to bolster the ability of United Nations Member States to prevent terrorist acts both within their borders and across regions. The CTC is assisted in...
Via FAS: "The President's Memorandum of May 27, 2009 on Classified Information and Controlled Unclassified Information, directed a Task Force, led by the Secretary of Homeland Security and the Attorney General, to review the Controlled Unclassified Information (“CUI”) Framework established...
HHS OIG FDA's Food Facility Registry, December 2009, OEI-02-08-00060: "Each year, more than 300,000 Americans are hospitalized and 5,000 die after consuming contaminated foods and beverages. In the event of an outbreak of a foodborne illness, FDA is responsible for...
U.S. Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General Semiannual Report to Congress, April 1, 2009-September 30, 2009 "During this semiannual reporting period, the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) has continued to focus our resources on the top challenges...
Long-Term Implications of the Department of Defense's Fiscal Year 2010 Budget Submission, November 18, 2009. Testimony before the Committee on Armed Services, U.S. House of Representatives. "CBO projects that carrying out the plans proposed in the President’s 2010 budget request,...
CRS Report R40901 - Terrorism Information Sharing and the Nationwide Suspicious Activity Report Initiative: Background and Issues for Congress, November 05, 2009 "The 2004 National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States (the 9/11 Commission) cited breakdowns in information...
Combating Illicit Financing: Treasury's Office of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Could Manage More Effectively to Achieve Its Mission, GAO-09-794, September 24, 2009 Higher Education: Issues Related to Law School Cost and Access, GAO-10-20, October 26, 2009 Influenza Pandemic: Key Securities...
CBO: Long-Term Implications of the Department of Defense's Fiscal Year 2010 Budget Submission, October 14, 2009. Testimony before the Committee on the Budget, U.S. House of Representatives CBO projects that carrying out the plans proposed in the President’s 2010 budget...
Crime Victims' Rights Act: Increasing Victim Awareness and Clarifying Applicability to the District of Columbia Will Improve Implementation of the Act, GAO-09-1024T, September 29, 2009 Debt Management: Treasury Inflation Protected Securities Should Play a Heightened Role in Addressing Debt Management...
News release and Fact Sheet: "U.S. Senators Russ Feingold (D-WI), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Jon Tester (D-MT), Tom Udall (D-NM), Jeff Bingaman (D-NM), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Daniel Akaka (D-HI) and Ron Wyden (D-OR) have introduced legislation to fix problems with surveillance...
Combating Nuclear Terrorism: Preliminary Observations on Preparedness to Recover from Possible Attacks Using Radiological or Nuclear Materials, GAO-09-996T, September 14, 2009 Medicaid Preventive Services: Concerted Efforts Needed to Ensure, GAO-09-578, August 14, 2009 Royalty-In-Kind Program: MMS Does Not Provide Reasonable...
"The Global Terrorism Database (GTD) is an open-source database including information on terrorist events around the world from 1970 through 2007 (with annual updates planned for the future). Unlike many other event databases, the GTD includes systematic data on domestic...
News release: "Today, the National Security Archive posted a side-by-side comparison of two very different versions of a 2004 report on the CIA's "Counterterrorism Detention and Interrogation Activities" by Agency Inspector General John Helgerson. Yesterday, the Obama administration released new...
Assessing Medical Preparedness to Respond to a Terrorist Nuclear Event: Workshop Report, 2009 "A nuclear attack on a large U.S. city by terrorists--even with a low-yield improvised nuclear device (IND) of 10 kilotons or less--would cause a large number of...
EPIC: "Senators Russ Feingold (D-WI) and Dick Durbin (D-IL) are drafting legislative reforms to revise the USA PATRIOT Act. The USA PATRIOT Act allows authorities to conduct surveillance without judicial review through the use of National Security Letters. The Senators...
News release: "Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Janet Napolitano today marked the fifth anniversary of the issuance of the 9/11 Commission Report by releasing a progress report outlining advancements in the Department’s capabilities to protect against and respond to...
News release: Today’s release of a report by several agency inspectors general reinforces the National Security Archive’s argument in our Freedom of Information Act lawsuit that the Justice Department should declassify and release the legal justifications for the surveillance program...
June 23, 2009 - Homeland Security Department: FY2010 Appropriations: "This report describes the FY2010 appropriations for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The Administration requested a net appropriation of $44.1 billion in budget authority for FY2010. This amounts to a...
Political Violence Against Americans 2008: "Political Violence Against Americans is a report to the American people that focuses on major incidents of anti-U.S. violence and terrorism, with apparent political motivations, that occurred worldwide during 2008. The U.S. Department of State...
Strengthening the Transatlantic Alliance: An Overview of the Obama Administration's Policies in Europe, Philip H. Gordon, Assistant Secretary, Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs, Statement before the Subcommittee on Europe of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Washington, DC, June 16,...
The Evolving Terrorist Threat to Southeast Asia - A Net Assessment, by: Peter Chalk, Angel Rabasa, William Rosenau, Leanne Piggott "Terrorism is not new to Southeast Asia. For much of the Cold War, the activities of a variety of domestic...
Home Office Statistical Bulletin: Statistics on Terrorism Arrests and Outcomes, Great Britain 13 May 2009 - 11 September 2001 to 31 March 2008. "For the period between the start of the data collection on 11 September 2001 to 31 March...
National Counterterrorism Center 2008 Report on Terrorism, 30 April 2009 "Consistent with its statutory mission to serve as the United States (US) government's knowledge bank on international terrorism, the National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC) is providing the Department of State with...
"U.S. law requires the Secretary of State to provide Congress, by April 30 of each year, a full and complete report on terrorism with regard to those countries and groups meeting criteria set forth in the legislation. This annual report...
Statement of President Barack Obama on Release of OLC Memos: "The Department of Justice will today release certain memos issued by the Office of Legal Counsel between 2002 and 2005 as part of an ongoing court case. These memos speak...
News release: "Organizations representing booksellers, librarians, publishers, and writers today launched the latest phase in their five-year campaign to restore the reader privacy safeguards that were stripped away by the USA Patriot Act. Since 2003, the Department of Justice has...
High-Level Leadership Needed to Help Guam Address Challenges Caused by DOD-Related Growth, GAO-09-500R, April 09, 2009: "In an effort to improve the U.S. military’s flexibility to address conventional and terrorist threats worldwide, the Department of Defense (DOD) plans to relocate...
News release (includes links to declassified documents): "As a special tribunal in Peru pronounced former president Alberto Fujimori guilty of human rights atrocities, the National Security Archive today posted key declassified U.S. documents that were submitted as evidence in the...
Measuring Stability and Security in Iraq, March 2009 - Report to Congress In accordance with the Department of Defense Supplemental Appropriations Act 2008 (Section 9204, Public Law 110-252) "The United States seeks an Iraq that is sovereign, stable, and self-reliant;...
Bank Secrecy Act: Suspicious Activity Report Use Is Increasing, but FinCEN Needs to Further Develop and Document Its Form Revision Process, GAO-09-226, February 27, 2009 Defense Acquisitions: Assessments of Selected Weapon Programs, GAO-09-326SP, March 30, 2009 Defense Infrastructure: DOD Needs...
Pursue Prevent Protect Prepare - The United Kingdom’s Strategy for Countering International Terrorism, March 2009. Presented to Parliament by the Prime Minister and the Secretary of State for the Home Department by Command of Her Majesty. "It sets out our...
Bank Secrecy Act: Federal Agencies Should Take Action to Further Improve Coordination and Information-Sharing Efforts, GAO-09-227, February 12, 2009 Emergency Management: Actions to Implement Select Provisions of the Post-Katrina Emergency Management Reform Act, GAO-09-433T, March 17, 2009 Global War on...
Proceedings of a Conference sponsored by the Division of United States Studies Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars March 3–5, 2008: Governments and Muslim Communities in the West: United States, United Kingdom, France and Germany "The Muslim populations of Western...
News release: "Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) has announced three witnesses for a hearing scheduled Wednesday, March 4, on Getting to the Truth Through a Nonpartisan Commission of Inquiry. Leahy has proposed establishing a nonpartisan commission to examine...
"The latest available data from the Justice Department show that during November 2008 the government reported 16 new national internal security/terrorism prosecutions. According to the case-by-case information analyzed by the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC), this number is up from...
News release: "President Obama has directed the National Security and Homeland Security Advisors to conduct an immediate review of the plan, programs, and activities underway throughout the government dedicated to cyber security. This 60-day interagency review will develop a strategic...
War About Terror - Civil Liberties and National Security After 9/11: A Council on Foreign Relations Working Paper, by Daniel B. Prieto, Adjunct Senior Fellow for Counterterrorism and National Security, February 2009 "President Barack Obama, in one of his first...
The 2009 Future Years Defense Program: Implications and Alternatives, February 4, 2009, Testimony before the Committee on the Budget, U.S. House of Representatives "In CBO’s projection, defense resources average about $549 billion annually (in constant 2009 dollars) from 2014 to...
Review and Disposition of Individuals Detained at the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base and Closure of Detention Facilities: "By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, in order to...
Follow up to January 7, 2009 posting, Bush Administration Releases Highlights of Accomplishments and Results, the next report in what appears to be a series, The Accomplishments of the U.S. Department of Justice, 2001-2009 "Following the attacks of September 11,...
Rand: Unfolding the Future of the Long War Motivations, Prospects, and Implications for the U.S. Army, January 2009: "This document explores how the “long war” might unfold in the coming years. It looks out to about the year 2020 and...
Cost of the Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and Other Military Operations Through 2008 and Beyond, The Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments, Steven M. Kosiak, 2008. "Since 2001, the US government and the American taxpayer have provided about $904...
United States Institute of Peace Peace Briefing - Iraq in the Obama Administration, December 2008, Daniel P. Serwer and Sam Parker "President-elect Obama has stated his commitment to withdraw combat brigades from Iraq within 16 months, leaving a residual force...
The Role of the United States Postal Service in Public Safety and Security - Implications of Relaxing the Mailbox Monopoly, By Lois M. Davis et al. "The United States Postal Service (USPS) has long held statutory monopolies to deliver mail...
Medicare Advantage: Characteristics, Financial Risks, and Disenrollment Rates of Beneficiaries in Private Fee-for-Service Plans, GAO-09-25, December 15, 2008 Disaster Assistance: Federal Efforts to Assist Group Site Residents with Employment, Services for Families with Children, and Transportation, GAO-09-81, December 11, 2008...
Today's FBI: Celebrating a Century of Service: 2008-2009 Facts and Figures: "Throughout its 100-year history, the Federal Bureau of Investigation has protected the American people from threats to our way of life. Whether the greatest dangers came from gangsters, public...
News release: A congressionally appointed commission is calling on the President-elect and the next Congress to immediately initiate several concrete actions, unilaterally and with the international community, to address the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction that pose the greatest...
News release: "A long history of terrorism in India precedes the latest, coordinated attacks in Mumbai. The Global Terrorism Database (GTD), maintained by the National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism (START) based at the University...
OIG-09-04 - Letter Report: Maryland State Police Use of DHS Grants (PDF, 12 pages) New 11/21/2008 - "Since 2002, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has distributed more than $19 billion in preparedness grants to enhance the nation’s ability to...
DOJ OIG: Top Management and Performance Challenges in the Department of Justice - 2008, released November 14, 2008 "1. Counterterrorism: The Department’s top priority remains its ongoing efforts to detect and deter terrorism. Seven years after the September 11 terrorist...
News release: "Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) issued a subpoena Tuesday compelling Attorney General Michael Mukasey to provide testimony and related documents to the Senate Judiciary Committee about legal analysis and advice from the Department of Justice Office...
News release: "Stepping into the debate over whether democracy stops terrorism, a RAND Corporation study issued today finds that democratic political reforms can marginalize extremists and undermine support for political violence, but cosmetic reforms and backtracking on democratization can exacerbate...
Office of Foreign Assets Control, U.S. Department of the Treasury, Terrorist Assets Report 2007: "The Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) is the lead office for implementing sanctions with respect to assets of international terrorist organizations...
News release: "All U.S. agencies with counterterrorism programs that collect or "mine" personal data -- such as phone, medical, and travel records or Web sites visited -- should be required to systematically evaluate the programs' effectiveness, lawfulness, and impacts on...
Visa Waiver Program: Actions Are Needed to Improve Management of the Expansion Process, and to Assess and Mitigate Program Risks, GAO-08-967, September 15, 2008 Individual Retirement Accounts: Additional IRS Actions Could Help Taxpayers Facing Challenges in Complying with Key Tax...
New York Times: "The Justice Department made public on Friday a plan to expand the tools the Federal Bureau of Investigation can use to investigate suspicions of terrorism inside the United States, even without any direct evidence of wrongdoing. Justice...
Giving a Voice to Open Source Stakeholders: A Survey of State, Local and Tribal Law Enforcement, Majority Staff Report, September 2008. "Open source intelligence products can and should be shared with appropriate Federal, State, local and tribal law enforcement, and...
DOJ Fact Sheet: Justice Department Counter-Terrorism Efforts Since 9/11, September 11, 2008 "Since the attacks of September 11, 2001, the highest priority of the Justice Department has been to protect America against acts of terrorism. Despite repeated and sustained efforts...
Strategic Studies Institute of the US Army War College - U.S. Counterterrorism in Sub-Saharan Africa: Understanding Costs, Cultures, and Conflicts, September 2008, by Dr. Donovan C. Chau: "The global conflict against Islamic terrorists and their perceived threat to the United...
Surveillance made easy, NewScientist.com news service, Laura Margottini: "This data allows investigators to identify suspects, examine their contacts, establish relationships between conspirators and place them in a specific location at a certain time." So said the UK Home Office last...
"President Bush...announced his intention to nominate CDT Vice President for Public Policy James X. Dempsey to serve a five year term on the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board, an independent agency within the executive branch that will review the...
News release: "Secretary Chertoff spoke on the balance between privacy and secure identity August 13 at the University of Southern California National Center for Risk and Economic Analysis of Terrorism Events. He addressed crimes involving identity theft, and talked about...
Via FAS: Terrorism and Security Issues Facing the Water Infrastructure Sector, July 28, 2008: "Damage to or destruction of the nation’s water supply and water quality infrastructure by terrorist attack or natural disaster could disrupt the delivery of vital human...
August 04, 2008 - Taiwan: Major U.S. Arms Sales Since 1990 July 31, 2008 - The U.S. Secret Service: An Examination and Analysis of Its Evolving Missions July 31, 2008 - Panama: Political and Economic Conditions and U.S. Relations July...
AP - US: Ivins solely responsible for anthrax attacks Press release: "As the Department indicated last week and has been widely reported, substantial progress has been made in the Amerithrax investigation in recent years. As you know, this investigation into...
Combating Terrorism: Actions Needed to Enhance Implementation of Trans-Sahara Counterterrorism Partnership, GAO-08-860, July 31, 2008 Information Technology: Agencies Need to Establish Comprehensive Policies to Address Changes to Projects' Cost, Schedule, and Performance Goals, GAO-08-925, July 31, 2008 Rebuilding Iraq: DOD...
Department of Defense, 2008 National Defense Strategy: "The NDS describes our overarching goals and strategy. It outlines how DoD will support the objectives outlined in the NSS, including the need to strengthen alliances and build new partnerships to defeat global...
Bombers, Bank Accounts, and Bleedout: al-Qa'ida's Road in and Out of Iraq, July 22, 2008 (126 pages. PDF): "The Combating Terrorism Center at West Point (CTC) launched the Harmony Project in order to release and analyze documents from the Department...
News release: "The national security system created by the U.S. government in 1947 that served the nation throughout the Cold War is outdated and needs a massive restructuring to better protect the American people from terrorism, rogue states and other...
"This second Annual Report to the Congress on the Information Sharing Environment (ISE) describes the state of the ISE, highlights areas where there has been measurable progress in improving information sharing, and demonstrates the value of the ISE to the...
Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs hearing: Information Sharing: Connecting the Dots at the Federal, State, and Local Levels, July 23, 2008 See also related GAO Report, Information Sharing Environment: Definition of the Results to Be Achieved in...
DCAA Audits: Allegations That Certain Audits at Three Locations Did Not Meet Professional Standards Were Substantiated, GAO-08-857, July 22, 2008 Information Sharing Environment: Definition of the Results to Be Achieved in Improving Terrorism-Related Information Sharing Is Needed to Guide Implementation...
News release: "The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) today announced a set of security recommendations for the transportation of certain quantities of hazardous materials across the nation's highways. The recommendations - while voluntary - will help to ensure the secure transportation...
Initial Results on Availability of Terrorism Insurance in Specific Geographic Markets, GAO-08-919R, July 11, 2008 Management Report: Opportunities for Improvements in FDIC's Internal Controls and Accounting Procedures, GAO-08-863R, July 11, 2008 Telecommunications: FCC Needs to Improve Performance Management and Strengthen...
Center for Contemporary Conflict: Is the Sky Falling? Energy Security and Transnational Terrorism by Dr. Michael Mihalka and Dr. David Anderson, July 2008. "This paper will assess the extent to which transnational terrorists, in particular global Jihadists associated with Osama...
G8 Leaders Statement on Counter-Terrorism released by the White House: "We, the leaders of the G8, condemn in the strongest terms all acts of terrorism, and commit ourselves to take every possible measure to counter this threat to the international...
U.S-Pakistan Military Cooperation, Greg Bruno, Staff Writer, Jayshree Bajoria, Staff Writer, June 26, 2008 "Military cooperation between the United States and Pakistan has undergone a tactical renaissance since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Moribund at the end of...
News release: "This year’s updated version of the Worldwide Governance Indicators (WGI) compiled by World Bank researchers shows many developing country governments making important gains in control of corruption, and some of them matching rich country performance in overall governance...
Combating Terrorism: Increased Oversight and Accountability Needed over Pakistan Reimbursement Claims for Coalition Support Funds, GAO-08-806, June 24, 2008: "The United States has reimbursed Pakistan, a key ally in the global war on terror, about $5.56 billion in Coalition Support...
H.R. 6193: To require the Secretary of Homeland Security to develop and administer policies, procedures, and programs to promote the implementation of the Controlled Unclassified Information Framework applicable to unclassified information that is homeland security information, terrorism information, weapons of...
Border Security: Summary of Covert Tests and Security Assessments for the Senate Committee on Finance, 2003-2007, GAO-08-757, May 16, 2008 Federal Real Property: Property Conveyances between the District of Columbia and the Federal Government Await Completion, and Development Will Take...
Statement of Glenn A. Fine Inspector General, U.S. Department of Justice before the Senate Committee on the Judiciary concerning hearing on Coercive Interrogation Techniques: Do They Work, Are They Reliable, and What Did the FBI Know About Them?, June 10,...
Federal Disability Programs: Coordination Could Facilitate Better Data Collection to Assess the Status of People with Disabilities, GAO-08-872T, June 04, 2008 Combating Terrorism: Guidance for State Department's Antiterrorism Assistance Program Is Limited and State Does Not Systematically Assess Outcomes, GAO-08-875T,...
Report of Senator Carl Levin (D-MI) and Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) - Travel to Pakistan and Afghanistan, June 3, 2008. "Pakistan has been plagued by terrorism in recent times and its Army has suffered substantial casualties in recent months. The...
Memorandum For The Heads Of Executive Departments And Agencies. SUBJECT: Designation and Sharing of Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI), May 21, 2008. "This memorandum (a) adopts, defines, and institutes "Controlled Unclassified Information" (CUI) as the single, categorical designation henceforth throughout the...
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service: Endangered Species Act Decision Making, GAO-08-688T, May 21, 2008 Motor Carrier Safety: Improvements to Drug Testing Programs Could Better Identify Illegal Drug Users and Keep Them off the Road, GAO-08-600, May 15, 2008 Defense Contracting:...
Committee on Homeland Security Majority Staff Report Examining: Public Health, Safety, and Security for Mass Gatherings, May 2008 (64 pages, PDF). "Mass gatherings pose special challenges in terms of management and control, especially considering their value as targets for terrorism...
Financial Crimes Enforcement Network Strategic Plan for 2008 - 2012 (05/08/2008) "As the administrator of the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA), FinCEN regulates the financial industry for anti-money laundering/counter terrorism financing (AML/CFT) purposes across a broad range of sectors, including banking,...
Office of the Secretary of Defense and Joint Staff Reading Room: These documents were released to the New York Times regarding the Pentagon's Military Analyst program." See the New York Times, April 20, 2008. Behind TV Analysts, Pentagon’s Hidden Hand...
Analysis of the National Counterterrorism Center Annual Report on Terrorism, David Heyman, May 1, 2008. Center for Strategic & International Studies "Despite local and international efforts, the number of attacks worldwide have remained constant and still up sharply since 2005....
Jeff Stein, CQ National Security Editor - excerpt: "Hundreds of employee laptops are unaccounted for at the U.S. Department of State, which conducts delicate, often secret, diplomatic relations with foreign countries, an internal audit has found. As many as 400...
EPIC: "According to the 2007 FISA report, the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court approved 2,370 application to conduct electronic surveillance and physical searches in the United States in 2007, up from 2,176 applications approved in 2006. For the first time, the...
News release: "...Besides meeting Congressional requirements, the 2007 edition of the Country Reports on Terrorism aims to inform, to stimulate constructive debate, and to enhance our collective understanding of the international terrorist threat. The Country Reports should serve as a...
European Digital Rights: "The European Ministers of Justice and Internal Affairs have agreed to make publishing bomb-making instructions on the Internet a crime...Justice and interior ministers from the EU member states backed a proposal from Commissioner Frattini to harmonise the...
Rand Report - Comparing Alternative U.S. Counterterrorism Strategies Can Assumption-Based Planning Help Elevate the Debate? By: Robert J. Lempert, Horacio R. Trujillo, David Aaron, James A. Dewar, Sandra H. Berry, Steven W. Popper. "The United States faces the challenge of...
Combating Terrorism: The United States Lacks Comprehensive Plan to Destroy the Terrorist Threat and Close the Safe Haven in Pakistan's Federally Administered Tribal Areas, GAO-08-622, April 17, 2008 Highlights of a Forum Convened by the Comptroller General of the United...
OIG-08-32 - Federal and State Oversight of the New York City Urban Area Security Initiative Grant Program (PDF, 38 pages) New 04/16/2008 "The Urban Area Security Initiative grant program provides states and local governments with the funding needed in high-risk...
Fact Sheet, Office of the Coordinator for, Counterterrorism, Washington, DC, April 8, 2008 "Foreign Terrorist Organizations - Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs) are foreign organizations that are designated by the Secretary of State in accordance with section 219 of the Immigration...
Terrorism and the Mass Media after Al Qaeda: A Change of Course?, Manuel R. Torres Fuente: Athena Intelligence: "Analyzes the possible relationship between terrorist groups and the media. As an example, a case study on the Al Qaeda organization will...
News release: "The Office of the Director of National Intelligence is announcing the first-ever strategy to improve the ability of intelligence professionals to share information, ultimately strengthening national security. The document, titled the U.S. Intelligence Community Information Sharing Strategy, complements...
"A new publication from the Federal Judicial Center discusses methods federal judges have employed to meet the challenges posed by cases related to terrorism." Terrorism-Related Cases: Special Case-Management Challenges Case Studies. Robert Timothy Reagan, Federal Judicial Center, March 26, 2008...
Combating Terrorism: State Department's Antiterrorism Program Needs Improved Guidance and More Systematic Assessments of Outcomes, GAO-08-336, February 29, 2008 Defense Acquisitions: Assessments of Selected Weapon Programs, GAO-08-467SP, March 31, 2008 Disconnected Youth: Federal Action Could Address Some of the Challenges...
Implementation of the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Audit Report 08-20, March 2008. Redacted for public release. "Criminal organizations and individuals frequently use the telecommunication systems of the United States to further serious...
Iran, Terrorism, Transnational Security Threats, Nuclear Weapons, Weapons of Mass Destruction, March 2008. Daniel L. Byman, Senior Fellow, Foreign Policy, Saban Center for Middle East Policy. Studies in Conflict & Terrorism. "Since the Islamic Revolution in 1979, Iran has been...
"The Prime Minister has set out the Government's approach to dealing with threats to national security, ranging from war and terrorism to climate change, disease and poverty. Speaking to MP's in the House of Commons earlier today, Mr Brown said...
Aviation and the Environment: FAA's and NASA's Research and Development Plans for Noise Reduction Are Aligned but the Prospects of Achieving Noise Reduction Goals Are Uncertain, GAO-08-384, February 15, 2008 Defense Acquisitions: Progress Made in Fielding Missile Defense, but Program...
"ABC News has requested and obtained a copy of the Pentagon study which shows Saddam Hussein had no links to Al Qaeda...Based on the analysis of some 600,000 official Iraqi documents seized by US forces after the invasion and thousands...
News release: "The political transition in strife-torn Afghanistan continues to face a number of serious challenges, including terrorism and a booming drug industry, according to a new United Nations report, which urges an integrated approach among all international partners to...
Follow up to previous postings on TSA's Total Information Awareness surveillance program, this news release today from the ACLU: "...According to the new Wall Street Journal report [subscription req'd], the NSA was engaging in broad domestic spying operations that involve...
News release, March 8, 2008: "Information about the characteristics of nuclear and other radioactive materials stored and used by countries needs to be shared globally to combat the illicit trafficking of nuclear materials and nuclear terrorism, says a report published...
DoD Deputy Inspector for Auditing: D-2008-059 Supplemental Funds Used for Medical Support for the Global War on Terrorism, March 6, 2008 (Project No. D2007-D000LF-0032.000) "The Military Department Surgeons General did not consistently report obligations of Global War on Terrorism supplemental...
Securing America's Passenger-Rail Systems, by Jeremy M. Wilson, Brian A. Jackson, Mel Eisman, Paul Steinberg, K. Jack Riley. "U.S. communities depend on reliable, safe, and secure rail systems. Each weekday, more than 12 million passengers take to U.S. railways. Recent...
News release: "What is needed is a new national security strategy and a renewed commitment to homeland security, one that builds capabilities from the ground up rather than imposing unfunded mandates from the top down. Adequate resources must be committed...
News release: "The Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments has released a new report, The Global War on Terrorism: An Assessment (292 pages, PDF), authored by Senior Fellow Robert C. Martinage. The report concludes that the United States reached a...
Hearing on Cracked Justice – Addressing the Unfairness in Cocaine Sentencing, House Judiciary Committee, Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security, February 26, 2008. Hon. Reggie B. Walton Judge, United States District Court for the District of Columbia, Washington, DC...told...
Public Health Preparedness: A CDC Report on the Public Health Emergency Preparedness Cooperative Agreement, February 2008 (164 pages, PDF): "CDC's Coordinating Office for Terrorism Preparedness and Emergency Response (COTPER) has released its inaugural report on public health emergency preparedness. The...
Press release: "Amtrak today announced the deployment of its new specialized Amtrak Mobile Security Team to patrol stations and trains and randomly inspect passenger baggage. The Mobile Security Team supplements ongoing patrols already in place by Amtrak to enhance the...
Ungoverned Territories, by Angel Rabasa. Testimony presented before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, Subcommittee on National Security and Foreign Affairs hearing, Six Years Later (Part III): Innovative Approaches to Combating Terrorists, on February 14, 2008. "Despite the increased...
Your Guide to Online Privacy, by Mark Glaser "As we share more information online via myriad site registrations, online social networking profiles, e-commerce sites and search engines, the desire by companies and governments to mine that information is increasingly at...
FindLaw: U.S. v. Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, et al. (Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, Feb. 11, 2008) - "The U.S. Department of Defense announced that six high-value detainees held in Guantanamo Bay were charged, under the Military Commissions Act, with planning and executing...
Congressional Budget Analysis of the Growth in Funding for Operations in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Elsewhere in the War on Terrorism, February 11, 2008. "The United States began combat operations in Afghanistan in fiscal year 2002 and in Iraq in fiscal...
Press release: "According to findings of a national survey of 200 public safety officials and first responders by Motorola and the Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials (APCO) International, the ability to respond to a natural disaster is the top concern...
Second Annual Report to Congress, January 30, 2008 (36 pages, PDF): "As the efforts of the current Board come to a close, the Members wish to acknowledge and thank the many thousands of dedicated men and women in the Federal...
Washingtonpost.com: "The CIA's inspector general has agreed to tighter controls over its investigative procedures, agency officials revealed yesterday, in what appeared to be an attempt to soften resentments among agency officials over the watchdog's aggressive probes into the legality and...
"The Center for the Study of the Presidency is a non-profit and non-partisan organization that actively counsels the White House and the Executive branch on policy areas critical to strengthening Presidential leadership.Press release: Three independent reports have concluded this month...
Convicted Sex Offenders: Factors That Could Affect the Successful Implementation of Driver's License-Related Processes to Encourage Registration and Enhance Monitoring, GAO-08-116, January 30, 2008 National Flood Insurance Program: Greater Transparency and Oversight of Wind and Flood Damage Determinations Are Needed,...
Follow up to previous postings on nuclear power, this new CRS report, Nuclear Power Plant Security and Vulnerabilities, January 18, 2008: "The physical security of nuclear power plants and their vulnerability to deliberate acts of terrorism was elevated to a...
Bill 63 07-08 (90 pages, PDF), and Summary of the Bill: "A Bill to Confer further powers to gather and share information for counter-terrorism and other purposes; to make further provision about the detention and questioning of terrorist suspects and...
"The IAEA today released a reference manual that details how to prevent, detect, and respond to an incidence of nuclear terrorism. Combating Illicit Trafficking in Nuclear and Other Radioactive Material serves as a how-to booklet on several topics related to...
Press release: "USA*Engage and the National Foreign Trade Council (NFTC) today sent formal comments to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), recommending that the Commission reconsider its proposal to further develop mechanisms to facilitate greater access to companies’ disclosures...
Secure Borders and Open Doors: Preserving Our Welcome to the World in an Age of Terrorism, Report of the Secure Borders and Open Doors Advisory Committee, January 2008. "The Secure Border and Open Doors Advisory Committee, created by the US...
Iran Sanctions: Impact in Furthering U.S. Objectives Is Unclear and Should Be Reviewed, GAO-08-58, December 18, 2007. "The 2006 U.S. National Security Strategy stated that the United States faces challenges from Iran, including Iran's proliferation efforts and involvement in international...
Press release, January 11, 2009: "One of the biggest concerns we’ve had for the last several years, one we continue to have at the Department of Homeland Security, is how do we promote a secure form of identification across America?...
January 3, 2008 - The Effect of State-Legalized Same-Sex Marriage on Social Security Benefits and Pensions January 2, 2008 - National Aviation Security Policy, Strategy, and Mode-Specific Plans: Background and Considerations for Congress December 31, 2007 - Pay-As-You-Go Procedures for...
"...the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 (IRTPA) provides that United States citizens and nonimmigrant aliens may enter the United States only with passports or such alternative documents as the Secretary of Homeland Security may designate as satisfactorily...
US State Department's Overseas Security Advisory Council (OSAC) Activity Report: November 2007 AP: US State Department issues Top 10 list of security threats for US businesses: "...Intellectual property theft, terrorism, natural disasters and political instability were listed as the most...
Press release: "The Federal Trade Commission today told the House Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security that identity theft remains one of the highest priorities for the Commission, and that the agency is playing a lead role...
"Trust for America's Health (TFAH) released the fifth annual Ready or Not? Protecting the Public's Health from Disease, Disasters, and Bioterrorism report (124 pages, PDF), which found that while important progress has been made, critical areas of the nation's emergency...
6-294-08-002-P Audit of USAID/West Bank and Gaza’s Assistance to Al-Quds University, the Islamic University in Gaza, and American Near East Refugee Aid, December 10, 2007 Audit Objective: "We conducted this audit in response to congressional and USAID concerns that funds...
Long-Term Implications of Current Defense Plans: Summary Update for Fiscal Year 2008, December 2007: "The 2008 FYDP [Future Year's Defense Program ]reflects changes to the department’s programs and priorities between February 2006 and February 2007. The 2008 FYDP and CBO’s...
"Chairman Silvestre Reyes, D-TX, of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, released the following statement on the successful filing of the House-Senate conference report of H.R. 2082, the fiscal year 2008 Intelligence Authorization Act, clearing the bill for consideration...
Botnets, Cybercrime, and Cyberterrorism: Vulnerabilities and Policy Issues for Congress, Updated November 15, 2007. "Cybercrime is becoming more organized and established as a transnational business. High technology online skills are now available for rent to a variety of customers, possibly...
GLOBAL WAR ON TERRORISM - OPERATION ENDURING FREEDOM, By Month, October 7, 2001 Through November 3, 2007...
McAfee Virtual Criminology Report - Cybercrime: The Next Wave - The annual McAfee global cyber trends study into organized crime and the Internet in collaboration with leading international security experts, November 2007. "For this report we consulted with more than...
AFRICOM's Dilemma: The "Global War on Terrorism" "Capacity Building," Humanitarianism, and the Future of U.S. Security Policy in Africa. Authored by Robert G. Berschinski. November 21, 2007. "Africa is a continent of growing economic, social, political, and geostrategic importance. The...
New York Times: Saudi Arabia and Libya, both considered allies by the United States in its fight against terrorism, were the source of about 60 percent of the foreign fighters who came to Iraq in the past year to serve...
Defense Science Board Report, September 2007 - Deployment of National Guard and Reserve in the Global War on Terrorism (53 pages, PDF): "...given current levels of operational demand, today's Army active, National Guard and reserve force structure will not support...
The Victims of Terrorism An Assessment of Their Influence and Growing Role in Policy, Legislation, and the Private Sector, by Bruce Hoffman, Anna-Britt Kasupski (66 pages, PDF): "Little attention and analysis have focused on terrorism victims, including survivors. This report...
"Liberty (The National Council for Civil Liberties) is one of the UK’s leading civil liberties and human rights organisations. Liberty works to promote human rights and protect civil liberties through a combination of test case litigation, lobbying, campaigning and research."...
U.S. Government Accountability Office: Performance and Accountability Report, Fiscal Year 2007. GAO-08-1SP, November 15, 2007 Testimonies Aviation Security: Vulnerabilities Exposed Through Covert Testing of TSA's Passenger Screening Process, by Gregory D. Kutz, managing director, and John W. Cooney, assistant director,...
Minimum Criminal Intelligence Training Standards, For Law Enforcement and Other Criminal Justice Agencies in the United States, Findings and Recommendations, Version 2, October 2007. Prepared by the Intelligence Training Coordination Working Group, Presented to the Counter-Terrorism Training Coordination Working Group,...
[November 6, 2007] "...the Commission adopted a new package of proposals aimed at improving the EU’s capabilities in the fight against terrorism. The package contains a series of proposals dealing with the criminalization of terrorist training, recruitment and public provocation...
The University of Arizona Artificial Intelligence Lab Dark Web project: "Based on our actual spidering experience over the past 5 years, we believe there are about 50,000 sites of extremist and terrorist content as of 2007, including: web sites, forums,...
"A special new TRAC terrorism enforcement page features a unique national map displaying the location of recent federal convictions for all individuals who have been categorized by the Justice Department as spies or terrorists, or those whose prosecution the government...
Terrorism 2002-2005 (73 pages, PDF): "Since the mid-1980s, the FBI has published Terrorism in the United States, an unclassified annual report summarizing terrorist activities in this country. While this publication provided an overview of the terrorist threat in the United...
November 5, 2007 - Understanding Mortgage Foreclosure: Recent Events, the Process, and Costs November 2, 2007 - Director of National Intelligence Statutory Authorities: Status and Proposals November 2, 2007 - The MS-13 and 18th Street Gangs: Emerging Transnational Gang Threats?...
October 17, 2007 - Medicaid Citizenship Documentation October 17, 2007 - Cost-of-Living Adjustments for Federal Civil Service Annuities October 17, 2007 - Retirement Savings Accounts: Fees, Expenses, and Account Balances October 16, 2007 - Electronic Rulemaking in the Federal Government...
Fact Sheet: Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards: Appendix A "The Department of Homeland Security today released Appendix A of the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS), a critical element of its chemical security efforts. The appendix contains a list of chemicals that,...
Via FAS, National Strategy for Combating Terrorism: Background and Issues for Congress, November 1, 2007 (19 pages, PDF): "Inherent in the National Strategy are a number of issues for Congress. These include (1) democratization as a counterterrorism strategy; (2) the...
"President George W. Bush has issued the first National Strategy for Information Sharing to prioritize and unify the United States' efforts to advance the sharing of terrorism-related information. The strategy sets forth a plan to build upon the progress that...
Fact Sheet: Designation of Iranian Entities and Individuals for Proliferation Activities and Support for Terrorism - The U.S. Government is taking several major actions today to counter Iran's bid for nuclear capabilities and support for terrorism by exposing Iranian banks,...
House Budget Committee hearing: The Growing Budgetary Costs of the Iraq War, Wednesday, October 24, 2007. Witness statements as follows: Dr. Peter Orszag, Director, Congressional Budget Office: Testimony on Estimated Costs of U.S. Operations in Iraq and Afghanistan and of...
Department of Energy Inspection Report: The Consolidated Terrorism Watchlist Nomination Process at the Department of Energy, October 2007 (13 pages, PDF)...
Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press: "For the first time ever, the U.S. House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed legislation that will protect journalists from being compelled to testify or reveal sources in court. The shield law grants a qualified...
Fact Sheet: National Strategy for Homeland Security - A Comprehensive Guide For Securing the Homeland: "Today, the President issued an updated National Strategy for Homeland Security, which will serve to guide, organize, and unify our Nation's homeland security efforts. This...
Inspection Report, The Consolidated Terrorism Watchlist Nomination Process at the Department of Energy, October 2007 (13 pages, PDF)...
US Courts: "The Judicial Conference has expressed concerns about proposed regulations issued by the Department of Justice for states seeking to qualify for expedited federal habeas corpus review procedures in capital cases. Concerns about the certification-implementation regulations proposed June 6,...
Combating Terrorism: Law Enforcement Agencies Lack Directives to Assist Foreign Nations, GAO-08-144T, October 4, 2007 Energy Efficiency: Opportunities Exist for Federal Agencies to Better Inform Household Consumers, GAO-07-1162, September 26, 2007 Environmental Right-To-Know: EPA's Recent Rule Could Reduce Availability of...
European Security Research Agenda: European Commission Working documents: Public-Private Dialogue in Security Research and Innovation: Summary of the Impact Assessment (SEC (2007); Public-Private Dialogue in Security Research and Innovation: Impact Assessment (SEC (2007) See also Security research to better combat...
Press release: "Securing the Bomb 2007, commissioned by the Nuclear Threat Initiative, finds a dangerous gap in efforts to thwart nuclear terrorism and calls for urgent global campaign to reduce the risk. The report provides a comprehensive assessment of efforts...
Press release: "Electronic Frontiers Australia (EFA) today slammed a Bill introduced into the Senate which would give members of the Australian Federal Police powers to ban access to Internet content. The Communications Legislation Amendment (Crime or Terrorism Related Internet Content)...
EPIC: "The Data Privacy and Integrity Advisory Committee of the Department of Homeland Security held a series of panel discussions on the topic of "information fusion centers." EPIC's statement to the committee made specific recommendations on the need to create...
The FBI Strategic Plan, 2004-2009 (132 pages, PDF): "The FBI Strategic Plan 2004-2009 serves as a high-level road map for the next five years, with strategic goals and objectives that address the mission of the FBI and fulfill the imperatives...
Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, Confronting the Terrorist Threat to the Homeland: Six Years After 9/11, September 10, 2007. Witnesses Testimony Michael Chertoff [View PDF], Secretary of Homeland Security, U.S. Department of Homeland Security J. Michael McConnell...
House Committee on Homeland Security, Turning Spy Satellites on the Homeland: the Privacy and Civil Liberties Implications of the National Applications Office [Links to Witness Statements] Thursday, September 06, 2007 Press release, September 6, 2007: "Committee on Homeland Security Committee...
Final Technical Report: Habeas Litigation in U.S. District Courts: An Empirical Study of Habeas Corpus Cases Filed by State Prisoners Under the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996, August 2007. Author(s): Nancy J. King J.D.; Fred L. Cheesman...
Washington Post: Terror Suspect List Yields Few Arrests - 20,000 Detentions in '06 Rile Critics: "The government's terrorist screening database flagged Americans and foreigners as suspected terrorists almost 20,000 times last year. But only a small fraction of those questioned...
Transcript: Debate on the foreign intelligence surveillance act, by Chris Roberts, El Paso Times: The following is the transcript of a question and answer session with National Intelligence Director Mike McConnell, published August 22, 2007. On participation by telecommunications companies...
Press release from Sen. Charles Grassley: "A new joint report from the Inspectors General at the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Justice finds that disputes between agents at the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Immigration and...
Follow-up to August 5, 2007 posting - Bill to Amend Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act Ready for President's Signature - today's FAQ: How far does the new wiretap law go? by Declan McCullagh - "Over strong objections from civil liberties groups...
CBO Report: Federal Reinsurance for Terrorism Risks: Issues in Reauthorization, August 2007 (40 pages, PDF)...
CBO Testimony Statement of Robert A. Sunshine, Assistant Director for Budget Analysis - Estimated Costs of U.S. Operations in Iraq and Afghanistan and of Other Activities Related to the War on Terrorism before the Committee on Budget, U.S. House of...
Combating Terrorism Center (CTC) at West Point Report: An Assessment of 516 Combatant Status Review Tribunal (CSRT) Unclassified Summaries, July 25, 2007 New York Times: Study Paints a Threatening Portrait of Detainees Related documents: A Response to the Seton Hall...
"Human Security Act of 2007 - [This Act which is a consolidation of Senate Bill No. 2137 and House Bill No. 4839 was finally passed by the Senate and the House of Representatives on February 8, 2007 and February 19,...
Press release: "The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced today final Fiscal Year (FY) 2007 Homeland Security Grant Program (HSGP) awards totaling $1.7 billion, including a total of almost $411 million to the nation’s six urban areas at highest...
National Intelligence Estimate, The Terrorist Threat to the US Homeland, released July 17, 2007 (7 pages, PDF) State Department press release: "The terrorist organization al-Qaida remains a persistent and evolving threat to the United States, according to a new report...
The Washington Post reports that the President's Intelligence Oversight Board (IOB), (see Executive Order 12334, December 4, 1981) ... "did not send any reports to the attorney general of legal violations during the first 5 1/2 years of the Bush...
EFF press release: "...The FBI's use of NSLs was expanded under the USA PATRIOT Act in 2001, allowing federal agents to gather private records about anyone's domestic phone calls, emails, and financial transactions without any court approval -- as long...
Defense Acquisitions: An Analysis of the Special Operations Command's Management of Weapon System Programs, GAO-07-620, June 28, 2007. "Special Operations Command's (SOCOM) duties have greatly increased since the attacks of September 11, 2001. Today, Special Operations Forces are at work...
Press release: "CDC Off Center, a 115-page oversight report authored by the Minority Office of the Federal Financial Management Subcommittee, under the direction of ranking member Senator Tom Coburn, examines how CDC has tilted off center and makes recommendations about...
Press release: "U.S. Senator Tom Coburn, M.D. (R-OK), a practicing physician, today released an oversight report on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), an agency with a $10 billion annual budget and a crucial public health mission. “Recent...
From the State Department: The Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism - Pakistan Endorses the U.S.-Russia-led Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism (6/11/07) The Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism is open to other partner nations who share the common...
Identity Theft Laws: State Penalties and Remedies and Pending Federal Bills, June 1, 2007 Defense Acquisition: Overview, Issues, and Options for Congress, June 4, 2007 The Terrorism Risk Insurance Program: Current Issues and Background, May 31, 2007 Liability of Interactive...
Press release: "The U.S. Departments of State and Homeland Security announced today that U.S. citizens traveling to Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Bermuda who have applied for but not yet received passports can nevertheless temporarily enter and depart from the...
"An examination of millions of previously unavailable government records indicates that repeated official statements about the immigration enforcement efforts of the United States are misleading and may have contributed to a widespread public misunderstanding about the essential nature of this...
Press release: "The world's largest unclassified database of terrorism attacks is now available online for general use by researchers, policy-makers, media and the general public -- an important tool that the researchers say may aid in the development of more...
Countering the Terrorist Mentality - State Department EJournal, May 2007: "This edition of eJournal USA, "Countering the Terrorist Mentality," provides a look at the complex, global problem of terrorism. Several of the world’s leading scholars in this field, including Walter...
Information Technology: Numerous Federal Networks Used to Support Homeland Security Need to Be Better Coordinated with Key State and Local Information-Sharing Initiatives GAO-07-455, April 16, 2007. "The Departments of Homeland Security and Justice have 17 major networks that support their...
Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs hearing on The Internet: A Portal to Violent Islamist Extremism, May 3, 2007. Prepared testimony submitted for this hearing: "The Internet: A Portal to Violent Islamist Extremism", Testimony of Frank J. Cilluffo,...
"EPIC, in cooperation with the Stanford Constitutional Law Center, filed a "friend-of-the-court" brief (42 pages, PDF) in Hepting v. AT&T. This lawsuit alleges that AT&T allowed the government to wiretap calls and e-mails without judicial authority. The U.S. government and...
Press release, April 27, 2007: "The United States Sentencing Commission held its final public meetings for the 2006-2007 guideline amendment cycle, promulgating amendments to the federal sentencing guidelines today and on April 18, 2007, on several important issues. Among other...
GlobalIncidentMap.com: "This free public service website was created to give the public, law enforcement, military, and government individuals a new way to visualize, and become instantly aware of terrorism and security incidents across the world...While this website employs much automation,...
Congressional Testimony, Robert S. Mueller, III, Director, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Statement Before the Senate Appropriations Committee, Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies, April 26, 2007: "...The fiscal 2008 budget for the FBI totals 29,373 positions and $6.4...
Country Reports on Terrorism 2006 (html format): "U.S. law requires the Secretary of State to provide Congress, by April 30 of each year, a full and complete report on terrorism with regard to those countries and groups meeting criteria set...
Press release: "The Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 (IRTPA), which created the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board (Board), requires that "[n]ot less frequently than annually, the Board shall prepare a report to Congress, unclassified to the...
Press release: "Today, as in the past, the United States and our allies face dangerous challenges to our security, freedom, and way of life. The current global environment, however, is more interconnected, complex, and dynamic than the bipolar world of...
House Judiciary Committee, Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security, The Katrina Impact on Crime and the Criminal Justice System in New Orleans, Field Hearing in New Orleans, Louisiana By Direction of the Chairman, April 10, 2007. Related postings on...
Politicizing National Security, by Aziz Huq, April 4, 2007: "Aziz Huq directs the Liberty and National Security Project at the Brennan Center for Justice. He is co-author of Unchecked and Unbalanced: Presidential Power in Times of Terror, and recipient of...
Iraq: Post-Saddam Governance and Security, Updated March 27, 2007 Pakistan and Terrorism: A Summary, March 27, 2007 Post-War Iraq: Foreign Contributions to Training, Peacekeeping, and Reconstruction, Updated March 21, 2007 U.S. Foreign Aid to Lebanon: Issues for Congress, March 21,...
First Responders: Much Work Remains to Improve Communications Interoperability GAO-07-301, April 2, 2007. "As the first to respond to natural disasters, domestic terrorism, and other emergencies, public safety agencies rely on timely communications across multiple disciplines and jurisdictions. It is...
Press release: "The U.S. Department of Homeland Security today released an interim final rule that imposes for the first time comprehensive federal security regulations for high risk chemical facilities. The department sought and reviewed comments from state and local partners,...
Press release: "The Federal Trade Commission today told the Senate Judiciary Committee Subcommittee on Terrorism, Technology, and Homeland Security that “the government and the private sector must continue to work together to reduce the opportunities for thieves to obtain consumers’...
Data Mining: Early Attention to Privacy in Developing a Key DHS Program Could Reduce Risks GAO-07-293, February 28, 2007. "The government's interest in using technology to detect terrorism and other threats has led to increased use of data mining. A...
Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC) report on Terrorism Enforcement: International, Domestic and Financial: "An analysis of timely Justice Department records shows that while there has been a sharp decline in the prosecution of individuals the government has identified as international...
Beet.TV: "A major defense department contractor, BBN of Cambridge, Massachusetts, has applied a national security technology application, developed to fight terrorism, to "crawl" the audio tracks of public Internet videos through its Podzinger subsidiary. Podzinger has analyzed, transcribed and organized...
Combating Terrorism: Improved Training and Guidance Needed to More Effectively Address Host Nation Support and Enhance DOD's Force Protection Efforts GAO-07-200NI, January 31, 2007. Note: "GAO products with the suffix NI following the report number are not posted on GAO's...
News.com: "The Bush administration has accelerated its Internet surveillance push by proposing that Web sites must keep records of who uploads photographs or videos in case police determine the content is illegal and choose to investigate, CNET News.com has learned....
Press release: "Today, Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-NY), a member of the House Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security, and Rep. Jeff Flake (R-AZ) released a report detailing some of the most outrageous homeland security spending boondoggles from coast to...
The Department of Justice's Internal Controls Over Terrorism Reporting, Audit Report 07-20, February 2007, (PDF, 160 pages, Full Report) "...we learned that the collection and reporting of terrorism-related statistics within the Department is decentralized and haphazard. Often the official who...
Via UN Pulse: "The newly-launched United Nations Counter-Terrorism Online Handbook showcases United Nations' system-wide resources and activities in the field of counter-terrorism. The handbook is a collaborative effort of the UN Counter-Terrorism Implementation Task Force (CTITF), which brings together 24...
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Report of the Security Clearance Oversight Group Consistent With Title III of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004, February 2007 (38 pages, PDF)...
DHS' Management of BioWatch Program, OIG-07-22 (PDF, 30 pages), January 7, 2007. Related government documents: Homeland Security Presidential Directive/HSPD-18, January 31, 2007 - Released on January 7, 2007 - Subject: Medical Countermeasures against Weapons of Mass Destruction The BioWatch Program:...
"Issued by the Office of Management and Budget, the Budget of the United States Government is a collection of documents that contains the budget message of the President, information about the President's budget proposals for a given fiscal year, and...
"The 110th Congress begins with major challenges and opportunities afoot at the UN, including proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, terrorism, global health, and the environment. The Better World Campaign has prepared background information on the role of the UN...
Future of Terrorism Task Force Report, January 2007 (PDF 16 pages) and Presentation, January 11, 2007 (PDF, 16 pages)....
Custom and Border Protection's Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI), January 23, 2007, (PDF, 6 pages) The Bureau of Customs and Border Protection, Department of Homeland Security, in conjunction with the Bureau of Consular Affairs, Department of State, published in the...
CBO Testimony on Issues in Budgeting for Operations in Iraq and the War on Terrorism, January 18, 2007....
CRS Report, 9/11 Commission Recommendations - Implementation Status, December 4, 2006. Implementing the 9/11 Commission Recommendations Act of 2007, (279 pages, PDF). Published January 5, 2007 - via GPO....
Press release: "The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released today fiscal year 2007 grant guidance and application kits for five grant programs that will total roughly $1.7 billion in funding for state and local counterterrorism efforts. With the fiscal year...
Via Statewatch.org, "EU: Public order and counter-terrorism: Security handbook for the use of police authorities and services at international events (EU doc no: 15226/1/06, 22.12.06, full-text, pdf). The Council of the European Union (representing the 27 governments) is proposing that...
U.S. National Counterterrorism Center 2007 Calendar (142 pages, PDF) "The US National Counterterrorism Center is pleased to present the 207 edition of the Counterterrorism (CT) Calendar. This edition, the largest since the Calendar first appeared in a daily planner format...
MATRIX Report, December 2006 (PDF, 9 pages): DHS Privacy Office Report to the Public Concerning the Multistate Anti-Terrorism Information Exchange (MATRIX) Pilot Project....
Facts and Figures about Homeland Security Spending, by Veronique de Rugy , Posted: Thursday, December 14, 2006. "International terrorism is perceived as the greatest security challenge America faces today. Since the tragic events of 9/11, policymakers have responded mainly by...
Press release: "Trust for America's Health (TFAH) today released the fourth annual "Ready or Not? Protecting the Public's Health from Disease, Disasters, and Bioterrorism," which found that five years after the September 11th and anthrax tragedies, emergency health preparedness is...
Press release, December 11, 2006: Training for Terrorism-Related Conditions in Hospitals: United States, 2003-04. Advance Data Number 380. 9 pp. (PHS) 2007-1250. "The report ...is based on data from the annual National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey, conducted by CDC's...
Press release: "Senator Daniel K. Akaka (D-HI) and Senator John E. Sununu (R-NH) introduced legislation [on December 8, 2006] to repeal Title II of the REAL ID Act of 2005, which they believe places an unrealistic and unfunded burden on...
Press release: "Senator Chuck Grassley and Congressman Rush Holt today said that they sent a letter [text of which is available in PDF] to the Attorney General asking for a briefing on the Amerithrax case. The letter was signed by...
Effective Counterterrorism and the Limited Role of Predictive Data Mining, by Jeff Jonas [engineer and chief scientist with IBM's Entity Analytic Solutions Group] and Jim Harper [director of information policy studies at the Cato Institute]. "Though data mining has many...
Secrecy and Foreign Policy, Robert Pallitto, December 8, 2006, Foreign Policy In Focus: "Since the beginning of the republic, U.S. presidents have used some form of secrecy in the course of governing. In the wake of the Watergate scandal, congressional...
Sentinel Audit II: Status of the Federal Bureau of Investigations Case Management System (Redacted), Audit Report 07-03, December 2006 (PDF - Full Report) Comment Of Senator Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., Ranking Member And Incoming Chairman, Senate Judiciary Committee, On DOJ OIG...
Combating Terrorism - How Prepared Are State and Local Response Organizations? "This book presents the results of the third and final wave of a national survey to elicit assessments of state and local response agencies of the activities they have...
Press release: "The Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) succeeded in having two key provisions of a Bush administration anti-terrorism initiative ruled unconstitutional. Los Angeles U.S. District Court Judge Audrey Collins ruled in Humanitarian Law Project v. Department of Treasury that...
The following are available via FAS: Intelligence Estimates: How Useful to Congress?, November 21, 2006 Iraqi Civilian Deaths Estimates, November 22, 2006 Anti-Terrorism Authority Under the Laws of the United Kingdom and the United States, September 7, 2006...
Follow-up to previous postings on the SWIFT online financial cooperative network, this November 23, 2006 corporate press release: "SWIFT strongly objects to WP 29's opinion [Opinion 10/2006 on the processing of personal data by the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial...
Boston.com: Dick Cheney's mission to expand -- or 'restore' --the powers of the presidency - "A close look at key moments in Cheney's career...suggests that the newly empowered Democrats in Congress should not expect the White House to cooperate when...
DOJ OIG - Top Management Challenges in the Department of Justice - 2006 Challenges [Full Report] Section by section: Counterterrorism Sharing of Law Enforcement and Intelligence Information Information Technology Systems Planning, Implementation, and Security Violent Crime Financial Management and Systems...
Press release: "In response to an ongoing lawsuit brought by the American Civil Liberties Union, the CIA has acknowledged the existence of two documents authorizing it to detain and interrogate terrorism suspects overseas. For more than two years, the CIA...
Global War On Terrorism: Fiscal Year 2006 Obligation Rates Are Within Funding Levels and Significant Multiyear Procurement Funds Will Likely Remain Available for Use in Fiscal Year 2007, GAO-07-76, and Highlights, November 13, 2006. "As of June 2006, which represents...
Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC): "Federal prosecutors decline to prosecute 87% of FBI international terrorism referrals in FY 2006 ... Despite increased agency staffing, prosecutions dropping across-the-board ... Graphs and tables reveal changes in staffing and enforcement priorities since 1986."...
Follow-up to previous postings on the Military Commissions Act of 2006, see this ABA Journal article, DOJ proposes new limits on lawyer access to detainees, data. See also ABA's 2006 Legislative Priorities: Anti-Terrorism and Preservation of Due Process -- Enemy...
"This Bureau of Justice Assistance report describes the role of law enforcement during public health emergencies, mass vaccinations, voluntary restrictions, and quarantines; securing the perimeter of contaminated areas and securing health care facilities; controlling crowds; investigating scenes of suspected biological...
Press release: "One in four veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars are filing disability claims, according to records released by the U.S. Department of Veterans' Affairs (VA) under the Freedom of Information Act after nine months of denying their...
PWG Report on Terrorism Risk Insurance, September 2006....
House Committee on International Relations, Subcommittee on International Terrorism and Nonproliferation and the Subcommittee on the Middle East and Central Asia, joint hearing, September 28. 2006: Hezbollah's Global Reach. Statements (PDF): The Honorable Edward R. Royce, The Honorable Ileana Ros-Lehtinen,...
Department of Justice Fact Sheet: Structure of the National Security Division Prepared Remarks of Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales at the Swearing-In Ceremony for Kenneth Wainstein and the Launch of the Department of Justice National Security Division: "Establishment of the...
In a September 25, 2006 letter to Director of National Intelligence John Negroponte, Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) requested the declassification of portions of the April 2006 National Intelligence Estimate, to the "fullest extent possible," following reporting by the New York...
Combating Nuclear Terrorism: Federal Efforts to Respond to Nuclear and Radiological Threats and to Protect Emergency Response Capabilities Could Be Strengthened, Full-text GAO-06-1015, and Highlights, September 21, 2006: "DOE has unique capabilities and assets to prevent and respond to a...
Working Group Report Baggage Screening Investments Survey, prepared for the Aviation Security Advisory Committee, August 9, 2006 (220 pages, PDF). Press release, Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA): "The report was developed by experts from air carriers, airport operators, the federal government...
House Intelligence Committee Releases Report on al-Qaeda: "The report addresses how five years after 9-11 al-Qaeda and other radical Islamist organizations remain determined to carry out attacks against the United States, our allies and U.S. interests abroad." Al Qaeda: The...
Doublespeak and the War on Terrorism (September 2006), by Timothy Lynch: "The purpose of this paper is not to criticize any particular policy initiative. Reasonable people can honestly disagree about what needs to be done to combat the terrorists who...
The Terrorism Index, by FOREIGN POLICY & The Center For American Progress: "Despite today’s highly politicized national security environment, the index results show striking consensus across political party lines. A bipartisan majority (84 percent) of the index's experts say the...
Prepared Remarks by Stuart Levey, Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, Before the American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research: "...we have made dramatic progress in combating terrorist abuse of charities. Prior to 9/11 and even afterwards, terrorists used...
Senate Intelligence Committee: Postwar Findings about Iraq's WMD Programs and Links to Terrorism and How they Compare with Prewar Assessments (151 pages, PDF), September 8, 2006. The Use by the Intelligence Community of Information Provided by the Iraqi National Congress,...
Diminished Public Appetite for Military Force and Mideast Oil Five Years Later, Released September 6, 2006: "Five years later, Americans' views of the impact of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks have changed little, but opinions about how best to protect...
9/11 Five Years Later: Successes and Challenges, September 2006 (23 pages, PDF) From the BBC, these related documents and resources: How 9/11 changed America: In statistics - "Five years after the 11 September attacks, how has America changed? Click through...
From askSam, the text of the 2006 U.S. National Strategy for Combating Terrorism is available in searchable and browseable online versions....
Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security Legislative Hearing on "Legislative Proposals to Update the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA)." (H.R. 4976, H.R. 5223, H.R. 5371, H.R. 5825, S. 2453, and S. 2455). Links to Chairman's Opening Statement and Witness...
Press release: "Third Way today issued a new report analyzing the Bush administration’s record on national security. The report was released at a press conference in the Capitol with Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, retired General Wesley Clark, Assistant Minority...
September 5, 2006 Fact Sheet: The President's National Strategy for Combating Terrorism National Strategy for Combating Terrorism, September 2006 (29 pages, PDF) Contents: Overview of America's National Strategy for Combating Terrorism Today's Realities in the War on Terror Today's Terrorist...
"The government's prosecution of international terrorist suspects has sharply declined in the last few years, according to a new special report by the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC). The report, based on very extensive Justice Department data obtained under the...
Investigative work by students at the Medill School of Journalism has uncovered a joint FBI and Department of Education data mining program that reviewed the records of hundreds of students. The goal was purportedly to discern whether financial aid funding...
CRS Report, European Approaches to Homeland Security and Counter-Terrorism, July 24, 2006. "This report examines homeland security and counterterrorist measures in six selected European countries: Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom. None of these European countries currently...
National Memorial Institute for the Prevention of Terrorism Annual Report 2006 (82 pages, PDF)...
Bureau of Justice Statistics, Prosecutors in State Courts, 2005: "Presents findings from the 2005 National Survey of Prosecutors, the latest in a series of data collections about the Nation's 2,300 State court prosecutors’ offices that tried felony cases in State...
EU Plan of Action on Combatting Terrorism (51 pages, PDF)...
Al-Qaeda: The Many Faces of an Islamist Extremist Threat, June 2006 (47 pages, PDF) Related report: Initial Assessment on the Implementation of The Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004, July 27, 2006 (41 pages, PDF)...
CRS Report, International Terrorism: Threat, Policy, and Response, August 9, 2006...
Statement of Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales on the Passage of the Cybercrime Convention, August 6, 2006: "The Cybercrime Convention - the first of its kind - will be a key tool for the United States in fighting global, information-age...
Secrecy News: "The Department of Defense recently published its annual report on counterproliferation, an overview of U.S. government programs to detect, prevent and counter the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction." "Report on Activities and Programs for Countering Proliferation and...
Press release: "The Oversight Subcommittee of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence released a report assessing the implementation of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004. The report provides a snapshot of how the goals of the...
Subcommittee on Federal Workforce and Agency Organization, hearing entitled Telecommuting: A 21st Century Solution to Traffic Jams and Terrorism, July 18, 2006. Links to opening statements and witness testimony...
Global War on Terrorism [GWOT]: Observations on Funding, Costs, and Future Commitments, Full-text GAO-06-885T, and Highlights, July 18, 2006. "Since 2001, Congress has appropriated about $430 billion to DOD and other government agencies for military and diplomatic efforts in support...
Press release: "The Markle Foundation Task Force on National Security in the Information Age released its third report today with recommendations on how to reconcile national security needs with civil liberties requirements. The report offers a new "authorized use" standard...
Follow-up to postings on terrorist financing programs, the House Committee on Financial Services hearing entitled "The Terror Finance Tracking Program," Tuesday, July 11, 2006. Opening Statement of Full Committee Chairman Michael G. Oxley Prepared Testimony: Stuart Levey, Undersecretary for Terrorism...
Homeland Security: Guidance and Standards Are Needed for Measuring the Effectiveness of Agencies' Facility Protection Efforts, Full-text GAO-06-612, and Highlights, May 31, 2006 (released Junly 7, 2006). "The need to better protect federal facilities, coupled with federal budget constraints and...
"The Air Force Office of Scientific Research has begun funding a new research area that includes a study of blogs. Blog research may provide information analysts and warfighters with invaluable help in fighting the war on terrorism. Drs. Brian Ulicny,...
Following up on recent postings that appeared in chronological order as follows: Government Mines Global Financial Data in War on Terror; Disclosure of Terrorist Finance Tracking Program; and Controversy Abroad Over Terrorist Finance Tracking Program, two related articles that claim...
House Committee on Financial Services: "Today, the U.S. House of Representatives voted 227-183 in favor of a resolution [H. Res. 895] introduced yesterday by House Financial Services Committee Chairman Michael G. Oxley (OH), which expresses the sense of the House...
Voice of America: "The Belgium government announced Wednesday it had ordered an inquiry into banking data transferred by a Brussels-based company to the U.S. government. The announcement comes amid mounting controversy in Europe and the U.S. over confidential banking data...
Center for American Progress: The Terrorism Index: A Survey of the U.S. National Security Establishment on the War on Terror Executive Summary and Methodology with Complete Terrorism Survey Results View the complete survey results...
Follow-up to June 22, 2006 posting, Government Mines Global Financial Data in War on Terror, the following related government documents and news today includes: Press release: Statement of Treasury Secretary John W. Snow on Disclosure of the Terrorist Finance Tracking...
New York Times, Bank Data Sifted in Secret by U.S. to Block Terror: "Under a secret Bush administration program initiated weeks after the Sept. 11 attacks, counterterrorism officials have gained access to financial records from a vast international database and...
Democratic Policy Committee Report, June 12, 2006: "Summary, S. 2766, the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2007, would authorize $467.7 billion in budget authority for defense programs in Fiscal Year 2007, an increase of $26.2 billion, or 4.1...
Washington Post, Public Secrets, by Robert G. Kaiser, Sunday, June 11, 2006. "Steven Aftergood, who works on classification issues for the Federation of American Scientists, calls the administration's approach to secrets "a cultivation of fear as a policy driver." He...
"Committee on Homeland Security Chairman Peter T. King commented on the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) announcement to cut New York City’s Anti-Terrorism funding by nearly 40% from last year: As far as I'm concerned, DHS and the Administration have...
May 17, 2006: Report on the Progress of the DNI in Implementing the "Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004" (12 pages, PDF)...
State Department Fact Sheet: Rescission of Libya's Designation as a State Sponsor of Terrorism, May 15, 2006. U.S. Diplomatic Relations With Libya, Secretary Condoleezza Rice, Washington, DC, May 15, 2006 State Department Fact Sheet: Libya's Decision to Eliminate WMD and...
Follow-up to yesterday's posting, Lawful Intelligence and Surveillance of Terrorists in an Emergency by NSA Act Introduced Today, see Whispering Wires and Warrantless Wiretaps, by Kim Taipale, N.Y.U. REV. L. & SECURITY, No. VII Supl., "Bulletin: The NSA and the...
Press release: "The American Civil Liberties Union and the ACLU of Georgia today released new evidence that the Federal Bureau of Investigation is using counterterrorism resources to spy on peaceful faith- and conscience-based advocacy groups. School of the Americas Watch...
Government Reform, Minority Cmte: Terrorism Attacks Surge in 2005 - Friday, April 28, 2006 -- New data from the National Counterterrorism Center shows that terrorist attacks have increased exponentially in the three years since the United States invaded Iraq -...
Information Sharing: The Federal Government Needs to Establish Policies and Processes for Sharing Terrorism-Related and Sensitive but Unclassified Information, Full-text GAO-06-385, March 17, 2006, Highlights. "More than 4 years after September 11, the nation still lacks governmentwide policies and processes...
Follow-up to previous postings on a Connecticut library oranization that was the target of a National Security Letter gag ordered, today the New York Times reported, Librarians Win as U.S. Relents on Secrecy Law: "After fighting ferociously for months, federal...
UK: Terrorism Act 2006 (47 pages, PDF): "An Act to make provision for and about offences relating to conduct carried out, or capable of being carried out, for purposes connected with terrorism; to amend enactments relating to terrorism; to amend...
The War on Terrorism: How Prepared is the Nation's Capital? (Part II), 3/29/06. Links to prepared testimony, in PDF. "On July 14, 2005, the Subcommittee held a hearing that examined coordination efforts within the National Capital Region (NCR) in response...
CRS Report via FAS: Terrorism and National Security: Issues and Trends (20 pages, PDF), updated March 9, 2006. "International terrorism has long been recognized as a serious foreign and domestic security threat. This issue brief examines international terrorist actions and...
Press release: Office of the Director of National Intelligence Releases Captured Documents - March 16, 2006 "At the request of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, the US Army Foreign Military Studies Office has created this portal to...
Fact Sheet: The President's National Security Strategy The National Security Strategy, March 2006 USNews.com: Secret Bush directive to agencies targets terrorism...
The Implementation of the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act, Audit Report 06-13, [Redacted] March 2006 (PDF) Executive Summary: "Criminal organizations and individuals frequently use the telecommunications systems of the United States to further serious violent crimes, including terrorism, kidnapping,...
National Journal: Defense Attorney, March 3, 2006. "To his backers, Gonzales is a quiet, hardworking attorney general notable for his open management style and his commitment to the administration of justice and to the war on terrorism. To his critics,...
Strengthening Port Security Through a Multi-Layered Strategy, February 24, 2006: "The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has implemented a multi-layered strategy to keep U.S. ports safe and secure. Since 9/11, federal funding for port security has increased by more than...
"The ABA Standing Committee on Law and National Security, the ABA Section of State and Local Government Law and the ABA Section of Administrative Law and Regulatory Practice have just released a report evaluating current legal authorities available to meet...
TIA Lives On, by Shane Harris, National Journal, Thursday, Feb. 23, 2006: "A controversial counter-terrorism program, which lawmakers halted more than two years ago amid outcries from privacy advocates, was stopped in name only and has quietly continued within the...
"The Federation of American Scientists has created an internet resource for biosecurity policy, bioterrorism information, and biodefense research. The organizations listed here represent various perspectives on what actions individual scientists, research institutions, science journals, the public, and government can do...
EU press release, 21 February 2006 (21 pages, PDF) See also EU action plan on combatting terrorism, 13 February 2006 (38 pages, PDF)...
Follow-up to yesterday's posting, Proposed Sale of Port Operations Raises Serious Concerns on the Hill, related news and government documents, as the controvery escalates: AP: Arab Co., White House Had Secret Agreement New York Times: Big Problem, Dubai Deal or...
"Five independent investigators of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights are calling on the United States to close immediately the detention centre in Guantánamo Bay and bring all detainees before an independent and competent tribunal or release them." (The...
Washington Post (reg. req'd), 325,000 Names on Terrorism List - Rights Groups Say Database May Include Innocent People: "The National Counterterrorism Center maintains a central repository of 325,000 names of international terrorism suspects or people who allegedly aid them, a...
House Committee on Government Reform Subcommittee on National Security, Emerging Threats and International Relations -- hearing on National Security Whistleblowers in the post-9/11 Era: Lost in a Labyrinth and Facing Subtle Retaliation, February 14, 2006. Hearing Advisory, National Security Subcommittee...
Follow up to February 10, 2006 posting, Survey on Spy Program Reflects Public Concern With Constitutional Freedoms, this news today from the ABA Task Force on Domestic Surveillance in the Fight Against Terrorism: Letter to President Bush and New ABA...
Press release: "Republican Senators John Sununu (R-NH), Larry Craig (R-ID), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), and Chuck Hagel (R-NE) (on 2/9) announced they have reached agreement with the White House regarding the reauthorization of the USA PATRIOT Act. The package includes modifications...
ABA press release: "According to a poll commissioned by the American Bar Association and released today, 52 percent of respondents said that in the fight against terrorism, the President of the United States alone cannot suspend constitutional freedoms, with an...
Press release: "The Democratic members of the Senate Judiciary Committee Friday sent a letter to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales seeking information relating to the Bush Administration's domestic spying program in preparation for the panel’s Feb. 6 hearing on the program's...
Combating Terrorism: Determining and Reporting Federal Funding Data, GAO-06-161, January 17, 2006. Highlights. "Seven of 34 agencies that reported receiving funding related to combating terrorism activities to OMB used different methodologies to estimate the portion of their authorized funding that...
New York Times: Spy Agency Data After Sept. 11 Led F.B.I. to Dead Ends: "President Bush has characterized the eavesdropping program, which focused on the international communications of some Americans and others in the United States, as a "vital tool"...
In following previous postings on domestic surveillance, a glimpse into the contentious situation between Congress and the White House, exemplified by the following exchange from the White House Press Briefing by Scott McClellan, January 3, 2006: Q A number of...
Government officials throughout the country are evaluating the risks and benefits of posting personal data about citizens and public official on e-gov sites, such as is increasingly the case with real estate records and court related documents. This Government Technology...
From Barron's Online (subscription req'd), Unwarranted Executive Power - The pursuit of terrorism does not authorize the president to make up new laws, by Thomas G. Donlan, Editorial Page Editor....
Following up on news that Judge Robinson resigned from the FISA court in protest over the administration's warrantless surveillance program, related commentary and articles: Warrantless Wiretapping: Why It Seriously Imperils the Separation of Powers, And Continues the Executive's Sapping of...
DOJ Fact Sheet, December 20, 2005 - Civil Liberties Safeguards in the USA PATRIOT Act Conference Report: "After months of debate—including 23 Congressional hearings with over 60 witnesses—the Senate must act to reauthorize the USA PATRIOT Act before these key...
Report prepared by the Minority Staff of the House Judiciary Committee, The Constitution in Crisis; The Downing Street Minutes and Deception, Manipulation, Torture, Retribution, and Coverups in the Iraq War (273 pages, HTML link to Table of Contents) Press release...
Press release: "According to new documents released today by the American Civil Liberties Union, the FBI is using counterterrorism resources to monitor and infiltrate domestic political organizations that criticize business interests and government policies, despite a lack of evidence that...
Following-up on Proposals for Expanded Domestic Surveillance to Obtain Actionable Data, today's Washington Post article, Pushing the Limits Of Wartime Powers, sheds further light on the existence and operations of the Counterintelligence Field Activity, and the use of its Talon...
From the White House, December 16, 2005: "Memorandum for the Heads of Executive Departments and Agencies. Guidelines and Requirements in Support of the Information Sharing Environment: Ensuring the appropriate access to, and the sharing, integration, and use of, information by...
Following up on yesterday's Bipartisan Coalition Seeks 3 Month Extension on Expiration of Patriot Act Provisions, today EPIC posted internal FBI documents obtained from a FOIA lawsuit against the DOJ, detailing government use of controversial sections of the Patriot Act...
Follow-up to Deal Reached on Patriot Act Reauthorization Amid Wide Disagreement, this press release today: "Senator Patrick Leahy, (D-Vt.), the ranking Democratic member of the Judiciary Committee, has forged a coalition of Republican and Democratic senators that introduced a bill...
Canada drafts proposals to shield personal data from U.S. anti-terror law, Jim Bronskill, Canadian Press, December 11, 2005: "A federal proposal would allow government departments to immediately cancel a contract with an American firm if it hands personal information about...
News reports this afternoon on the compromise reached by the House and Senate on Patriot Act reauthorization include the strong caveat that not all Senators are satisfied (see statements as follows, from Leahy and Feingold), and opposition continues (specifically from...
The text of H.R. 4437 A section by section summary November 17, 2005: "the House Homeland Security Committee approved comprehensive, bipartisan legislation to address security problems across U.S. borders." H.R. 4312, the Border Security and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2005....
Terrorist Financing: Better Strategic Planning Needed to Coordinate U.S. Efforts to Deliver Counter-Terrorism Financing Training and Technical Assistance Abroad, GAO-06-19, October 24, 2005. Highlights. "The U.S. government lacks an integrated strategy to coordinate the delivery of counter-terrorism financing training and...
Combating Terrorism: The Challenge of Measuring Effectiveness, November 23, 2005 (via FAS, 15 pages, PDF)....
Washington Post: Pentagon Expanding Its Domestic Surveillance Activity, Fears of Post-9/11 Terrorism Spur Proposals for New Powers Related references: Report by the Commission on the Intelligence Capabilities of the United States Regarding Weapons of Mass Destruction, March 31, 2005 CIFA:...
November 18, DOJ/OIG Top Management and Performance Challenges in the Department of Justice - 2005: Counterterrorism; Sharing of Law Enforcement and Intelligence Information; Department and FBI Intelligence-Related Reorganizations; Information Technology Systems Planning and Implementation; Information Technology Security; Financial Management and...
Yesterday: Patriot Act Reauthorization Encounters Strong Opposition; today news on a deadlock which will delay a vote until December. Preventing passage of any meaningful reforms to this legislation may indeed prove to be a bigger obstacle than anticipated. The work...
Rep. John P. Murtha's statement of November 17, 2005: War in Iraq "The war in Iraq is not going as advertised. It is a flawed policy wrapped in illusion. The American public is way ahead of us. The United States...
Following up on reports of civil liberties protections having been stripped from the draft Patriot Act reauthorization and information that the bill contains "poison pill measures," news today that a bipartisan group of Senators (including Feingold and Sununu) is attempting...
From American Library Association Washington Office Newsline: "The House is scheduled to vote on the PATRIOT Act conference report as early as Thursday, November 17. The revised bill does not contain important civil liberties safeguards sought by ALA and other...
Related news on the Names of Library Organization Members Gagged by FBI: PBS News Hour, A reporter discusses concerns surrounding the Patriot Act and access to private phone, e-mail, library and financial records. From American Library Association Washington Office Newsline:...
Follow-up to previous postings on FBI use of National Security Letters to obtain data on library patron use of online services in Connecticut: Washington Post,The FBI's Secret Scrutiny. The Washington Post researched and reveals the names of the "John Doe's"...
Executive Order 13388, Further Strengthening the Sharing of Terrorism Information to Protect Americans, October 25, 2005, published in the Federal Register on October 28, 2005. "Duties of Heads of Agencies Possessing or Acquiring Terrorism Information...shall promptly give access to the...
Rep. John Conyers. Jr., ConyersBlog: "The truisms of Watergate are the same: it is not the crime, it is the cover up and, when there is a cover up, there is a crime. And the questions are the same: What...
From the Washington Post: FBI Papers Indicate Intelligence Violations Secret Surveillance Lacked Oversight From EPIC: "Documents obtained by EPIC under the Freedom of Informaton Act describe thirteen cases of possible FBI misconduct in intelligence investigations. The documents were released by...
The website of Office of Special Counsel Patrick J. Fitzgerald. Related news: Plame plans to sue White House officials...
ACLU press release: "The American Civil Liberties Union, the American Library Association, the Free Congress Foundation and members of Congress gathered today to urge the Justice Department to lift a gag order silencing Americans who have received demands for personal...
Global War on Terrorism: DOD Needs to Improve the Reliability of Cost Data and Provide Additional Guidance to Control Costs, GAO-05-882, September 21, 2005. Highlights. "GAO found numerous problems in DOD's processes for recording and reporting costs for GWOT, raising...
"The intent of this RFI is, consistent with the direction in the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act (IRTPA) of 2004, to provide Electronic Directory Services (EDS), or the functional equivalent, to enable authorized participants to locate and access information,...
From DOJ: "Al Qaeda Training Manual: The attached manual was located in Manchester (England) by Metropolitan Police during a search of an Al Qaeda member's home. The manual was found in a computer file described as "the military series" related...
From the U.S. House of Representatives, Committee on the Judiciary, Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet, and Intellectual Property July 18, 2005 - H. Rept. 109-174, part 1 to Accompany H.R. 3199, USA PATRIOT Act and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2005...
"Case Western Reserve University School of Law is proud to announce the launch of the Institute for Global Security, Law and Policy’s website. The site features a blog providing analysis of critical global security issues as well as links to...
Republicans Uncertain on Rove Resignation Plurality -- Favors Centrist Court Nominee, Released: July 19, 2005....
Subcommittee on Intelligence, Information Sharing, and Terrorism Risk Assessment: A Progress Report on Information Sharing for Homeland Security "Christopher Cox (R-CA) opened this morning's Subcommittee hearing on information sharing for homeland security, what he called “an indispensable part of this...
House Judiciary Committee, Democratic Dissenting Views - H.R. 3199, the "USA PATROIT and Terrorism Prevention Reauthorization Act of 2005" (70 pages, PDF) See also related Patriot Act postings...
H.R. 3199, To extend and modify authorities needed to combat terrorism, and for other purposes. Introduced July 11, 2005 U.S. Newswire - "The House Judiciary Committee today passed legislation (H.R. 3199) reauthorizing the USA-PATRIOT Act by a 23-to-14 vote with...
Information Technology: Federal Agencies Face Challenges in Implementing Initiatives to Improve Public Health Infrastructure GAO-05-308, June 10, 2005. Highlights. "...CDC and DHS face challenges in addressing specific weaknesses in IT planning and management that may hinder progress in developing and...
Press release, July 1, 2005: "Three House members today released a report on the need for strong federal laws to protect consumers from identity theft. The report, Identity Theft and Terrorism, prepared by the House Homeland Security Committee, highlights the...
Fact Sheet: Bush Administration Implements WMD Commission Recommendations, June 29, 2005. "Today, President Bush Announced Actions To Implement Recommendations In The WMD Commission's Report To Make America Safer And To Ensure The Intelligence Community Is Prepared To Address The Threats...
Today's Washington Times reported on the establishment of the National Center for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism, at the University of Maryland, funded by the Dept. of Homeland Security. The center will benefit from the participation of...
Social Security Opened Its Files for 9/11 Inquiry: "The Social Security Administration has relaxed its privacy restrictions and searched thousands of its files at the request of the F.B.I. as part of terrorism investigations since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks,...
Press release: Tuesday, June 21, 2005 - "Rep. Waxman, Democratic Leader Pelosi, and other senior Democrats announced they will introduce legislation to establish an independent Comission to investigate abuses of detainees in connection with Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation Enduring Freedom,...
Reports Encompassing More Than One DOJ Component - The Department of Justice's Terrorism Task Forces, Evaluation & Inspections Division, Report I-2005-007, June 2005 (353 pages, PDF)...
S.1266, Title: An original bill to permanently authorize certain provisions of the Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism (USA PATRIOT) Act of 2001, to reauthorize a provision of the Intelligence Reform and...
White House Press release: President Visits National Counterterrorism Center "I mean, not only are we sharing information here at home, we're sharing information with our allies, with our coalition partners. See, terrorists are willing to strike at anybody who loves...
The Proposal to Reauthorize and Expand Parts of the USA PATRIOT Act: Why It's Unnecessary and, In Some Respects, Dangerous, By Anita Ramastry. Patriot Act Extension Debated at Closed Congressional Meeting American Civil Liberties Union Testimony at an Oversight Hearing...
On May 30, AP reported: The Bush Administration wants to compel ISPs to turn over information about subscribers as part of its fight against terrorism. Related reference from September 29, 2004: Patriot Act Provision Struck Down by Federal Judge...
Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security, Oversight Hearing on the "Implementation of the USA PATRIOT Act: Prohibition of Material Support Under Sections 805 of the USA PATRIOT Act and 6603 of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of...
House Judiciary Committee, Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security, Oversight Hearing on the "Implementation of the USA PATRIOT Act: Section 212--Emergency Disclosure of Electronic Communications to Protect Life and Limb," May 5, 2005 Witness statements: William Moschella, Assistant Attorney...
House Judiciary Committee, Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security - Oversight Hearing on the Implementation of the USA PATRIOT Act: Sections 201, 202, 223 of the Act that Address Criminal Wiretaps, and Section 213 of the Act that Addresses...
This according to Washington Post (reg. req'd) writer Dan Eggen: "The report, titled A Review of the FBI's Handling of Intelligence Information Related to the September 11 Attacks, provides an in-depth examination of three episodes considered potential missed opportunities to...
Press release: "U.S. Representative Tom Udall, D-N.M., Thursday became a founding member of the tri-partisan Patriot Act Reform Caucus. Passed weeks after the September 11 attacks, the sweeping anti-terrorism law has increasingly come under criticism from the left and the...
"In a complaint (pdf) filed this week, EPIC asked a federal court to force the FBI to disclose information about its use of expanded investigative authority granted by sunsetting provisions of the USA PATRIOT Act."...
From the National Counterterrorism Center (via FAS), A Chronology of Significant International Terrorism for 2004, April 29, 2005 (92 pages, PDF)...
Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security, Oversight Hearing on the Implementation of the USA PATRIOT Act: Foreign Surveillance Intelligence Act (FISA). Part II, April 28, 2005. Witness testimony: Kenneth L. Wainstein, Interim U.S. Attorney, District of Columbia; Robert S....
Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security - Oversight Hearing on the Implementation of the USA PATRIOT Act: Sections of the Act that Address--Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA). (Part 1) Section 204: Clarification of Intelligence Exceptions from Limitations on Interception...
Press release, Committee on Government Reform, Minority Office - Withheld Data Shows 'Dramatic Up-tick' in Terrorist Attacks "Tuesday, April 26, 2005 -- At a congressional briefing yesterday, Administration officials revealed that the data that Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has...
PATRIOT Act Oversight Hearing on Section 203 (b) and (d) of the USA-PATRIOT, Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security – Tuesday, April 19, 2005: Chairman's Opening Statement: "As part of the USA PATRIOT Act, Congress included a sunset provision...
The Multistate Anti-TeRrorism Information EXchange (MATRIX), "a pilot effort to increase and enhance the exchange of sensitive terrorism and other criminal activity information between local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies," has been cancelled. From the Florida Department of Law...
From Secrecy News, "During calendar year 2004, 1,758 applications were made to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court for electronic surveillance and physical search, according to the latest Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) annual report to Congress. That established a new...
Press release today - Fact Sheet: USA Patriot Act Provisions Set for Reauthorization "Section 215 allows the FISA court to order the production of business records and other items, in the context of a national security investigation, to obtain foreign...
From AP, WMD Panel to Fault Intelligence Agencies, and the New York Times, Panel's Report Assails C.I.A. for Failure on Iraq Weapons. Flashback: President Bush Announces Formation of Independent Commission...to look at American intelligence capabilities, especially our intelligence about weapons...
At a presentation today titled, "They Want Your Secrets: Personal Information Privacy in the Post-9/11 World, during the Emerging Issues in National and International Security conference, Valerie Caproni, General Counsel of the FBI stated in reference to issues concerning Section...
The new AP and Freedom of Information website includes links to FOI news stories from AP, an interactive guide to filing FOI requests, a list of links to FOI resources, and a Q&A with AP's CEO, Tom Curley, who states:...
Subcommittee on Terrorism, Technology and Homeland Security hearing, Openness in Government and Freedom of Information: Examining the OPEN Government Act of 2005, March 15, 2005. Includes links to testimony and member statements (HTML format) Sen. John Cornyn's (R–Texas) speech on...
S. 317: A bill to protect privacy by limiting the access of the Government to library, bookseller, and other personal records for foreign intelligence and counterintelligence purposes. Introduced (By Sen. Russell Feingold [D-WI]), Feb 8, 2005. Related reference: Feingold Introduces...
Press release: "The National Security Archive today posted the widely-debated, but previously unavailable, January 25, 2001, memo from counterterrorism coordinator Richard Clarke to national security advisor Condoleezza Rice - the first terrorism strategy paper of the Bush administration. The document...
Press release: Sensenbrenner Introduces Terrorist Travel Legislation - Real ID Act Includes Provisions Dropped from 9/11 Legislation PFAW Opposes REAL ID Act H.R. 418: To establish and rapidly implement regulations for State driver's license and identification. To establish and rapidly...
The 2005 Excellence.Gov Awards, sponsored by the Industry Advisory Council and the Federal CIO Council, announced the five winners today chosen from among a group of 25 finalists. Recognized for implementing best practices and for services for which a high...
The media's portrayal of hacking, hackers, and hacktivism before and after September 11, by Sandor Vegh: "This paper provides a thorough analysis of the mainstream media representation of hackers, hacking, hacktivism, and cyberterrorism. The intensified U.S. debate on the security...
Press release: "Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren (D-San Jose) gained the commitment of the House Judiciary Committee to hold hearings on the implementation of the controversial Patriot Act. The review would be of the entire act, including those provisions set to expire...
Press release: "Today the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request with the FBI and other offices of the US Department of Justice, seeking the release of documents that would reveal whether the government has...
Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004, Free askSam Searchable Version (ResearchBuzz) From the press release: "The text from the several hundred page act has been imported into a searchable, hypertext-linked askSam database. The individual sections of the legislation...
"This Congressional Budget Office (CBO) paper, prepared at the request of the Ranking Member of the House Select Committee on Homeland Security, examines the role of the private sector in responding to the threat of terrorism in the United States...
From the National Security Archive: "Today, President Bush signed the Intelligence Reform and Terrorist Prevention Act, establishing the position of Director of National Intelligence (DNI) and ending the 57-year reign of the Director of Central Intelligence (DCI) as the nation's...
House Approves Intelligence Bill - Landmark Measure Passes by 336 to 75 Vote; Senate to Consider Legislation [Wednesday] - "The House...approved landmark legislation to restructure the nation's intelligence community, creating a director of national intelligence and counterterrorism center to better...
Libraries and national security: An historical review...
From the Select Committee on Homeland Security, a new report, Bioterrorism: America Still Unprepared (32 pages, PDF): "Based on surveys and interviews with over 100 state and local public health officials, this investigation has concluded that our nation is not...
By Jim Harper, Director of Information Policy Studies, CATO Institute, this article from the San Francisco Chronicle, Surveillance and the War on Terrorism, What's in a name?, reviews the cycle of name changes associated with the government's air passenger surveillance...
Department of Home Security, Office of Inspector General, Office of Technology report: DHS Challenges in Consolidating Terrorist Watch List Information (54 pages, PDF, redacted). "DHS is not playing a lead role in consolidating terrorist watch list information...DHS offcials said that...
The Senate Committee on the Judiciary hearing today, "A Review of Counter-Terrorism Legislation and Proposals, including the USA PATRIOT Act and the SAFE Act." Link to testimony and member statements The SAFE Act (S. 1709), To amend the USA PATRIOT...
Homefront Confidential: How the War on Terrorism Affects Access to Information and the Public's Right to Know, 5th edition, Prepared by The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press (RCFP). Contents page and the RCFP White Paper, full-text (PDF, 100...
The Senate Committee on the Judiciary Subcommittee on Terrorism, Technology and Homeland Security hearing today, "A Review of the Tools to Fight Terrorism Act." Link to Testimony and Member Statements...
Executive Order Strengthened Management of the Intelligence Community Executive Order National Counterterrorism Center Executive Order Strengthening the Sharing of Terrorism Information to Protect Americans Executive Order Strengthening the Sharing of Terrorism Information to Protect Americans Executive Order Establishing the President's...
August 14, 2004, New York Times, Out of Spotlight, Bush Overhauls U.S. Regulations. This article documents how significant changes to agency regulations during this administration have impacted citizens while often unreported and unchallenged as news continues to focus on national...
The Post on WMDs: An Inside Story Prewar Articles Questioning Threat Often Didn't Make Front Page (Washington Post, reg. req'd). Definition of groupthink. Testimony from Dr. John J. Hamre, Former Deputy Secretary of Defense, before the House Permanent Select Committee...
U.S. Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs hearing: Assessing America's Counterterrorism Capabilities, August 3, 2004. Link to Member Statements and Witness Testimony Related news, from the Washington Post and New York Times respectively (both requiring registration): Pre-9/11 Acts Led To Alerts...
The Chair and Vice Chair of 9/11 Commission testified before the Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs, July 30, 2004....
From the Electronic Frontier Foundation, Let the Sun Set on Patriot. Previous posts on Patriot Act....
Today the DOJ released a 29 page report to Congress detailing the manner in which the Patriot Act has been applied in the fight against terrorism. [Link] Report From the Field: The USA PATRIOT Act at Work (PDF) [thanks to...
From Secrecy News (all reports in PDF): Terrorism and National Security: Issues and Trends, CRS Issue Brief, updated July 6, 2004 ">The USA Patriot Act Sunset: A Sketch, updated June 10, 2004 USA Patriot Act Sunset: Provisions That Expire on...
Patterns of Global Terrorism 2003 "Note: Corrected Year in Review, Appendix A, and Appendix G were posted on June 22, 2004. Numbers in the text, specifically numbers of killed and wounded, will be revised to reflect to corrected Appendices." Global...
Patterns of Global Terrorism 2003, a report released by the Secretary of State on April 29, will undergo revisions to correct inaccurate and incomplete data. The data was compiled by the Terrorist Threat Integration Center. From the June 14 State...
"Today washingtonpost.com is posting a copy of the Aug. 1, 2002, memorandum (50 pages, PDF) "Re: Standards of Conduct for Interrogation under 18 U.S.C. 2340-2340A," from the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel for Alberto R. Gonzales, counsel to President...
The Wall Street Journal posted, free to non-subscribers, the PDF text (49 pages) of a controversial DoD memo, stamped DRAFT, and titled Working Group Report on Detainee Interrogations in the Global War on Terrorism: Assessment of Legal, Historical, Policy, and...
From Eyebeam R&D (the group that brought you FundRace 2004), this plain vanilla but nevertheless very useful chart of links to statistical information from dozens of government, foundation, commercial and academic websites. Resources range from reports on crime and terrorism...
From the WSJ online, Seven Clicks Away, by Newton N. Minow, is available here for one week, to those without a subscription. Mr. Minow, Chairman of the Technology and Privacy Advisory Committee (Tapac) to the Department of Defense, refers to...
"The Nieman Watchdog Journalism Project grows from this premise and this goal: to help the press ask penetrating questions, critical questions, questions that matter, questions not yet asked about today's news. [The recently launched] NiemanWatchdog.org seeks to encourage more informed...
Testimony of Robert S. Mueller, III, Director, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Before the United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary, May 20, 2004, hearing on FBI Oversight: Terrorism and Other Topics. "...I would also like to acknowledge that the progress...
From Business Week, a review of the achievements to date of the Terrorist Threat Integration Center, whose mandate is to "fuse and analyze all-source information related to terrorism."...
From Privacy International: "On May 17, 2004 the European Commission approved an agreement to transfer passenger details to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, an agreement established in the name of, but that has little to do with, the war...
May 18, 2004 - Legislative hearing on H.R. 3179, the "Anti-Terrorism Intelligence Tools Improvement Act of 2003." Witness List, Chairman Howard Coble, Daniel Bryant, Thomas Harrington, and from the prepared statement of Bob Barr, "The question before us today is...
According to the New York Times, the Technology and Privacy Advisory Committee advises the DOJ, in an report delivered in March, but just made available (although not yet on the TAPAC website), that due to data mining undertaken by the...
From the ACLU press release, Judge Revises Sealing Order in Controversial Patriot Act Challenge, May 12: "A federal judge today revised a strict sealing order in a challenge to the Patriot Act's expanded "National Security Letter" power filed by the...
From the French Republic, Ireland, the Kingdom of Sweden and the United Kingdom, date of receipt, 28 April 2004: "Draft Framework Decision on the retention of data processed and stored in connection with the provision of publicly available electronic communications...
From Privacy International, the following resources: Press release, dated April 26, 2004, with a response to the "government's draft Bill on identity cards." A link to the draft bill (pdf, 120 pages): Legislation on Identity Cards, A Consultation Privacy International's...
Two Staff Statements were released today by the 9/11 Commission, along with submitted testimony from today's hearing, as follows (more links tomorrow as testimony is posted online) - Staff Statement No. 11: The Performance of the Intelligence Community Staff Statement...
Staff Statement No. 9: Law Enforcement, Counterterrorism, and Intelligence Collection in the United States Prior to 9/11 (pdf, 12 pages) From the report's Conclusion: "On September 11, 2001, the FBI was limited in several areas critical to an effective, preventive...
Threats and Responses in 2001, Staff Statement No. 10. See also submitted testimony from today's hearing: Louis J. Freeh, Former Director, Federal Bureau of Investigation; Janet Reno, Former Attorney General of the United States; Thomas J. Pickard, Former Acting Director,...
Combatting Terrorism Center at West Point - Annotated Bibliography of Terrorism and Counterterrorism Research, March 22, 2004. "Compiled by Dr. James JF Forest for the Combating Terrorism Center "This annotated bibliography contains brief descriptions of over 400 research articles, books,...
From Rep. Waxman's website: "Rep. Waxman questions White House Counsel Alberto Gonzalez on reports that he placed calls to members of the September 11 Commission during the testimony of former National Coordinator for Security and Counterterrorism Richard Clarke."...
See this press release from Privacy International on the development of a global biometric ID system by the International Civil Aviation Organization....
Amidst allegations by Republicans that the testimony of former National Coordinator for Counterterrorism, Richard Clarke, to the 9/11 Commission, contradicts previous classified testimony provided by him to the House and Senate Intelligence committees in July 2002, Clarke called for the...
March 24, 2004 - Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security and the Homeland Security Subcommittee on Intelligence and Counterterrorism Joint Hearing: "Progress in Consolidating Terrorist Watchlists -- the Terrorist Screening Center (TSC)." [Link] Fact Sheet, The Terrorist Screening...
From March 24, the text (in pdf) of former National Coordinator for Counterterrorism, National Security Council, Richard Clarke's testimony before the eighth public hearing held by the 9/11 Commission, as well as the CNN transcript of his testimony....
AP reports that New York and Wisconsin have withdrawn their participation in the Multistate Anti-TeRrorism Information EXchange (MATRIX) program. The program now has only five remaining state participants. My other postings on MATRIX. See also A Dual-Edged Sword: Providing Information,...
From the press release: "The U.S. Department of Homeland Security, as part of its Homeland Security Information Network initiative, announced today the expansion of its computer-based counterterrorism communications system to all 50 states, five territories, Washington, D.C., and 50 major...
Yesterday the Chair, Sen. Roberts, and Vice Chair, Sen. Rockefeller, of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, announced what they described as a refinement of the terms of reference for the committee's inquiry, already underway, into the controversy surrounding intelligence...
On Monday, February 2, 2004, the Office of Management and Budget released the Fiscal Year 2005 Budget of the United States. From OMB, this Table of Contents provides links to sections of the budget in pdf and HTML formats. DOJ...
Judge Audrey B. Collins, United States District Court for the Central District of California, ruled a section of the Patriot Act unconstitutional on January 25. >li>"The USA Patriot Act places no limitation on the type of expert advice and assistance...
"EPIC's survey of the 2003 Privacy Year in Review notes the collapse of Total Information Awareness, surveillance cameras in schools, a Supreme Court victory for privacy, legal battles over the Do Not Call list, busted luggage locks, anti-terrorism law used...
Information Technology Management, Terrorism Information Awareness Program, December 12, 2003, Deparment of Defense, Office of the Inspector General. "This report completes our response addressing concerns of Senators Grassley, Nelson, and Hagel and discusses whether development of the DARPA TIA program...
Amend PATRIOT Act Urges National League of Cities: "Portions of the USA PATRIOT Act compromise the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights and should be amended, says a resolution recently passed by the National League of Cities at its annual...
The Department of Defense Transformation website provides links to government documents that focus on the technology capabilites of the U.S. armed forces engaged in the fight against terrorism....
Forging America's New Normalcy: Securing Our Homeland, Protecting Our Liberty - The Fifth Annual Report to the President and the Congress of the Advisory Panel to Assess Domestic Response Capabilities for Terrorism Involving Weapons of Mass Destruction, December 15, 2003:...
The American Association of University Professors recently published a report, Academic Freedom and National Security in a Time of Crisis: "The report focuses first on the USA Patriot Act, especially on provisions of this hastily enacted law that gravely threaten...
The 9-11 Commission held a public hearing today on the topic Security and Liberty, that included witness testimony on "domestic intelligence collection, protecting privacy while preventing terrorism, and the use of immigration laws to prevent terrorism." Prepared statement of EPIC...
From the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC) a Special News Advisory About Terrorism in the Two Years After 9/11: "Investigators seek prosecution of more than 6,400 but only five get twenty years or more in prison. Median or typical sentence...
From the press release: "The Markle Foundation Task Force on National Security in the Information Age today released its second report, concluding that the U.S. government has not yet taken advantage of America's technology expertise to fight the war on...
From Page One of today's WSJ, an article titled, Patriot Act Riles An Unlikely Group: Nation's Librarians- [subtitled] Fears About Terrorism Clash With Principles of Privacy As Online Searches Surge: "The Patriot Act has generated protests from the left and...
The House version of the Security and Freedom Ensured Act of 2003 (SAFE) Act, introduced October 21, H.R. 3352, mirrors the companion Senate version (S. 1709, introduced October 2), but it modifies the definition of domestic terrorism to "involve acts...
Patriot Act Misunderstood, Senators Say: "Even as some members of the Senate Judiciary Committee said they want to see elements of the Patriot Act modified, others contended that some of the attacks on the anti-terrorism legislation have been unfair." "The...
Georgia takes a pass on anti-terror crime database: Georgia has joined five other states that have opted to suspend participation, due to privacy concerns, in the DOJ initiated MATRIX (Multistate Anti-Terrorism Information Exchange) project. According to a statement by Gov....
"Protecting Our National Security from Terrorist Attacks: A Review of Criminal Terrorism Investigations and Prosecutions," Senate Judiciary Committee Full Committee, October 21, 2003. Official Hearing Notice, Witness List, Member Statements, and Testimony....
From Sen. Russ Feingold's press release: "...the Security and Freedom Ensured (SAFE) Act (S. 1701)...seeks to amend several particularly controversial provisions of the USA PATRIOT Act that permit the FBI to monitor law-abiding Americans without adequate judicial oversight. The SAFE...
From PBS.org, an interview conducted by Terence Smith, with "Tom Rosenstiel, a veteran journalist and media critic for both the Los Angeles Times and MSNBC, director of the Project for Excellence in Journalism...and Larry Johnson...a former CIA analyst and counterterrorism...
On the NBC Today show this morning, former Attorney General Edwin Meese apparently made the following statement in reference to the Patriot Act: "librarians are more interested in pushing p****graphy than fighting terrorism." The American Library Association (ALA) President Carla...
From the House Conference Report (108-283), on H.R. 2658 (263 pages, pdf): Sec. 8131. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, none of the funds appropriated or otherwise made available in this or any other Act may be obligated for...
Congressman Dennis J. Kucinich (D-OH) issued a press release on his introduction of a bill (H.R. 3171) to repeal sections of the Patriot Act that authorize violations of civil liberties. "The Benjamin Franklin True Patriot Act repeals sections of the...
Executive Order 12958, Classified National Security Information, as amended by Executive Order 13292 (March 28, 2003), takes effect today. "This order prescribes a uniform system for classifying, safeguarding, and declassifying national security information, including information relating to defense against transnational...
From the White House news release, dated September 16: "Attorney General John Ashcroft, Secretary of Homeland Security Tom Ridge, Secretary of State Colin Powell, FBI Director Robert Mueller and Director of Central Intelligence George Tenet today announced the establishment of...
From today's New York Times: Ashcroft Mocks Librarians and Others Who Oppose Parts of Counterterrorism Law: "Attorney General John Ashcroft today accused the country's biggest library association and other critics of fueling "baseless hysteria" about the government's ability to pry...
On April 30, 2003 the Department of the Treasury issued final regs on Implementing Customer Identity Verification Requirements under Section 326 of the USA PATRIOT Act. This Fact Sheet provides details about the Customer Identification Program (CIP), effective October 1,...
From the Gallup Poll press release, September 9, 2003: "The poll, conducted Aug. 25-26, finds 67% of Americans saying the government should not take steps to prevent terrorism if those steps would violate their basic civil liberties, while 29% say...
Antiterrorism Tools Enhancement Act of 2003, H.R. 3037, To strengthen antiterrorism investigative tools, and for other purposes, introduced September 9, 2003. Pretrial Detention and Lifetime Supervision of Terrorists Act of 2003, H.R. 3040, introduced September 9, 2003. See also Bush...
2 Years Later | Civil Liberties Patriot Gains (& Losses) "The U.S.A. Patriot Act, the largest expansion of government search and surveillance powers in U.S. history, passed Congress without much dissent soon after the September 11 attacks. Let's just say...
Continuity and Change in Support for Civil Liberties after the 9/11 Terrorist Attacks, (47 pages, pdf) is the second part of a national survey (by Michigan State University), conducted between January and May 2003, which queried the same group of...
The Alias Among Us: The Homeland Security and Terrorism from Document Fraud, Identity Theft and Social Security Number Misuse, Senate Finance Committee Hearing, September 9, 2003 (this site provides links to testimony by seven witnesses as well as committee members)....
Secrecy News reports on the names of the current eleven members of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISA), along with the date each was appointed as well as when their respective appointments expire. The author of this report, Steven Aftergood,...
From ALA, a pdf version of a three page letter sent to Dept. of Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge, on August 27, concerning limitations on the public dissemination of "homeland security information" determined to be "sensitive but unclassified." ALA was...
The Lawyer's Committee for Human Rights issued a media alert that responds to specific statements in support of the Patriot Act made by Attorney General Ashcroft in a speech he delivered at the American Enterprise Institute on August 19....
RFID Gussied Up With Biosensors. After noting that radio frequency id tags (RFID) are in use, and proposed, for a range of consumer items, it is important to mention that the associated privacy controversy also involves the food industry. Under...
CAPPS II is very much in the news recently, with articles on the subject appearing in the Washington Times, Washington Post, and Federal Computer News. Rights advocates slam new screening system: "Conservative and liberal advocates are banding together to oppose...
The Department of Justice is hosting what can only be described as a PR website, Preserving Life & Liberty, that promotes the USA PATRIOT Act. The site links to documents that include: major speeches by Attorney General Ashcroft, a list...
From the Washington Post via Cryptome, the resignation letter of John M. Poindexter (Director, Total Information Awareness Office) to Dr. Anthony Tether, Director, Defense Advanced Projects Agency (DARPA), dated 12 August 2003. See also Poindexter Resigns but Defends Programs, Anti-Terrorism,...
Mother Jones: From FBI and CIA headquarters to small-town police departments, the government is building a massive intelligence network designed to spy on terrorists -- and on everyday Americans. Washington Post: U.S. Backs Florida's New Counterterrorism Database - 'Matrix' Offers...
On July 31, Sen. Bob Graham (D-FL) introduced the 9-11 Memorial Intelligence Reform Act, "aimed at overhauling the Intelligence Community to prevent another successful terrorist attack like the tragedy of September 11, 2001." "Graham said a top priority is the...
Unpatriotic Acts: The FBI's Power to Rifle Through Your Records and Personal Belongings Without Telling You, July 2003, from the ACLU. The focus of this 26 page report (pdf) is an examination of, along with related resources and legal documents...
From the American Library Association Washington Office Newsline: "Last night, July 31, Senators Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and Ron Wyden (D-OR), introduced the "Protecting the Rights of Individuals Act." (S. 1552) This bill contains many provisions that will help to restore...
On Thursday, July 31, the ACLU will be hosting a live online chat discussing the FBI's broad new surveillance powers under the USA PATRIOT Act. Hear about the Fourth and First Amendment defects to a provision in the law that...
In the July 29 press release announcing the cancellation of the FutureMap program (see my July 28 posting on this subject here), the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) stated: "The FutureMAP research project was meant to explore the power...
From CNN: "President Bush on Tuesday rejected calls to release classified sections of a congressional report on the September 11, 2001, attacks, saying his administration must protect intelligence sources during the war on terrorism." See my July 24 posting on...
Attorney General Ashcroft promotes antiterrorism law: Speaking at a homeland security conference on Monday, "Ashcroft said the USA PATRIOT Act preserved traditional checks on library, bookstore and business records because a "federal judge must first issue a warrant" and because...
House Takes Aim at Patriot Act Secret Searches: "The U.S. House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly on Tuesday to roll back a key provision (amending H.R. 2799, see link below), which allows the government to conduct secret "sneak and peek" searches...
Accusations of Abuse in Report on USA Patriot Act: "A report by internal investigators at the Justice Department has identified dozens of recent cases in which department employees have been accused of serious civil rights and civil liberties violations involving...
From Reuters: "The U.S. Senate voted on Thursday to cut off funding for a widely criticized computer-surveillance program that would comb travel records, credit-card bills and other private records to sniff out suspected terrorists. In a military spending bill it...
According to an article in today's Wired: "Southeast Airlines said it plans to install digital video cameras throughout the cabins of its planes to record the faces and activities of its passengers at all times, as a precaution against terrorism...
'Partial' Information Awareness is an article published on January 9, 2003, authored by Wayne Crews, director of technology studies at the Cato Institute. He states: "It's one thing to give up privacy for security if there's no other choice. With...
From Secrecy News: in a July 14 statement, the White House "urges the Senate to remove the provision (from the 2004 Defense Appropriations Act) that prohibits any research and development for the Terrorism Information Awareness Program. This provision would deny...
Regulations Implementing the Support Anti-Terrorism by Fostering Effective Technologies Act of 2002 (the SAFETY Act, subtitle G of the Homeland Security Act, P.L. No. 107-296), Office of the Secretary, Homeland Security: Notice of proposed rulemaking. This proposed rule would implement...
From the press release: The American Civil Liberties Union today said that it has found a consistent pattern of factually inaccurate assertions by the Department of Justice in statements to the media and Congress, statements that mischaracterize the scope, potential...
Text below is from the Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 2004, (House of Representatives - July 08, 2003), (Page: H6276) SEC. 8124. Limitation on Deployment of Terrorism Information Awareness Program: (1) Notwithstanding any other provision of law and except as...
First Interim Report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States, Thomas H. Kean, Chair, and Lee H. Hamilton, Vice Chair, July 8, 2003. The Commission will hold its third public hearing on "Terrorism, Al Qaeda, and...
Today's Washington Post reported on the security implications of a George Mason University grad student's dissertation in which he has "mapped every business and industrial sector in the American economy, layering on top the fiber-optic network that connects them." Again...
An editorial from the Christian Science Monitor, July 8, 2003: Privacy at the Library - "The Patriot Act, designed to help combat terrorism in the US, has many citizens worried about censorship and a loss of privacy. Vigilance certainly is...
This Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) webpage presents a synopisis of the privacy and civil liberties issues associated with the organization's opposition to the Patriot Act. In addition, it enumerates EFF efforts, both collaborative and direct, to maintain the public's focus...
American Libraries Online has an interesting article on AG Ashcroft's June 19 presentation at the Aspen Institute Journalism and Homeland Security conference. Ashcroft is quoted as stating the following: "The Patriot Act simply does not allow federal law enforcement free...
From the June 11, Federal Register, notice of Meeting of the Technology and Privacy Advisory Committee (TAPAC). "The purpose of the meeting is for presentations of interest and discussion concerning the legal and policy considerations implicated by the application of...
From the ACLU: Interested Persons Memo on Congressional oversight of the USA PATRIOT Act and Department of Justice anti-terrorism policies dismissive response on civil liberties. In related news, see this Wired article: "The Justice Department's statements -- and what it...
According to an article in FCW: "Attorney General John Ashcroft defended the Justice Department's search of library records under the USA Patriot Act, telling lawmakers the process safeguards individual privacy," when he testified yesterday before the Judiciary Committee. In related...
A DOJ press release dated June 3, states: The New York Times inaccurately reported that Assistant Attorney General Viet Dinh said FBI "agents have contacted about 50 libraries nationwide in the course of terrorism investigations" (Eric Lichtblau, Justise Dept. Lists...
From the Center for Democracy and Technology, this analysis, Privacy's Gap: The Largely Non-Existent Legal Framework for Government Mining of Commercial Data, [pdf] May 28, 2003. Quoting from the report, "The government has argued that it should have the same...
PCWorld has an important article on the implications of and serious ramifications that result when powerful encryption technologies used to protect individual privacy are also exploited in increasingly sophisticated ways by groups planning terrorist acts....
The Alaska legislature passed House Joint Resolution 22 stating "it is the policy of the State of Alaska to oppose any portion of the USA Patriot Act that would violate the rights and liberties guaranteed equally under the state and...
From a May 20 Judiciary Committee news advisory: "House Judiciary Committee Chairman F. James Sensenbrenner, Jr. (R-Wis.) and Ranking Member John Conyers, Jr. (D-Mich.) released the answers received last week from the Justice Department regarding the USA PATRIOT Act and...
Noah Shachtman's Wired article reveals plans for a huge new database project, purportedly under development, called LifeLog (from DARPA, sponsors of the Total Information Awareness System, renamed the Terrorism Awareness Information Program), comprised of information compiled "by tracking where people...
Big news day concerning DARPA's Total Information Awareness Program, which according to this press release, is now called the Terrorism Awareness Information Program. This change coincides with the agency's report to Congress delivered today, with links to associated documents as...
Ideological foes agree: Privacy rights in danger Surveillance State: "Since September 11, a flood of federal legislation has reduced American freedom without increasing our security." Calif. Town To 'Defy' Patriot Act. "A new city (Arcata) ordinance would impose a fine...
This interesting article from ComputerWorld, Blogs play a role in homeland security, talks about an enterprise blog software application that has been deployed by the Western States Information Network (WSIN), within the Oregon Criminal Justice Division, for law enforcement related...
On May 8, the Senate passed, 90 - 4, S. 113, the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance bill "to amend the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (FISA) to cover individuals, other than United States persons, who engage in international terrorism without...
Nothing new here, but nevertheless worth noting that Time.com has an article, Checking What You Check Out, on opposition to the Patriot Act by librarians across the country. See also my topical resource on the issue here. Also note this...
ABC News has highlighted the ongoing story on the battle being waged by libraries and booksellers against the Patriot Act (Sec. 215. Access to Records and Other Items Under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act) that permits government access to data...
From around the country, more articles on the escalating backlash against the Patriot Act as exemplified by defiant libraries and local governments. In Washington State, Libraries routinely toss data on patrons'. From New York State, Libraries, government at odds over...
Supreme Court Justice Stephen G. Breyer delivered a speech before the Association of the Bar of the City of New York in which he addressed the need to protect civil liberties within the context of the fight against terrorism. As...
The Washington Post brings more attention to the growing movement in public libraries to pro-actively challenge patron surveillance efforts associated with the Patriot Act. The 64,000 member American Library Association has passed a resolution seeking its repeal, and librarians across...
This New York Times article, Republicans Want Terror Law Made Permanent, indicates there is a partisan fight afoot on the Hill over a proposal by Sen. Orrin Hatch to make specific provisions of the Patriot Act permanent, rather than allowing...
The Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) transfers communications over the Internet rather than through the PSTN (public switched telephone network). According to this AP story, the FBI is seeking regulatory action that includes VoIP communications so as to facilitate surveillance...
The Electronic Frontier Foundation just published an in-depth analysis of the January 9, 2003 draft known as Patriot Act II, titled Provisions of the Domestic Security Enhancement Act of 2003 that Impact the Internet and Surveillance. This analysis refers to...
EPIC issued an analysis of documents obtained from their October 2002 FOIA request and subsequent lawsuit concerning the TSA "watchlist of names of individuals suspected of posing a risk of air piracy or terrorism or a threat to airline or...
The OMB is withholding support for the CAPPS II Computer Assisted Passenger Prescreening System due to lack of demonstrative evidence that the system will actually diminish acts of terrorism. Not surprisingly, opposition to the system has again been communicated by...
Announcement from EPIC's website, March 24: "In a legal memorandum (pdf) filed with the federal court in Washington, EPIC and the American Civil Liberties Union challenge the Justice Department's refusal to disclose basic, statistical information concerning implementation of the controversial...
The Department of Homeland Security issued a press announcement on Operation LIBERTY SHIELD, which "is a comprehensive national plan designed to increase protections for America's citizens and infrastructure while maintaining the free flow of goods and people across our border...
EPIC has obtained a copy of an Internal FBI Guidance on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (pdf), dated 1/23/03, that provides detailed information in response to the question, "What do I have to do to get a FISA?" i.e., the...
The start of the war against Iraq has generated a huge spike in web traffic to military sites, along with associated bottlenecks, which have impacted access to sites that include the U.S. Army Home Page and the UK Home Office's...
Tim Rozgonyi, Assistant Technology Systems Editor, Pittsburgh Gazette, has published a useful and timely annotated list of links, Iraq, War on Terrorism. Links are arranged by the following categories: Country Information Government reports Government websites Maps Military and war-related sites...
A new White Paper from the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, released March 14: How the War on Terrorism Affects Access to Information and the Public's Right to Know Covering the war. Topics covered include: Military tribunals, Access...
Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) announced yesterday that the Senate Commerce Committee approved an amendment that would put into place Congressional oversight of the Transportation Security Administration's (TSA) controversial Computer Assisted Passenger Prescreening System (CAPPS II). The CAPPS II system is...
On March 13, the Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet, and Intellectual Property held an Oversight Hearing on "International Copyright Piracy: Links to Organized Crime and Terrorism" Links are as follows to the:Witness List, John Malcolm, Rich LaMagna, Joan Borsten Vidov,...
From the New York Times article, Measuring Lost Freedom vs. Security in Dollars, this statement, "In a notice published last month, the budget office asked experts from around the country for ideas on how to measure "indirect costs" like lost...
From the March 10 Federal Register: "The Technology and Privacy Advisory Committee (TAPAC) is being established in consonance with public interest and in accordance with the provisions of Pub. L. 92-463, the Federal Advisory Committee Act, title 5 U.S.C., Appendix...
Spurred on by an October 22, 2002 letter from the Vermont Library Association, Rep. Bernard Sanders (I-VT) introduced a new bill on March 6, the Freedom to Read Protection Act, to exempt libraries and bookstores from Section 215 of the...
From Slate, this commentary on the recently released National Strategy To Secure Cyberspace contends that the report seeks to engender unfounded fears about cyberterrorism....
From the Council on Foreign Relations, in cooperation with the Markle Foundation, comes this informative and timely website, Terrorism: Questions & Answers. "The purpose of our site is to help sort out issues as they relate to terrorism in a...
Senators Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Arlen Specter (R-PA) and Chuck Grassley (R-IA) released a report yesterday, highly critical of the FBI, that identified serious problems impacting the FISA process: FBI Oversight in the 107th Congress by the Senate Judiciary Committee: FISA...
For librarians around the country, concerns about the Patriot Act and patron privacy rights have only increased in the wake of recent news about the administration's proposed Patriot II legislative initiative. From Sunday's Ohio Toledo Blade, this article, Libraries fear...
A book shop is Montpelier Vermont, Bear Pond Books, instituted a policy to purge the records of customer purchases upon their request. This action was taken in response to provisions of the Patriot Act that allow the government to force...
"Terrorism Forces Us to Make a Choice, Don't Be Afraid, Be Ready." This is the introduction to the new website launched today by the Homeland Security Department, called Ready.gov. The site provides information in three main areas: Make a Kit...
The advocacy group Public Integrity issued a press release on February 7 detailing their research on a previously secret 120 page draft of what is being called the "Patriot Act II" legislation, which apparently has not been shared with the...
Safeguarding Our Patrons' Privacy: What Every Librarian Needs to Know about the USA PATRIOT Act & Related Anti-Terrorism Measures, videotape (120 minutes) and manual (27 pp.), published December 2002, are available for $35 from the Association of Research Libraries....
The American Library Association (ALA) issued a resolution on the Patriot Act that states the organization "considers sections of the act a president danger to the constitution and privacy rights of library users. It not only encourages librarians to defend...
Effective January 24, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms became the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) as provided in the Homeland Security Act of 2002. See this document detailing the change. The newly launched website for...
The Association for Computing Machinery's U.S. Public Policy Committee issued a press release "recommending a rigorous independent review of the U.S. Government's Total Information Awareness (TIA) program." The organization also issued a copy of a letter they sent to the...
Ambassador David Johnson, U.S. permanent representative to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) issued a statement in response to growing international concerns that U.S. anti-terrorism legislation such as the Patriot Act was negatively impacting the exercise of...
The United States Sentencing Commission (USSC) is seeking public comment on proposed amendments to guidelines applicable to persons convicted of crimes related to the misuse of computers (i.e., hacking, cracking, writing and disseminating viruses, ID theft, web-related fraud, etc.). These...
As a result of their October 2002 FOI lawsuit, EPIC and the ACLU obtained over 200 documents related to DOJ surveillance activities undertaken subsequent to the Patriot Act. However, this ACLU press release indicates that the documents were so heavily...
Following quickly on the heels of Sen. Harkin's letter requesting a hearing on the Total Information Awareness (TIA) program, Vermont's Senator Leahy also sent a letter to Attorney General Ashcroft requesting answers to a list of specific questions, so at...
In the December 18, 2002 Federal Register there are proposed changes to sentencing guidelines for United States Courts in response to the Patriot Act and other post 9/11 laws concerning terrorism and national security....
This New York Times article, New Tools for Domestic Spying, and Qualms, provides important perspective on the increasingly contentious issues associated with domestic surveillance and civil liberties in the post 9/11 world. Data on citizens who use public services such...
The ACLU and EPIC have secured an order from Judge Huvelle, U.S. District Court, D.C., in response to their FOIA complaint for Patriot Act related documents. A list of those documents the DOJ will release must be provided to the...
Advocacy groups the ACLU, EPIC, the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression and the Freedom to Read Foundation have sued the DOJ under FOIA in an effort to obtain documents related to the implementation of the Patriot Act that involve...
The National Academies of Sciences have issued a statement on Science and Security in an Age of Terrorism. They are seeking to maintain a "balance between scientific openness and restrictions on public information." The group also references further information in...
CNN is reporting that the NSA will shell out $282 million to significantly enhance technology applications used to monitor and evaluate e-mail, telephone and other communications in its ongoing anti-terrorism efforts....
Surveillance, privacy, a secret court, the Constitution and the fight against terrorism are all elements in a public debate in which the legal ramifications of 9-11 continue to impact the lives of Americans. Civil liberties groups including the ACLU, EPIC...
Bay Total Service Provider (BayTSP does not support a functioning web site. So why should you care about this company? Perhaps because they may well indeed know alot about your Web usage. BayTSP is a heavy-weight contractor whose lucrative services...
"The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review announced in a letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee that it would provide the panel with a copy of what is expected to be a signal ruling on the Justice Department's request for...
The Progressive Librarians Guild issued a statement in opposition to the DOJ's Operation TIPS (Terrorism Information and Prevention System), which gives the federal government's stamp of approval to citizens' reporting on the supposedly suspicious and potentially nefarious activities of their...
This PCWorld article reviews various government sites from which data has been removed post 9-11, and also mentions watchdog groups that are monitoring whether and how this trend continues....
The Kennedy School of Government, NPR and the Kaiser foundation released a report, 2002 Civil Liberties Update which seems to contradict recent articles indicating that Americans were prepared to give up certain rights facilitate the war on terrorism....
The UK has implemented a new guidance from the Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001 , via Home Office Circular 7/2002, sec. 119, allowing police, customers or immigration officers "to make a request to air or ship carriers to provide...
CNET has a special report that is worth review. It includes the following articles: Safety: Assessing the infrastructure risk, Politics: Weighing security against liberties Lessons, and Keeping networks alive in New York....