PC World (08/23/07) ; McMillan, Robert
Graduate students from the University of Southern California's Viterbi School of Engineering are collaborating with Sandia National Laboratories on a real-time strategy game that allows police officers, fire fighters, and other first responders to practice emergency scenarios. The game, Ground Truth, is realistic because events in the game occur in real time, putting added pressure on first responders to act swiftly. Jim Pointer, the medical director of Alameda County's Emergency Medical Services Agency, recently completed an intense session of Ground Truth that called for him to oversee a city's response to a toxic chemical spill. During the scenario, he was responsible for managing traffic barriers, putting hazmat teams and police cars in position to respond to the spill, and managing medical collection points while keeping an eye out for toxic plumes. Pointer says the game is fun, educational, and has great promise. Blizzard Entertainment's Warcraft III game provided inspiration for Ground Truth, which could eventually receive funding from private industry or even the Homeland Security Department.(go to web site)
Friday, August 24
"Missouri Task Force Recommends How to Make College Campuses Safer"
Kansas City Star (08/21/07) ; Wagar, Kit
Missouri's Campus Security Task Force has released a set of 33 guidelines designed to make the state's college campuses safer. The task force, formed in the wake of April's shootings at Virginia Tech, recommends creating a "culture of preparedness" by coordinating response plans with local police and fire departments. The guidelines also say that schools should train faculty, staff, and students on what they should do in the case of an emergency. Although the report describes Missouri colleges as safe, it also shows that while 86 percent of the schools have an emergency plan, less than 30 percent have coordinated with local police and fire departments. About two-thirds of the schools have a system in place for identifying and managing troubled students, but just 40 percent of the schools participate with nationally accredited crisis training programs. The report also suggests that colleges expand counseling services and train staff on how to assess students that could present a threat. Many of the recommendations in the report could be addressed by colleges for a low cost, especially considering the increased state funding that they should receive in the next three years.(go to web site)
Missouri's Campus Security Task Force has released a set of 33 guidelines designed to make the state's college campuses safer. The task force, formed in the wake of April's shootings at Virginia Tech, recommends creating a "culture of preparedness" by coordinating response plans with local police and fire departments. The guidelines also say that schools should train faculty, staff, and students on what they should do in the case of an emergency. Although the report describes Missouri colleges as safe, it also shows that while 86 percent of the schools have an emergency plan, less than 30 percent have coordinated with local police and fire departments. About two-thirds of the schools have a system in place for identifying and managing troubled students, but just 40 percent of the schools participate with nationally accredited crisis training programs. The report also suggests that colleges expand counseling services and train staff on how to assess students that could present a threat. Many of the recommendations in the report could be addressed by colleges for a low cost, especially considering the increased state funding that they should receive in the next three years.(go to web site)
"Va. Tech Review Recommends Steps to Avert Another Tragedy"
Washington Post (08/23/07) P. B1 ; Jenkins, Chris L.; Horwitz, Sari
The latest recommendations from three review committees in the wake of the April 16 shootings at Virginia Tech focus on university communication systems improvements, better privacy issue training for staff members, increased security for students and faculty, and reforms for the university's counseling system to ensure troubled students get the help they need. In terms of communication recommendations, the review committees indicated electronic banners in classrooms and hallways could be used to alert students to emergencies, and a location system could be used to pinpoint where students are should emergencies arise. Security recommendations included the use of locks on the inside of classroom doors to prevent killers from entering classrooms at random. The review panels also indicated changes be made to the counseling system to increase monitoring of students deemed a possible danger to themselves or others. Additionally, student health records should be shared among university staff to ensure monitoring systems are functional; it is not clear whether Virginia Tech's officials shared information on the April 16 gunman. Parents, however, continued to criticize university officials for not locking down the campus to prevent more student and faculty deaths, but the officials rebutted, "A lockdown is simply not feasible on a campus the size of a small city."(go to web site)
The latest recommendations from three review committees in the wake of the April 16 shootings at Virginia Tech focus on university communication systems improvements, better privacy issue training for staff members, increased security for students and faculty, and reforms for the university's counseling system to ensure troubled students get the help they need. In terms of communication recommendations, the review committees indicated electronic banners in classrooms and hallways could be used to alert students to emergencies, and a location system could be used to pinpoint where students are should emergencies arise. Security recommendations included the use of locks on the inside of classroom doors to prevent killers from entering classrooms at random. The review panels also indicated changes be made to the counseling system to increase monitoring of students deemed a possible danger to themselves or others. Additionally, student health records should be shared among university staff to ensure monitoring systems are functional; it is not clear whether Virginia Tech's officials shared information on the April 16 gunman. Parents, however, continued to criticize university officials for not locking down the campus to prevent more student and faculty deaths, but the officials rebutted, "A lockdown is simply not feasible on a campus the size of a small city."(go to web site)
"Can a Government Remotely Detect a Terrorist's Thoughts?"
New Scientist (08/11/07) Vol. 195, No. 2616, P. 24 ; Marks, Paul
The U.S. Homeland Security Department's Project Hostile Intent (PHI) has the ambitious goal of projecting "current or future hostile intentions" among the 400 million people who enter the country each year through remote behavior analysis systems, according to DHS representative Larry Orluskie. He explains that PHI intends to identify physical markers (blood pressure, heartbeat, facial expressions, etc.) associated with hostility or the desire to deceive, and apply this knowledge toward the development of "real-time, culturally independent, non-invasive sensors" and software that can spot such behaviors. Such sensors could include infrared light, heart rate and respiration sensors, eye tracking, laser, audio, and video. For four years, the U.S. Transportation Security Administration has been using the Screening Passengers through Observation Techniques (SPOT) program to detect suspicious people through study of micro-expressions--involuntary facial telltales that indicate attempts to deceive--but the process is costly and arduous, and is not something a baggage screener or customs official can do in addition to their regular duties. The automation of the SPOT program, with computers instead of people screening for micro-expressions and other suspicious bodily indicators, is the impetus behind PHI. Experts doubt that such capability could be accomplished by the end of the decade, if at all, and are skeptical that such systems could identify hostile micro-expressions in a potential terrorist, given the lack of knowledge about and complexity of such expressions. Another unknown factor is whether such signs could be spotted hours or even weeks before a terrorist incident. There is also the danger that innocents who are highly emotional or aggravated due to stress might be flagged as potential terrorists.(go to web site)
The U.S. Homeland Security Department's Project Hostile Intent (PHI) has the ambitious goal of projecting "current or future hostile intentions" among the 400 million people who enter the country each year through remote behavior analysis systems, according to DHS representative Larry Orluskie. He explains that PHI intends to identify physical markers (blood pressure, heartbeat, facial expressions, etc.) associated with hostility or the desire to deceive, and apply this knowledge toward the development of "real-time, culturally independent, non-invasive sensors" and software that can spot such behaviors. Such sensors could include infrared light, heart rate and respiration sensors, eye tracking, laser, audio, and video. For four years, the U.S. Transportation Security Administration has been using the Screening Passengers through Observation Techniques (SPOT) program to detect suspicious people through study of micro-expressions--involuntary facial telltales that indicate attempts to deceive--but the process is costly and arduous, and is not something a baggage screener or customs official can do in addition to their regular duties. The automation of the SPOT program, with computers instead of people screening for micro-expressions and other suspicious bodily indicators, is the impetus behind PHI. Experts doubt that such capability could be accomplished by the end of the decade, if at all, and are skeptical that such systems could identify hostile micro-expressions in a potential terrorist, given the lack of knowledge about and complexity of such expressions. Another unknown factor is whether such signs could be spotted hours or even weeks before a terrorist incident. There is also the danger that innocents who are highly emotional or aggravated due to stress might be flagged as potential terrorists.(go to web site)
"Office Computer Monitoring Gets More Sophisticated"
A growing number of companies are implementing new software that automatically monitors employee messages and documents for compliance with security regulations. Because sensitive data can escape through multiple digital channels, companies afraid of insider thefts and data breaches are using technology to oversee employee emails, Web postings, instant messages, and offline documents. Some programs can detect when specific keywords are entered in Web forms or documents, and will then warn the user or thwart the action. Similar technologies dig deeper, reviewing information with databases and documents in file services, and can stop files from being moved to portable devices such as USB drives. Discovering sensitive information in an unsuitable spot is essential to ensuring that the data is not accidentally disseminated. While such software typically warns compliance officers of such sightings, software will increasingly repair such messes automatically. And yet, because these technologies are relatively new, software will sometimes mistakenly block an item or generate irritating streams of pop-up alerts. In addition, less than 1 percent of discovered violations are actually disobeying any rules, and the majority of those infringements are accidental. Moreover, criminals can circumvent the technology. However, in a world where reputation and ethics require vigilant oversight, employers and employees are anticipated to accept the growth of compliance-watchdog technologies.(go to web site) Bergstein, Brian
Sale of Major League Baseball Caps With Gang Colors
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,294409,00.html
"Major League Baseball … is very concerned about the issue," said Silvia Alvarez, the league's director of multicultural and charitable communications, in a statement. She indicated that MLB would encourage and support the pulling of these caps from stores.
The Coalition to Protect our Children said the group would continue its efforts to stop the sale of caps with gang colors and symbols and plans to hold gang-awareness workshops for families in the community.
"Major League Baseball … is very concerned about the issue," said Silvia Alvarez, the league's director of multicultural and charitable communications, in a statement. She indicated that MLB would encourage and support the pulling of these caps from stores.
The Coalition to Protect our Children said the group would continue its efforts to stop the sale of caps with gang colors and symbols and plans to hold gang-awareness workshops for families in the community.
Firm Hired to Monitor Gambling on Open
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/24/sports/tennis/24tennis.html?ei=5088&en=c6ed2f5075e292d0&ex=1345608000&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&pagewanted=print
After a sports summer rocked by a gambling scandal involving the former N.B.A. referee Tim Donaghy and a betting investigation involving a match played by the fourth-ranked men’s tennis player Nikolay Davydenko, the United States Tennis Association has hired a consulting firm to detect and monitor potential gambling activity at the United States Open.
The firm of SafirRosetti, run by Howard Safir, a former city police commissioner, has begun work at the Billie Jean King United States National Tennis Center, the site of the Open.
Besides monitoring areas throughout the grounds — included those restricted to players, their entourages and medical personnel — the firm will try to keep tabs on all betting activity surrounding the Open.
After a sports summer rocked by a gambling scandal involving the former N.B.A. referee Tim Donaghy and a betting investigation involving a match played by the fourth-ranked men’s tennis player Nikolay Davydenko, the United States Tennis Association has hired a consulting firm to detect and monitor potential gambling activity at the United States Open.
The firm of SafirRosetti, run by Howard Safir, a former city police commissioner, has begun work at the Billie Jean King United States National Tennis Center, the site of the Open.
Besides monitoring areas throughout the grounds — included those restricted to players, their entourages and medical personnel — the firm will try to keep tabs on all betting activity surrounding the Open.
On the Front Line in the War on Terrorism
http://city-journal.net/html/17_3_preventing_terrorism.html
Cops in New York and Los Angeles offer America two models for preventing another 9/11.
Three time zones, 3,000 miles, and a cultural galaxy apart, New York and Los Angeles face a common threat: along with Washington, D.C., they’re the chief American targets of Islamic terror. And both cities boast top cops, sometime rivals—the cities are fiercely competitive—who know that ensuring that a dog doesn’t bark will determine their legacies. After investing millions of dollars in homeland security, Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly of New York and Chief William J. Bratton of L.A. can both claim counterterror successes. What can we learn from their approaches? And will they be able to continue preventing terrorist attacks in their cities?
On the face of it, the nation’s two biggest metropolitan forces seem to have adopted kindred counterterrorism strategies. Both have roving SWAT or “Emergency Service Unit” teams, equipped with gas masks and antidotes to chemical and biological agents. Both have set up “fusion” centers to screen threats and monitor secret intelligence and “open-source” information, including radical Internet sites, and both have started programs to identify and protect likely targets. Both have tried to integrate private security experts into their work. Both conduct surveillance that would have been legally questionable before September 11. Both have sought to enlist support from mainstream Muslims and have encouraged various private firms to report suspicious activity.
Cops in New York and Los Angeles offer America two models for preventing another 9/11.
Three time zones, 3,000 miles, and a cultural galaxy apart, New York and Los Angeles face a common threat: along with Washington, D.C., they’re the chief American targets of Islamic terror. And both cities boast top cops, sometime rivals—the cities are fiercely competitive—who know that ensuring that a dog doesn’t bark will determine their legacies. After investing millions of dollars in homeland security, Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly of New York and Chief William J. Bratton of L.A. can both claim counterterror successes. What can we learn from their approaches? And will they be able to continue preventing terrorist attacks in their cities?
On the face of it, the nation’s two biggest metropolitan forces seem to have adopted kindred counterterrorism strategies. Both have roving SWAT or “Emergency Service Unit” teams, equipped with gas masks and antidotes to chemical and biological agents. Both have set up “fusion” centers to screen threats and monitor secret intelligence and “open-source” information, including radical Internet sites, and both have started programs to identify and protect likely targets. Both have tried to integrate private security experts into their work. Both conduct surveillance that would have been legally questionable before September 11. Both have sought to enlist support from mainstream Muslims and have encouraged various private firms to report suspicious activity.
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