Knowledge always makes a difference. Knowing what to look for, in a mere hairbrush, for example, can be that difference. While cops are busy fighting crime, the crooks are even busier trying to hide it.

"I don't think there's any place on the human body where they haven't found a weapon at one time or another; people are...read more

Beginning December 22nd, airline travelers can expect to see more random screenings and fewer prohibited items, Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officials announced last Friday. The agency says its new policy will result in additional screenings of passengers and their bags using a variety of methods selected at random. It will also allow passengers once again to be able to carry small tools and scissors on board aircraft. Officials say the changes are intended to help security screeners detect and defeat more serious threats, such as explosives.

“It is paramount to the security of our aviation system that terrorists not be able to know with certainty what screening procedures they will encounter at airports around the nation,” said Kip Hawley, the head of TSA. “By incorporating unpredictability into our procedures and eliminating low-threat items, we can better focus our efforts on stopping individuals that wish to do us harm.”

Passengers will continue to walk through a metal detector and have their carry-on and checked baggage screened. However, under the new policy, an additional search may also be conducted, such as screening shoes for explosives, “hand-wanding” of passengers, enhanced pat down searches, and inspections of carry-on bags. These searches will be generated at random and are expected to take only about a minute to complete.

Another change, and one that is generating a great deal of controversy, is TSA’s modification of its list of prohibited items. Also beginning December 22nd, scissors with a cutting edge of four inches or less and tools such as screwdrivers, wrenches and pliers smaller than seven inches will be permitted on board aircraft. Scissors longer than four inches and tools such as crowbars, drills, hammers, and saws will continue to be prohibited from carry-on bags. Lighters will remain on the list of items banned from the cabin of aircraft and in checked baggage.

TSA officials say that by spending so much time searching for and confiscating items like scissors, security screeners are unable to focus on more serious threats, such as bombs. With reinforced cockpit doors, undercover air marshals on many flights, and a group of pilots who have been authorized to carry firearms in the cockpit, small tools and scissors are not the threat they once were, experts say.

Some groups, however, disagree with that rationale. The Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association (FLEOA), which represents federal air marshals, opposes the agency’s decision to allow scissors and other small tools on flights. “These items in the wrong hands can become dangerous instruments that can ultimately threaten both air marshals’ and travelers’ safety,” said Jon Adler, executive vice president of FLEOA.

In addition to instituting more random screenings and modifying its list of banned items, TSA also announced that its 43,000 Transportation Security Screeners have been reclassified as Transportation Security Officers (TSOs). The agency says the new classification is intended to illustrate that TSOs are “more empowered than ever before to use their knowledge and training to detect and defeat terrorists and to focus their attention to areas where the threat is greatest.”

From - FEDagent: Thursday, December 8, 2005

Will this make you feel more safe or less safe while flying?

Security Sweeps Net Illegals
Christian Science Monitor    November 23, 2005

LOS ANGELES - In October, three illegal immigrants were arrested at Fort Bragg in North Carolina using false IDs. In August, six Mexican nationals were arrested at Fort Irwin, Calif. In July, six more illegal immigrants were found at Homestead Air Reserve Base in Homestead, Fla.

A division of the Department of Homeland Security has continued to ramp up post-9/11 investigations of what it considers key strategic...Read more!

Some folks complain that illegals are being unfairly targeted, the point that many fail to realize is that the jobs that many of the illegals are doing, especially on military bases are ideal places for a terrorist to gather information and supplies!

NEW YORK- Police have introduced a new anti-terrorism tool designed to thwart potential subway bombers while reducing the intrusiveness of random bag searches: explosives detectors.

The portable detection devices, tested at two subway stops during Monday evening's rush hour, are designed to chemically analyze swabs taken from the outside of bags for traces of explosives, police said.

"This gives us...Read more!

While airline passenger security screening has received a great deal of attention since the
September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, air cargo security remains vulnerable, a new report by the
Government Accountability Office (GAO) has found. The report faults the Transportation Security
Administration (TSA) for not yet establishing a methodology and schedule for completing
assessments of air cargo vulnerabilities and critical assets, which are crucial to TSA’s ability
to focus its resources on the most critical security needs.

The report adds that while TSA has taken steps to strengthen air cargo security, there are
several factors that may limit their effectiveness. For instance, while TSA established a
centralized database on people and businesses that routinely ship air cargo, GAO found problems
with the reliability of the information in the database. Moreover, although TSA established
requirements for air carriers to randomly inspect air cargo, the agency has exempted some cargo
from inspection, leading to possible security weaknesses. Finally, GAO concluded that TSA 1)
has failed to develop measures to assess the adequacy of air carrier compliance with security
requirements; (2) does not systematically analyze audit results to target future inspections;
and (3) does not assess the adequacy of its enforcement actions to ensure compliance with
security requirements.

To read the report, titled “Aviation Security: Federal Action Needed to Strengthen Domestic Air
Cargo Security,” GAO-06-76, October 2005, click on http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d0676.pdf

With elections only a few days away, the terrorism threat level is at high, and law enforcement personnel are on the lookout for suspicious behavior that may indicate an imminent terrorist attack. As the morning commute gets underway, three bombs explode on a commuter train at a downtown station, killing and injuring those in the path of the blast wave and shrapnel. Law enforcement officers and emergency medical personnel respond, but, as they mobilize, four more bombs explode in another train arriving at the same station, instantly doubling the number of people dead and wounded. Soon, another bomb goes off inside a train a few miles away, requiring public safety personnel and resources there as well. The nightmare reaches its peak 5 minutes later as two more bombs blow apart a commuter train at still another downtown location, killing and injuring even more people. The emergency response community now faces mass fatalities and seemingly countless injuries at three separate sites. Though this scenario sounds like the subject of novels and Hollywood thrillers, it actually took place on March 11, 2004, in Madrid, 1Spain. This type of incident, like many similar ones in recent years, has...Read more!

Traditionally, most people consider officer safety in terms of an individual officer, in extreme circumstances, facing a "bad guy" intent upon doing harm to that officer. The armed encounter-- and the possibility of death-- puts into high relief the entire range of tactical defenses that have constant application: awareness of the environment, including reading "cues" from subjects; threat assessment; and approach and contact techniques, such as handcuffing, weapons retention, and firearms handling and use. The elements that officers must focus on are concentrated in time and, usually, space, with the majority of violent encounters occurring within a 10- to 20-foot radius.¹

We do not intend to denigrate or underestimate the importance of incident-specific tactical defenses, which remain critical parts of police training. Rather, as futurists, we proffer that the potential for terrorist activity on American soil demands new...Read more

U.S. Marines Detained 19 Contractors in Iraq
Most of the men are American security guards. Some say they were abused after being
accused of firing at civilians and troops. Read article

Police Major survives assassination, two Iraqis arrested

BAGHDAD, June 5 (KUNA) -- An Iraqi Police commander escaped an assassination attempt Sunday in the town of Bahraz, Iraqi Ministry of Interior sources said. Read article

Afghan commander killed by Taliban roadside bomb

The commander of a pro-government Afghan militia force was killed by a roadside bomb on Friday in an attack blamed on Taliban insurgents. Read article

With increased federal funding and nationwide attention, there's never been a better time to start a private security company. Homeland security holds many opportunities for professionals in a variety of fields such as...Read more!