DHS Shares 2007 Highlights From A Tough Year
Dec 13, 2007 3:40 PM
The terrorist threat to the United States has not abated despite government steps in the past year to tighten rules for people and goods that enter the country, the nation's chief of Homeland security concedes.
"The fact that we have not had a terrorist attack on this country in the last six years is not a cause for complacency or a time to celebrate," said Michael Chertoff during a year-end speech. "The threat is not going away. The enemy has not lost interest. And if you have doubt about it, look at [the recent] reports about bombings in Algeria."
However, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has released its notable 2007 achievements. Among them, here are some highlights:
Protecting the Nation from Dangerous People
* Enhanced Driver's Licenses: DHS signed agreements with the states of Washington, Vermont, New York and Arizona to enhance the security of their state driver's licenses and potentially satisfy REAL ID requirements or serve as alternatives for entry at land and sea borders.
* Enhanced Aviation Security: The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) increased by more than 175 percent the number of personnel trained in techniques to identify potentially high-risk passengers in airports. Further, TSA required that holders of airport-issued identification credentials be subjected to perpetual vetting against the Terrorist Screening Database. It also harmonized the 3-1-1 liquids rule with the European Union and many other countries, and published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in August to take over watch-list checks from the airlines under the Secure Flight program.
Protecting the Nation from Dangerous Goods
* Comprehensive Radiation Detection: The Domestic Nuclear Detection Office (DNDO) has deployed more than 1,000 radiation detection devices to the nation's land and sea ports of entry. One hundred percent of cargo containers crossing the southern border are scanned for radiation, 91 percent at the northern border and more than 97 percent of vehicles are scanned at our seaports.
Protecting Critical Infrastructure
* Setting Chemical Security Standards: The National Protection and Programs Directorate (NPPD) established national standards for chemical facility security in a comprehensive set of regulations to protect chemical facilities from attack and prevent theft of chemicals that could be used as weapons.
* Increasing Cyber Security: NPPD developed the EINSTEIN system, which finds malicious patterns in federal computer network traffic, and will expand the system next year. DHS established the Computer Emergency Readiness Team, or US-CERT, to provide a 24-hour watch center, which this year issued over 200 actionable alerts on cyber security vulnerabilities or incidents.
* Credentialing Port Workers: Since October, 7,000 port workers have enrolled in the Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) biometric credential program. More than 750,000 longshoremen, truck drivers, port employees and others requiring unescorted access to secure areas of ports ultimately will be required to obtain a TWIC.
Building a Nimble, Effective Emergency Response System and a Culture of Preparedness
* Supporting Local Security Plans: Protective Security Advisors worked in state and local Emergency Operations Centers providing expertise and support to local authorities, the Principal Federal Official and the Federal Coordinating Officer responsible for domestic incident management.
* Awarded Public Safety Interoperable Grants: DHS helped award $968 million in Public Safety Interoperable Communications Grants to aid state and local first responders in improving public safety communications and coordination during a natural or manmade disaster.
* Helping School Safety: Under the Safe School Initiative, DHS is developing strategies to prevent school-related tragedies such as those in Blacksburg, Va., and Cleveland, and provide education and law enforcement professionals with tools for investigating threats in schools, managing situations of concern and creating safe school climates.
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© 2010 Penton Media Inc.
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