Site Map - Government Reports (GAO etc.)

02/28/2008 - Standards for blast-resistant window testing prove confusing.

01/24/2008 - Government agencies responsible for aviation security, reports the GAO, must address leadership and technology problems to prevent accidents on airport runways.

01/08/2008 - For the second time, the GAO says the IRS must implement an agencywide information security program to shore up information security weaknesses.

12/18/2007 - A buyers guide for managers who need to understand security technologies is now available from the General Accounting Office (GAO). The guide focuses on five technology areas: access controls, system integrity, cryptography, audit and monitoring, and configuration management and assurance.

12/17/2007 - America's vulnerabilities at the border keep growing, but experts say securing the U.S.-Canada border is both financially prohibitive and practically impossible.

12/17/2007 - A buyers guide for managers who need to understand security technologies is now available from the General Accounting Office (GAO).

12/17/2007 - Read the British government’s strategy for confronting Muslim radicalization and promoting moderate Islam in the fight against violent extremism.

12/17/2007 - Some of the vulnerable areas cited in the aforementioned report, including border and cargo security, have been the subject of recent scrutiny by the U.S. General Accounting Office (GAO). GAO auditors, for instance, recently checked on the status of the US-VISIT (United States Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology) program, finding that it is "inherently risky, both because of the type of program it is and because of the way it is being managed." Specifically, US-VISIT is inherently risky because it is responsible for a critical, multifaceted mission; has a large and complex scope; must meet a demanding implementation schedule; and entails enormous cost. Risks relating to management include initial reliance on integrating existing systems that have problems. In testimony on cargo inspection, the GAO's Richard M. Stana noted that the Department of Homeland Security's U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) fails to incorporate key elements of a risk management framework in its approach to risks posed by oceangoing cargo containers. CBP, Stana told the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, House Committee on Energy and Commerce, hasn't determined the level of risk for cargo or the responses necessary to mitigate that risk. Moreover, CBP hasn't subjected its method of selecting and inspecting cargo containers to external peer review or testing, he said.

12/12/2007 - Security is only as strong as the weakest link in the chain, so even organizations with the most well-thought-out security programs can be jeopardized if their partners' security practices are lax. This is true of the Department of Defense as well its Defense Security Service, which monitors the information-security programs of more than 11,000 contractors, "cannot identify systemic vulnerabilities and make corrective changes to reduce the risk of information compromise" from contractors.

12/11/2007 - Security is only as strong as the weakest link in the chain, so even organizations with the most well-thought-out security programs can be jeopardized if their partners' security practices are lax. This is true of the Department of Defense as well its Defense Security Service, which monitors the information-security programs of more than 11,000 contractors, "cannot identify systemic vulnerabilities and make corrective changes to reduce the risk of information compromise" from contractors. The GAO report, which includes Haave's response, is at SM Online

12/11/2007 - At a hearing held by the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee's Subcommittee on Aviation, lawmakers heard testimony regarding the pilot program established by the government to evaluate private airport screening programs.

12/11/2007 - The House Select Committee on Homeland Security's Subcommittee on Infrastructure and Border Security and Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, Science, Research, and Development held a joint hearing to discuss the relationship between the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and various private groups responsible for critical infrastructure. Witnesses at the hearing noted that information sharing plans are ongoing but are still in need of refinement. Complete witness testimony is available at SM Online.

12/11/2007 - In a recent report on cargo security, the General Accounting Office (GAO) noted that while U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has taken steps to increase the security of cargo containers, it has failed to address the potential tampering of such containers. It has also failed to analyze various forms of cargo to assess specific risk factors.