Adfero Group HSPI

The attempted car bombing in Times Square and the unfolding environmental disaster in the Gulf Coast remind us of the importance of preparing for emergencies. Particularly when companies face lawsuits alleging failure to safeguard employees, customers or the community – lawsuits that are common when the unexpected occurs – companies face the question: “Should more have been done?” Two private sector preparedness programs administered by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) can help a business’s employees, customers, and community and may even limit liability.

It’s unclear from news reports who precisely stopped Faisal Shahzad – the would-be Times Square bomber – from departing the United States. While his name appeared to have been added to the No-Fly list on Monday afternoon, he was still able to board an Emirates Airlines flight to Dubai. While we should be grateful for the successful conclusion of a 48-hour manhunt, the last-minute rush to prevent the plane from taking off underlines the need for close cooperation and timely communication between the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), particularly CBP, and the airlines.

I recently received a rather bizarre e-mail pointing out that countries such as North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Iran, and Cuba have robust border security and don’t tolerate people crossing their borders illegally. The e-mail went on to point out the generous (but inaccurately described) benefits the United States grants to people who enter our country illegally and implied that we would not have a problem with illegal entry if we just took a page from these less-than-democratic countries. While I’d like to think this was left wing satire, I’m afraid it was a serious anti-immigrant solution to the problem.

I have been critical in the past of the fact that DHS has not done enough about cybersecurity. I believe DHS is the correct part of the federal government to lead on cyber issues, but it always seemed that everything was on hold. It turns out I was wrong. I attended a superb cybersecurity event, and while I would love to give you a complete blow-by-blow recount of the excellent panel presentations and the Q&A, it was all done on a non-attribution basis. Despite that, I do feel compelled to share some of what I heard.

For what seemed an endless series of weeks, DHS Secretary Napolitano was mercilessly mocked and derided for uttering three words following the failed Christmas Day bombing of Northwest Flight 253 – she stated, “The system worked.” As debatable as those words may have been to describe the failed intelligence and cooperation efforts, they seem to be the only words that accurately describe the unfolding results of the capture of the suspected and failed Times Square bomber, Faisal Shahzad.