Security Debrief

Using the Nationwide SAR Initiative to Address Radicalization Efforts in the U.S.

May 6, 2011

I recently had the opportunity to participate at the National Fusion Center Conference. As I reviewed the conference agenda and spoke to those in attendance, I noticed that there were a fair number of breakout sessions covering the topic of religious or political radicalization in the United States. Just by conducting a cursory examination of a few of the more recent terrorist incidents here, it becomes clear that there are many seemingly innocuous incidents every day could lead law enforcement to early identification of radicalized people bent on terrorism within the United States.

Understanding the Situation Room Photo During Bin Laden Operation

Security Debrief |

May 5, 2011

By Doug Doan
Today’s Washington Post has an article about the now-famous photo of the President and his national security team meeting in the Situation Room during operations to hunt and kill Bin Laden. Typical of the Washington Post, they miss the most important part of the story, and lots of other press stories have reported the Situation Room event as a meeting of the National Security Council (NSC). It wasn’t. The Secretary of Homeland Security and the Attorney General were excluded from the operation. Why?

Ding, Dong, The Witch is Dead – A Call for Vigilance

Security Debrief |

May 5, 2011

We as Americans owe great thanks to our military and intelligence professionals who found and removed this blight on our way of life, the World’s Most Wanted Terrorist, Osama bin Laden. Along with the best military in the world, we also have the best law enforcement agencies in the world here at home protecting us every day. But they cannot be everywhere at every moment. Now is a time for the public to be on alert for signs of threats.

The Death of Bin Laden – Lessons Learned

Security Debrief |

May 3, 2011

So as it turns out, tiny disparate pieces of information learned from a few Guantanamo Bay GITMO detainees four years ago led to the identification of a trusted Osama bin Laden associate in Pakistan. Although it may seem obvious, there is a significant lesson to be learned here for domestic U.S. law enforcement, especially those involved in intelligence collection operations. Every piece of information counts.

Ahoy Matey! Legal Issues Ahead! – Pirates Released at Undisclosed Location

Security Debrief |

May 3, 2011

Last week, news reports indicated that 18 pirates apprehended after attacking a Singaporean vessel in the Indian Ocean were released to “an undisclosed location” because no nation was willing to detain or prosecute them. Why? The first problem was that while the pirates attacked a Singaporean vessel, they were saved by a Finnish one. And this isn’t the first time this has been a problem.

Exit Bin Laden

Security Debrief |

May 3, 2011

Somehow I find it appropriate for my first Security Debrief contribution to comment on the death of Osama Bin Laden. Make no mistake about it; Bin Laden was a mass murderer of men, women and children. They were Muslims, Christians, Jews, Agnostics and Atheists. He really didn’t care about their religious on non-religious affiliations because he was a fanatic who only cared about world domination and political power.

Usama bin Laden – A Post-Mortem

Security Debrief |

May 2, 2011

Nearly ten years after the attacks of September 11, and a year to the day after the failed Times Square bomb plot, U.S. Special Forces killed al Qaeda chief Usama bin Laden in a safe house some 40 miles north of Islamabad, Pakistan. As I think about what news of bin Laden’s death really means, I am convinced it is important is so many ways, and irrelevant in others. Here are some thoughts on the near term implications of bin Laden’s death for al Qaeda, its franchises and followers as well as for counterterrorism and intelligence efforts going forward.

Breaking: Osama bin Laden is Dead

Security Debrief |

May 1, 2011

President Barack Obama announced Sunday that Osama bin Laden, the leader of the al Qaeda terrorist organization, is dead

Cloudy With Rain – Cybersecurity and Amazon's System Failure

Security Debrief |

April 27, 2011

I love watching the latest fool-proof Internet technologies and buzz words come along. Sadly, our homeland security is tied to these new technologies, and we are made more vulnerable as a result. Recently, Amazon quietly admitted there was a failure in their system. A failure, by the way, that mucked up not only their works but plenty of others as well.

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