Upgraded Biometric Technology Facilitates Visitors' Entry to the United States

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced today that upgraded biometric technology is in place at major U.S. ports of entry, and most international visitors should expect to use the new technology when they enter the United States. DHS's US-VISIT program began upgrading its biometric technology from a two- to a 10-fingerprint collection standard in 2007 to make the entry process faster and more accurate, enabling DHS officials to focus their attention on people who may pose a risk to the United States, those officials say.

"Since 2004, biometrics have facilitated legitimate travel for millions of visitors entering the United States," says US-VISIT Director Robert Mocny. "The 10-fingerprint upgrade makes this proven system even more efficient and enhances the security of our nation."

For the last five years, U.S. Department of State consular officers and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers have collected biometric information -- digital fingerprints and a photograph -- from all non-U.S. citizens between the ages of 14 and 79, with some exceptions, when they apply for visas or arrive at major U.S. ports of entry. State consular officers began collecting 10 fingerprints from visa applicants in 2007.

Collecting 10 fingerprints increases fingerprint matching accuracy and reduces the possibility that the system will misidentify an international visitor, DHS says. It also strengthens DHS's capability to check visitors' fingerprints against the FBI's criminal data and enables DHS to check visitors' fingerprints against latent fingerprints collected by the Department of Defense (DOD) and the FBI from known and unknown terrorists around the world, DHS says.

DHS's US-VISIT program, in cooperation with CBP, is leading the department's upgrade to 10-fingerprint collection. This upgrade is the result of an interagency partnership among DHS, FBI, DOD and State.

US-VISIT provides biometric identification services to agencies throughout federal, state and local government. The program's most visible service is the collection of biometrics from international visitors when they apply for visas and enter the United States. Since US-VISIT began in 2004, DHS's use of biometrics has helped prevent the use of fraudulent documents, protect visitors from identity theft, and stop thousands of criminals and immigration violators from entering the United States.

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Bioaerosol Sensing Project Seeks to Lower False Alarm Rates

Commercially available, fast-response bioaerosol detectors that can help guard against bioterrorist strikes in large public spaces face a significant hurdle: false alarms. Facility managers responsible for airports, train stations, sports arenas, and other venues will be loathe to install biodetection systems until they can be close to certain that the hardware won’t alarm without cause and force unnecessary evacuations.

But a Department of Homeland Security-funded project involving a group of Sandia National Laboratories researchers promises to answer the question of why false alarms occur and how to bring down the rate. The project, currently called Enhanced Bioaerosol Detection System (EBADS), aims to do just that — enhance the performance of bioaerosol detectors, specifically those based on laser-induced fluorescence (LIF).

EBADS literally takes a second look at what is in the air when a LIF sensor alarms, and determines if there is sufficient bioaerosol present for concern. If successful, EBADS could be paired with existing sensors for a more refined and commercially deployable detector system.
The project is a multilab effort involving Sandia, Lawrence Livermore, Oak Ridge, and Pacific Northwest national laboratories. Work began in 2005 as a follow-on to Sandia’s PROACT (Protective and Responsive Options for Airport Counter-Terrorism) program.

Initially, various sensors were deployed in the PROACT testbed to understand the false-alarm rate. The testbed included the LLNL Bioaerosol Mass Spectrometer (BAMS) and a selective particle collector that Sandia and Yale University assembled.

“The first phase focused on understanding the problem,” says principal investigator Tom Kulp. The Sandia EBADS team, he says, collected particles present in the air when a false alarm occurred and analyzed them in the field and in the lab.

The researchers came to the conclusion that existing sensors don’t discriminate well between biological and nonbiological particles. If that capability could be enhanced, the result might be a sensor system with significantly fewer false alarms.

The goal, says Kulp, is not to identify particles, but to determine within one to two minutes if there is an unusual amount of biological aerosol in the air — sufficient information to know you’ve got something to worry about.

The project is unique in that it seeks to develop a method, not produce a physical tool. “We are proving a methodology, which would then be implemented with the assistance of industry,” he explains.

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Commercial and Residential Window Tinting

We all see them -- residential and commercial buildings with tinted windows.

On a sunny day, buildings with tinted windows just seem a little cooler -- and they also seem a little more secure. And those inside a tinted-window building enjoy the benefits of sunshine with none of the hassle. No more sun-glare!

Few places is the sun more of an issue than in San Diego. So contact SunPro Glass Tinting for your san diego glass tint.

SunPro Glass Tinting a subsidiary of Encinitas Glass Company, Inc. specializes in residential and commercial solar control, anti graffiti, safety and security window film sales and installation. SunPro features Hüper Optik Smart Window Films.

These patented window films are nearly invisible on glass, allowing you to keep the natural tones of your home with low reflectivity levels. Hüper Optik Nano-Ceramic Window Films are proven to block up to 70% of the heat that radiates through your windows, making conventional dyed and reflective films obsolete.

These Nano-Ceramic films also reject up to 84% of the damaging infrared rays that cause heat and 99.9% ultraviolet light rays that cause fading. All of this is done without significantly reducing visible light transmittance.

Lower your energy bills, increase your privacy and security -- even save furniture fade. Contact SunPro Glass Tinting today. They even SunPro guarantees that their window products will conform to the stated manufacture's warranty specifications without cracking, demetalizing, peeling or delaminating.

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U.S. Citizen Pleads Guilty to Training With al Qaeda

A U.S. citizen, whotrained to fight jihad along with elements of al Qaeda to establish an Islamic state in Somalia, has been convicted of receiving training from a foreign terrorist organization, Kenneth Wainstein announced.

At a hearing, Daniel Joseph Maldonado, a.k.a. Daniel Aljughaifi, 28, pleaded guilty to the sole charge in an Information filed on March 30, 2007 and unsealed Thursday. During the hearing, Maldonado admitted he had traveled from Houston to Africa in November 2005 and then on to Somalia in December 2006 to join the Islamic Courts Union (ICU) and elements of al Qaeda to fight "jihad" against the Transitional Federal Government to establish an independent Islamic State in Somalia, according to the US Justice Department.

While in Somalia, Maldonado was provided an AK-47, equipped with military combat uniforms and boots in Mogadishu, and participated intraining camps in Kismaayo and Jilib, Somalia. The camps included physical fitness, firearms and explosives training all in preparation to go to the front to fight for the ICU. Al Qaeda members were present at the training camps. ICU and al Qaeda, a recognized foreign terrorist organization,worked together to train fighters in the camps to fight jihad to establish an independent Islamic state in Somalia, the Justice Department says.

"Today's guilty plea is the first involving an American who joined forces with Islamic extremist fighters in Somalia and should serve noticeto others who would travel overseas to wage violent jihad," says Wainstein, assistant attorney general for national security.

"For an American to travel overseas to train as a violent jihadist alongside al Qaeda elements who are focused upon threatening the security of our nation, is decidedly disturbing and definitely illegal," says U.S. Attorney Don DeGabrielle. "Maldonado's conviction should serve as a strong warning to any American who considers joining forces with terrorist groups here or abroad."


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Online Tax Filing Up, Internet Security Fears are Down

More consumers are filing their taxes online, and fewer are concerned about Internet security, The Conference Board and TNS report.

This year, 39 percent of consumers intend to file their 2006 federal taxes online, up from 28 percent just three years ago. Online tax filing is a growing trend. Close to two-thirds of consumers report having filed online for three or more consecutive years, of which nearly half have been filing online for more than five years.

"Speed, convenience and choice are compelling an increasing number ofconsumers to toss their pencils and papers and file their federal taxes electronically," says Lynn Franco, director of The Conference Board Consumer Research Center. "Whether using professional tax services or do-it-yourself software, electronic filing continues to grow year after year. And, by far, direct deposit is the preferred refund method. This year's ability to split refunds among up to three accounts is yet another choice that should broaden the appeal of electronic filing."

The Consumer Internet Barometer - produced by The Conference Board, the global business research and membership organization, and TNS, a global market insight and information group - surveys 10,000 households across thecountry and tracks who's doing what on the Internet.

Among consumers intending to file their federal taxes online, nearly 40 percent intend to use a professional tax service, with women more likely than men to seek assistance. Do-it-yourself tax software is more popular among male filers than female filers. The number of online filers using IRSe-file has declined since 2004, as the pool of eligible filers has likely shrunk due to increased complexity in returns and as more alternatives become available. Slightly more women than men (20 percent versus 19 percent) will use IRS E-file.

Consumers are less concerned about security when filing taxes online. Today only 43 percent of Internet users are "extremely" concerned aboutfiling taxes online, down from 52 percent in 2004.

Last year, more than 70 percent of online tax filers chose to receive their refund by direct deposit while 18 percent requested a check. The ease and convenience of direct deposit clearly makes it the preferred choice of online tax filers.

Among those who do not file online, the leading reason cited is that the consumer does not do his/her own taxes (34 percent). Coming in second (23 percent) are concerns about personal information on the Internet.

The Consumer Internet Barometer is based on a quarterly survey of10,000 households. A unique sample is surveyed each quarter. Return ratesaverage 70 percent, which ensures highly representative data. Data is weighted as well to reflect the latest U.S. household demographic information. The latest survey was conducted during the first quarter of2007.

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Homeland Security Data Mining System Raises Privacy Worries, Investigators Say

A planned new data-mining tool from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) raises privacy issues, government investigators warn.

A technique for extracting useful information from large volumes of data, data mining offers potential benefits but also raises privacy concerns when the data include personal information, notes the Government Accountability Office (GAO), which issued a report on the matter.

GAO is the nonpartisan, investigative arm of Congress.

ADVISE is a data mining tool under development intended to help DHS analyze large amounts of information. It is designed to allow an analyst to search for patterns in data—such as relationships among people, organizations, and events—and to produce visual representations of these patterns, referred to as semantic graphs.

None of the three planned DHS implementations of ADVISE that GAO reviewed are fully operational. (GAO says it did not review uses of the tool by the DHS Office of Intelligence and Analysis.) The intended benefit of the ADVISE tool is to help detect threatening activities by facilitating the analysis of large amounts of data. DHS is currently in the process of testing the tool’s effectiveness.

Use of the ADVISE tool raises a number of privacy concerns, GAO warns.

DHS has added security controls to the tool; however, it has not assessed privacy risks. Privacy risks that could apply to ADVISE include the potential for erroneous association of individuals with crime or terrorism and the misidentification of individuals with similar names. A privacy impact assessment would identify specific privacy risks and help officials determine what controls are needed to mitigate those risks, GAO says.

"ADVISE has not undergone such an assessment because DHS officials believe it is not needed given that the tool itself does not contain personal data. However, the tool’s intended uses include applications involving personal data, and the E-Government Act and related guidance emphasize the need to assess privacy risks early in systems development," GAO says. "Further, if an assessment were conducted and privacy risks identified, a number of controls could be built into the tool to mitigate those risks.

"For example, controls could be implemented to ensure that personal information is used only for a specified purpose or compatible purposes, and they could provide the capability to distinguish among individuals that have similar names to address the risk of misidentification," GAO adds. "Because privacy has not been assessed and mitigating controls have not been implemented, DHS faces the risk that ADVISE-based system implementations containing personal information may require costly and potentially duplicative retrofitting at a later date to add the needed controls."

To ensure that privacy protections are in place, GAO is recommending that the secretary of Homeland Security immediately conduct a privacy impact assessment of the ADVISE tool and implement privacy controls, as needed, to mitigate any identified risks.

GAO says that DHS generally agreed with the content of the GAO report and described actions initiated to address GAO’s recommendations.

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TSA Launches Airport-Wide Security Surge

The U.S. Transportation Security Administration (TSA) announced the first in a series of airport employee security operations to increase security measures at U.S. airports. The surge operation is underway at Orlando International, TampaInternational, Miami International, Ft. Lauderdale/Hollywood Internationaland Luis Munoz Marin International (San Juan, P.R.) airports.

TSA has deployed 160 transportation security officers, aviation security inspectors, federal air marshals and other personnel to increase current employee and passenger security capabilities at these five airports. TSA began randomly screening employees working in secure areas of the airport approximately one year ago at 20 airports, and broadened the program early last fall. Now, roving groups of officers screen employees on a random and unpredictable basis nationwide, the agency says.

TSA was created to boost airport and airline security following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

"TSA moves in a flexible, nimble fashion to address vulnerabilities with a layered security approach," says TSA Administrator Kip Hawley. "Every employee should have a reasonable expectation that they could be screened at any time, at any access point within the footprint of the airport."

TSA will conduct additional operations in other regions in the coming weeks and months on an unannounced basis. While there is no intelligence that indicates a specific threat to aviation in Florida or Puerto Rico, this mobilization illustrates TSA's ability to quickly and unpredictably deploy assets based on risk, the agency says.

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Secure Border Net At Risk of Failure, Gov't Audit Says

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security's development of its SBInet program needs improvement or risks failure, according to a Government Accountability Office (GAO) investigation.

SBInet is one element of the DHS Secure Border Initiative (SBI). SBInet is responsible for developing a comprehensive border protection system. According to DHS, the system is to cover 6,000 miles of U.S. border and is designed to:

• Detect an entry when it occurs.
• Identify what the entry is.
• Classify its level of threat (who the entrant is,
  what the entrant is doing, how many, etc.).
• Respond effectively and efficiently to
  the entry, and bring the situation to the
  appropriate law enforcement resolution.

"To its credit, the SBInet contract was generally competed in accordance with federal requirements. However, the SBInet contract does not fully satisfy the federal regulatory requirement to specify a maximum dollar value or the number of units that may be ordered," GAO says in a new report. "We also reported that important management controls provided for in [White House] Office of Management and Budget (OMB) guidance and best practices were not yet in place, although the program manager stated that he was committed to doing so. Until they are in place, the program is at increased risk of failure."

GAO is the nonpartisan, investigative arm of Congress.

"DHS’s plan to execute SBInet activities through a series of concurrent task orders introduces additional risk. With multiple related and dependent projects being undertaken simultaneously, SBInet is exposed to possible cost and schedule overruns and performance problems," the report says.

"Without assessing this level of concurrency and how it affects project implementation, SBInet runs the risk of not delivering promised capabilities and benefits on time and within budget," the report adds. "SBI and SBInet officials told us that they understand the risks inherent in concurrency and are addressing these risks. However, as of December 2006, they had not provided evidence that identified the dependencies among their concurrent activities and that they were proactively managing the associated risk."


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NSF, DHS Team to Address Nuclear Threats

The U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) and the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Domestic Nuclear Detection Office (DNDO) have issued a joint solicitation to encourage long-term, transformational advances in nuclear detection technology.

The agencies envision the research leading to next-generation detection systems for identifying nuclear weapons, nuclear material, radiation dispersal devices and related threats, they say.

"Five NSF directorates and two offices will be participating in the initiative," says NSF program director Bruce Hamilton. "Expertise will span multiple academic disciplines, necessary for forming a comprehensive platform to guide fundamental research on domestic nuclear detection."

DNDO intends to provide $58 million over 5 years to fund the effort with proposals going to NSF for review through the agency's merit-based process. Peer-review panels will consist of experts recruited jointly by NSF and DNDO.

The funding will grant opportunities for colleges and universities that will focus on detection systems, individual sensors or other research relevant to the detection of nuclear weapons, special nuclear material, radiation dispersal devices and related threats, DHS says. The program is called the Academic Research Initiative and will foster frontier research and build the nation’s intellectual capital in nuclear sciences.

“This Academic Research Initiative is a critical element in building the nation’s intellectual capital in nuclear detection capability,” says DNDO Director Vayl Oxford. “Continued advances in science and technology are a key element in the long-term effort to protect the Nation against nuclear attacks.”


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In Case of Terrorist Attack At The Mall

A RAND Corporation report identifies and prioritizes 39 security measures that can substantially reduce the risk of terrorist attacks at enclosed shopping centers.

The study ranks the security measures based on the relative risks of a set of attack scenarios and on the cost and effectiveness of each measure. It identifies a high-priority set of six to 10 security measures that can cut terrorism risk to just one-fifteenth the level it would otherwise be, based on case studies of three enclosed shopping centers in the United States.

The highest priority measures identified by the RAND study span a range of approaches and include: public information campaigns encouraging people to report suspicious packages; placing vehicle barriers at pedestrian entrances to block suicide car bombers; searching kiosks for bombs and weapons; more clearly labeling exits so shoppers can quickly find their way out of malls in an emergency; and searching all bags and requiring everyone entering shopping centers to remove their coats to check for explosives and weapons.

Costs of implementing the highest priority security measures range from $500,000 to $2 million per year per at each of the three shopping centers examined. In addition, researchers found that implementing the high-priority measures would be 95 percent as effective as implementing all 39 measures.

“The RAND analysis does not assess the probability of terrorist attacks at shopping centers and does not suggest that the risk is high or increasing,” says Tom LaTourrette, lead researcher on the project.

Millions of people shop safely at shopping centers every day, but the threat of terrorist attacks at the centers has become a more prominent concern since the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. There have been more than 60 terrorist attacks against shopping centers in 21 countries since 1998.

The report by RAND, a nonprofit research organization, uses a quantitative modeling approach to rank security measures with the goal of achieving the greatest risk reduction for the least cost.

The ranking approach considers the relative likelihoods and consequences of different types of terrorist attacks at commercial shopping centers based on historical data, identifies site-specific physical security measures that could reduce these risks, and uses a model to prioritize the measures according to estimates of cumulative risk reduction and cumulative annual cost.

Despite examining centers that span a wide range in size and layout, the prioritization of security measures among the three centers studied by RAND is very similar, with eight of the top 10 measures being the same for all centers.

The report also finds that disaster preparedness plans and exercises that focus primarily on emergency response have limited effectiveness in reducing terrorism risk. The vast majority of terrorism risk derives from bomb attacks, which have immediate effects that abate quickly. This poses constraints on what can be done to reduce consequences once such an attack has occurred.

While shopping center operators could choose to implement some of the security measures identified in this report immediately, many of the measures may not be feasible or appropriate under current conditions. As a result, a tiered implementation may be the best strategy, implementing a set of security options most appropriate for today's environment and developing plans today for further measures if the environment changes for the worse, Rand says.

The report also notes that the impact of the security measures on shopping center business will depend on how shoppers and merchants perceive the terrorism threat. Some shoppers may dislike increased security and come to more secure centers less frequently, while others shoppers may prefer to go to centers with increased security because they will feel safer.

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Border Security System Faces Strategic, Operational, Technological Challenges

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security's US-VISIT border security system faces a variety of technological and other challenges, a government watchdog agency says.

US-VISIT is designed to collect, maintain, and share data on selected foreign nationals entering and exiting the United States at air, sea, and land ports of entry (POEs). These data, including biometric identifiers like digital fingerprints, are to be used to screen persons against watch lists, verify identities, and record arrival and departure.

US-VISIT entry capability had been installed at 154 of the 170 land POEs. Officials at all 21 sites visited by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) reported that US-VISIT had improved their ability to process visitors and verify identities.

DHS plans to further enhance US-VISIT’s capabilities by, among other things, requiring new technology and equipment for scanning all 10 fingerprints, notes GAO, the nonpartisan investigative arm of Congress.

"While this may aid border security, installation could increase processing times and adversely affect operations at land POEs where space constraints, traffic congestion, and processing delays already exist. GAO’s work indicated that management controls in place to identify such problems and evaluate operations were insufficient and inconsistently administered," GAO says.

For example, GAO identified computer processing problems at 12 sites visited; at 9 of these, the problems were not always reported. US-VISIT has developed performance measures, but measures to gauge factors that uniquely affect land POE operations were not developed; these would put US-VISIT officials in a better position to identify areas for improvement, GAO finds.

US-VISIT officials concluded that, for various reasons, a biometric US-VISIT exit capability cannot now be implemented without incurring a major impact on land POE facilities. An interim nonbiometric exit technology tested did not meet the statutory requirement for a biometric exit capability and thus cannot ensure that visitors who enter the country are those who leave, GAO says.

"DHS had not yet reported to Congress on a required plan describing how it intended to fully implement a biometric entry/exit program or use nonbiometric solutions. Until this plan is finalized, neither DHS nor Congress is in a good position to prioritize and allocate program resources or plan for POE facilities modifications," GAO adds.

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Company Commercializes Caltech Tech To Improve Security

A company that commercializes technologies from NASA and the US Department of Defense, announced that the company has made significant strides leveraging so-called "SHINE" expert system technology licensed from Caltech to pursue major opportunities in the commercial, defense, and homeland security sectors.

To penetrate the growing market formaritime container screening, port security, automated threat detection, real-time sensor fusion and embedded diagnostics/prognostics applications, VIASPACE Security says it is identifying and developing relationships with potential new customers, adding staff and resources to its SHINE-based development efforts, executing on its contract with L-3 Communications forthe US Department of Homeland Security's Advanced Container Security Device project, and teaming with Raytheon Company's Network Centric Systems on security and surveillance applications.

VIASPACE has an exclusive license from Caltech to commercialize SHINE technology for most major applications including container security, diagnostics/prognostics, sensor fusion and homeland defense. SHINE is areal-time inference engine and software platform originally developed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory for space flight operations, and is used in several NASA applications including the Mars Exploration Rover and Spacecraft Health Automatic Reasoning Pilot (SHARP) program.

Security Inc. is leveraging the technology along with its own development efforts to deliver high performance, real-time inference andsensor data fusion-based technologies, products and services. Sensor fusion combines large volumes of data, observations, and inferences derived frommultiple sources and sensors to generate reliable decision-supportinformation in critical applications where speed, accuracy and ease of deployment are crucial, the company says.


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Study Reveals U.S. Firefighters Face Critical Shortages

A recent study fromthe U.S. Fire Administration, a division of the Department of Homeland Security, reveals that many firehouses across the U.S. lack adequate funding for some of the most essential firefighting tools.

Among the greatest needs are communications equipment, protective gear and training. To call attention to the many ways firefighters contribute to their communities and to help promote awareness of their long list of needs, Circuit City's new firedog services brand recently launched "firedog Across America." The national online essay contest invites Americans to nominate their local firefighters for outstanding service andthe chance to win $550,000 in much needed donations.

"Firefighters risk their lives everyday to protect us. However, as the U.S. Fire Administration study indicates, many firehouses are in seriousneed of additional resources," says Peter Weedfald, senior vicepresident and chief marketing officer, Circuit City Stores, Inc. "Through'firedog Across America,' we hope not only to demonstrate our appreciation for firefighters' dedicated service, but also promote awareness across the country of their equipment and training needs."

The 2006 U.S. Fire Administration study -- "Four Years Later -- A Second Needs Assessment of the U.S. Fire Service" -- was co-authored by theNational Fire Protection Agency. Based on responses from more than 15,000 firehouses nationwide, the results indicate a serious need in the areas of equipment and training.

Findings indicate that an estimated:

-- 65 percent of fire departments do not have enough portable radios to equip all emergency responders on a shift.

-- 60 percent of fire departments do not have enough self-contained breathing apparatus to equip all firefighters on a shift.

-- 66 percent of departments have at least some personal protective clothing that is at least 10 years old.

-- 14 percent of departments protecting communities with populations less than 2,500 have no ladder/aerial apparatus but have at least one building four stories high or higher in the community.

-- 36 percent of fire departments deliver emergency medical services (EMS), but have not provided formal EMS training to all involved personnel.

-- 63 percent of fire departments involved in wildland firefighting have not provided formal training in those duties to all involved personnel.

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Lab Uses RFID To Create Government Security System

An electronic accountability system developed at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) will result in savings of more than $2 million per year at one federal facility alone and will ensure 100 percent accountability of employees.

A pilot test of the system, which uses radio frequency technology to tag and identify people and equipment, was so successful at the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency's Washington Navy Yard that ORNL was asked to install a system at the agency's facility in St. Louis. The performance achieved at the 600,000-square-foot six-floor facility represents a huge accomplishment, the lab says.

"Never before had a government agency allowed the use of active radio frequency identification technology within a classified facility of this type," says Gary Steimer, a program manager in ORNL's National Security Directorate.

To gain approval to design and install such a system within a secure facility, the ORNL team had to conduct extensive research and testing to ensure that no classified information would be compromised by the radio transmissions from the RFID equipment. After several months of testing, ORNL researchers recommended an engineering solution for a pilot program that was ultimately approved by the government.

Steimer notes that the system, dubbed the RFID Accountability System, or RAS, provides a solution to an enormous and expensive problem because of the tens of thousands of items to be inventoried.

"The equipment accountability system alone will save the government both manpower and money," Steimer says. "The workforce used to conduct inventories and track equipment will be reduced by about 80 percent."

Perhaps even more importantly, the ORNL system safeguards people.

"In any federal or state building that houses hundreds or thousands of employees, knowing where people are is a tremendous concern," Steimer says. "In the event of a drill or actual emergency, our system lets responders know quickly who is still in the building."

The system, developed by Greg Hanson and John Jones of the lab's Engineering Science and Technology Division and Angela Sexton of the Computational Sciences and Engineering Division, provides the capability to easily enter all assets into a custom-designed database. Once this is done, employees can perform quick and accurate inventories simply by rolling a mobile cart into each office. The equipment tags are activated, allowing for an accurate hands-off inventory that can be viewed instantly.

In the November test at the Washington Navy Yard, for the first time the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency was able to achieve 100 percent accountability of RFID-tagged personnel, whether the employees were still in the building or in one of the several assembly areas.

"By using the ORNL-developed RFID accountability system first responders can now be directed to the exact floor and zone where people are trapped, thus expediting recovery operations and saving lives," Hanson says.

Specifically, the software and hardware systems developed by ORNL provide information about exact locations of people in the building, people who left the building and the time they left and the exits they used.

Funding for the project was provided by the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency, whose mission is to provide timely, relevant and accurate geospatial intelligence in support of national security.


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Homeland Security Chief Uses His Authority To Allow Refugees

Michael Chertoff, U.S. secretary of homeland security, says he is using his discretionary authority for foreign nationals to petition the U.S. government for asylum despite providing assistance to terrorist groups under duress.

"The United States of America has a great legacy as a welcoming nation to legitimate refugee and asylum seekers from around the world. Indeed, America has traditionally welcomed more refugee and asylum seekers than any other nation in the world," says Chertoff. "The federal government has upheld that tradition while working hard to eliminate the risk of unintentionally admitting a potentially dangerous and fraudulent petitioner in a post-9/11 world.

"A select group of foreign nationals have been unable to pursue the protections provided by our refugee and asylum laws because they have been uniquely victimized by terrorist groups," Department of Homeland Security boss Chertoff adds. "This group as a whole does not represent a threat to our homeland security. I, therefore, will exercise my discretionary authority to permit consideration of applications for refugee status, asylum or adjustment of status from some who have provided material support to groups while under duress."

Homeland security chief Chertoff says he also decided, in consultation with the U.S. departments of State and Justice, to exercise his discretionary authority under the Immigration and Nationality Act to not apply material support to terrorism provisions to those seeking asylum or adjustment of status that have provided support to eight groups.

Chertoff says those groups are: the Karen National Union and Karen National Liberation Army, Chin National Front and Chin National Army, Chin National League for Democracy, Kayan New Land Party, Arakan Liberation Party, Tibetan Mustangs, Cuban Alzados, and Karenni National Progressive Party.

"The material support to terrorism exemption will apply to individuals who do not represent a public safety or national security risk to the United States," homeland security chief Chertoff says. "In addition to exempting from the material support bar eligible individuals in these two categories, the federal government will also seek legislation from Congress to further expand our discretionary exemption authority. We are deeply committed to ensuring that those who deserve humanitarian relief from our immigration system receive it, and that America continues to be a beacon of hope and protection for the persecuted."


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