Security Briefs - Oct. 9 - Oct. 15
b>The Latest Headlines:
- Logan Airport to Test Cargo Screening
- FDA Modifies Food Import Rules
- Airport Screeners Look for Pillow Bombs
- FedEx Forms Police Force to Battle Terrorism, Crime
- Counterrorism Official to Leave FBI
- FDA Modifies Food Import Rules
Logan Airport to Test Cargo Screening
Boston's Logan International Airport will become the first airport to electronically screen cargo before it is loaded on commercial flights as part of a test program, the Associated Press reported.The 30-day program began Tuesday and will use a screening machine to scan full truckloads of cargo at the airport for explosives.
After the pilot program, Logan is expected to try other versions of the technology and decide on a new security approach for cargo.
FDA Modifies Food Import Rules
The Food and Drug Administration issued new regulations Thursday that would require all food manufacturers and distributors to register with the agency, and all food importers to notify it whenever their products are headed to the United States, news services reported.The regulations, which were proposed in February and then modified in discussions with the food industry, go into effect Dec. 12, Dow Jones reported. Food constitutes about 20% of all imports to the United States, the Associated Press said.
The rules announced Thursday require a two-hour notification for goods coming by road, four hours for goods coming by rail or air and eight hours for goods arriving by ship. The initial proposal called for an almost 24-hour notification period.
FDA Commissioner Mark McClellan said at a news conference that improvements in information technology make it possible for the agency, along with customs agents, to flag high-risk shipments in the time allowed. Transport Topics
Airport Screeners Look for Pillow Bombs
Airport screeners are on the lookout for suspicious pillows, coats and stuffed animals after U.S. intelligence concluded that terrorists are being trained to apply special chemicals to the material inside to transform them into bombs, the Washington Post reported Tuesday.Terrorists are allegedly trying to create a chemical called nitrocellulose to fashion explosive devices that could be smuggled aboard jetliners, according to a warning the Department of Homeland Security sent in August to airlines and airport security officials around the world.
Items such as buttons, zippers or wristwatches could be used in tandem with tightly packed nitrocellulose as power sources or ignition components to set off a detonation, the Post reported.
The article also said the Transportation Security Administration is experimenting with new walk-through portals at airports that blow puffs of air on people to shake loose invisible chemical residue on their clothes, possibly revealing explosives. Transport Topics
FedEx Forms Police Force to Battle Terrorism, Crime
FedEx Corp. has started its own police force as a way to protect against terrorist threats and other crimes, the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday.The 10-man force dresses in plain clothes and is accredited by the Tennessee government. They can investigate all types of crimes, request search warrants and make arrests anywhere in the state, although they have yet to arrest anyone.
For FedEx, having a private police force qualifies it to serve on a regional joint terrorism task force, overseen by the FBI, the article said.
The 66 task forces currently in operation around the country are entrusted with more sensitive and specific data regarding terrorist threats than businesses usually receive, the Journal said.
Meanwhile, rival United Parcel Service told the Journal it was not interested in trying to join a terrorist task force, since it said it gets solid information from the Department of Homeland Security. Transport Topics
Counterrorism Official to Leave FBI
Larry Mefford, the FBI's top counterterrorism official, announced his retirement on Wednesday after just three months on the job, the Washington Post reported.Mefford became executive assistant director for counterterrorism and counterintelligence in July. He will leave at the end of October, the Post said.
He is the third person in the past 18 months to hold the position, which was created to oversee terrorism and intelligence investigations. All the senior posts at the FBI have turned over at least once since the Sept. 11 attacks, the Post said. Transport Topics
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