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"FBI Wants Law Targeting Hats, Sunglasses in Banks"
Seattle Times (09/14/07) ; Sullivan, Jennifer FBI special agent Larry Carr, head of the agency's bank-robbery division in Seattle, is working with Washington state lawmakers to craft a measure that would ban customers from wearing hats and sunglasses inside a bank in a bid to cut down on a spate of bank robberies. There have been 113 bank robberies in Washington this year, including two in Seattle on Wednesday involving a man who wore a hard hat and safety goggles. Bank robbers have become aware that the surveillance cameras used by banks are often positioned too high. "Even if you zoom in, all you're getting is the tighter picture of a baseball cap," Carr says. "Banks can spend billions of dollars on surveillance systems, and it's meaningless." To remedy the situation, Carr recommends that banks lower their cameras to capture better images of faces if a hat, cap, or hoodie is worn. Some banks have heeded this advice, while others are asking customers to remove headwear inside the bank.
(go to web site) "NFL Fines Belichick; Patriots Lose Pick"
Associated Press (09/14/07) ; Golen, Jimmy New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick was fined $500,000 and the team will lose a conditional first-day draft pick in 2008 for using a video camera to spy on opposing coaches. Although Belichick received a record fine for a head coach, he was not suspended by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and will coach in the Patriots' next game. The team was fined an additional $250,000 and will lose a first-round draft choice if they make the playoffs or both their second-and-third round picks if they do not. The incident came after Patriots video assistant Matt Estrella was caught with a video camera on the sideline of the New York Jets at Giants Stadium, apparently taping the coaching staff's signals during a 38-14 victory for New England. NFL rules specifically state that no video recording devices are allowed, and the commissioner's office sent a memo before the season to all head coaches and general managers reiterating that videotaping of any kind is prohibited. "This episode represents a calculated and deliberate attempt to avoid longstanding rules designed to encourage fair play and promote honest competition on the playing field," wrote Goodell in a letter to the Patriots. The revelation that the Patriots were taping their opponents' offensive and defensive signals, combined with past accusations of videotaping, has some questioning the integrity of New England's three recent Super Bowl victories. Philadelphia Eagles kick returner Reno Mahe, who was a member of the 2005 team that lost in the Super Bowl to New England, said, "I think they should forfeit, man. We won the Super Bowl. I think we should get it. I'm going to go trade my NFC championship ring for a Super Bowl ring."
(go to web site) "Eco-Radical on Trial Under Terror Law"
Forbes (09/11/07) ; Hoffman, Allison Earth Liberation Front (ELF) spokesman Rod Coronado will soon be tried on a count of disseminating information on explosives with the aim of inciting others to perform illegal and violent acts. The allegations stem from August 2003, when Coronado described how to build a Molotov cocktail from an apple-juice jug mere hours after a $50 million condo project was destroyed by fire in what seemed to be an eco-terror attack. As an ELF spokesman, Coronado has a reputation as a promoter of arson and other illegal methods. Coronado has not been connected to the condo fire, but prosecutors allege that Coronado sought followers, citing a statement made by Coronado on TV's "60 Minutes" in which he asked people to be "courageous enough to take those risks for what they believe in.” Coronado claims that his demonstration of how to build an incendiary tool came in response to an audience member’s query, and that he was simply replying to the question, not stirring people to action. The trial’s jurors will have to determine whether Coronado’s speech was protected by his First Amendment right to speak in public about illegal activities, or whether Coronado intended for his words to prompt specific violence. If the jury decides against Coronado, he could face 20 years in federal prison under post 9/11 laws. Coronado says he had not realized the extent to which 9/11 changed America’s tolerance for civil disobedience and violence, even in the realm of environmental activism.
(go to web site) "Unauthorized Access"
Security Technology & Design (08/07) Vol. 17, No. 8, P. 40 ; Scott, Kathy During the recent redesign of a Catholic high school in Dubuque, Iowa, into a split high school and middle school, officials sought to avoid the potential for unauthorized access that haunted the community in 1993 when a man hiding in an elementary-school girls' restroom assaulted a young child. A vital element of the new school's security plan was to manage access control and ensure that visitors could be identified, and the school hired Dubuque security integrator Comelec Services to handle its security plan. Comelec Services provided longtime police-force member Mike Rettenmeier as account manager, in which role he evaluated the school and business securities challenges on the police's behalf. Rettenmeier's plan was a tiered one, separating immediate needs from secondary needs that could be phased in more slowly. Ideas that were put into place included proximity card readers at entrances, locked doors all throughout the building (other than the entry doors, for an hour prior to the start of school), and training of staff and students on standard procedures to follow. The proximity cards, which work with the Continental Instruments CardAccess System and CA3000 Multi-User software, have unique codes to identify each person using them. The school installed motion-activated Panasonic dome CCTV cameras, with a Capture digital video recorder amassing footage that is stored for one month, along with the Gemini Alarm Panel P9600 burglary intrusion system from NAPCO. Among the principles of visitor control for schools are establishing one clearly marked main entrance, creating a procedure for signing visitors in and out and escorting them, securing delivery doors and custodial entrances, maintaining and repairing the doors, using magnetic locks for doors, and ensuring that staff, students, and parents know the security rules and why it is important to follow them.
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"Bin Laden Wants 'Caravan' of Martyrs"
Associated Press (09/11/07) A new video featuring Osama bin Laden has been released on the sixth anniversary of 9/11, showing one of the hijackers prophesying great losses by the United States. IntelCenter, a monitoring group outside of Washington, privately obtained the video, which showed Waleed al-Shehri of American Airlines Flight 11 giving his last rites. The video opens with a voiceover of bin Laden as his picture is displayed against a brown backdrop, praising the achievements of the young World Trade Center hijacker. In the tape, al-Shehri threatened that America would be attacked on all sides and would have a similar demise as the Soviet Union. In the video, bin Laden urges others to follow al-Shehri's example. "It remains for us to do our part. So I tell every young man among the youth of Islam: It is your duty to join the caravan (of martyrs) until the sufficiency is complete and the march to aid the High and Omnipotent continues," he says. Authorities are not sure if the video is a recent or postdated installment from bin Laden.
(go to web site) "Germans Hunt 49 in 'Fritz the Taliban' Terror Plot"
Times Online (UK) (09/09/07) ; Smith, Nicola German police investigating a terror suspect believe he is part of a larger ring of up to 49 Islamists planning to blow up airports, bars, discos, and other public areas frequented by Americans. Though neighbors and acquaintances of the suspect, Bavarian-born Fritz Gelowicz, are surprised at his arrest, investigators say he has been involved with an extreme sect of Islam since converting at age 18 and that he attended a Taliban prep camp near the Afghanistan/Pakistan border in March of last year, where he is speculated to have received specific instructions. Gelowicz is the ringleader of a plot which Scotland Yard and MI5 authorities say bears many resemblances to the terrorist bombings in England in the past several years. Investigators believe there are direct connections between contacts in Germany and Pakistan, due to an intelligence interception by the U.S. Though the "hard core" of terror suspects appears to be between seven and 10 and are dispersed around Germany and the Middle East, Germany's federal police are following connections between Gelowicz and about 49 others involved in the scheme, dubbed the "Fritz the Taliban" plot.
(go to web site) "Philippine Police Seize 7 Men Suspected of Tourist Island Bomb Plots"
International Herald Tribune (09/11/07) An attempt to bomb public tourist and shopping locations was intercepted by police officers in the southern Philippines, officials reported on Tuesday. One of seven apprehended men was high-profile terrorism suspect Omar Jakarain, also known as Abu Moguera, who was wanted in connection with the 2001 kidnapping scheme that left two Americans and several others dead. Authorities believe Moguera may also lead them to the Jemaah Islamiyah operative Dulmatin, a participant in the 2002 Bali bombings now dodging authorities in the southern Philippines. The detained suspects are said to be members of Jemaah Islamiyah and Abu Sayyaf, whose attacks were meant to be a distraction from other military offensives in the Basilan and Jolo islands. Following the arrest of Moguera and two accomplices, police raided a home in Puerto Princesa and arrested an Abu Sayyaf suspect and two others whom they believed might bomb public markets and government centers. In light of these arrests and another made Saturday of a man carrying a homemade bomb inside a shopping mall in Mindanao, authorities believe they are making progress in apprehending terrorists involved in August's Basilan and Jolo bombings.
(go to web site) "Six Pipelines Blown Up in Mexico"
Los Angeles Times (09/11/07) ; Johnson, Reed Six oil and natural gas pipelines in Mexico's Veracruz and Tlaxcala states were blown up early Monday morning in what looks like a political warning to President Calderon from leftist groups. Though there were no injuries, blazes from the pipelines, owned by Pemex, forced over 15,000 citizens away from their homes and two major highways out of commission. Authorities believe the recent attacks are also attributed to the leftist guerilla group Popular Revolutionary Army (EPR), who in July orchestrated a series of explosions on pipelines in the states of Queretaro and Guanajuato, actions which they vow to continue until the government reveals information on two disappeared EPR partisans from Oaxaca. Calderon, who was absent at the time of the attacks and issued a press release from New Delhi, stated that "those who attack the security of Mexic ... attack against democracy and against Mexico," though some political analysts believe Calderon has failed to include leftist groups in legislative decisions and is now feeling their ire. According to analyst Jose Antonio Crespo, Calderon has not given the left a chance to engage in politics and has failed to give voice to leftist concerns. Pemex's pipelines already contain many vulnerabilities and stretch through desolate stretches of land, making it hard to protect, says one national security advisor, which makes an easy target of the world's sixth-largest oil producer. Close to home, local company Vitro has already had to temporarily shut down several of it's glass-container producing facilities and an automotive-glass production facility due to fuel shortages caused by July's explosions, while hundreds more experienced similar frustrations.
(go to web site) "Turkey Finds Large Bomb Near Route of Presidential Convoy"
World Tribune (09/12/07) A 300-kilogram bomb discovered in Turkey on Sept. 10 was near the route of Prime Minister Recep Erdogan's convoy, say insiders. The bomb, found under a mini-bus, was the largest seen in Turkey in several years. "I do not even want to think about what would have happened if the attack had succeeded," says Ankara Gov. Kemal Onal. A Turkish security official said that the bomb could have killed hundreds of people if it had gone off in the middle of the crowded commercial district. Authorities have concluded that the bomb plot was the work of al Qaeda operatives. After the bomb was discovered, Erdogan was moved to his home, accompanied by heavy security.
(go to web site) "Group With Ties to Al Qaeda Says It Was Behind Blasts in Algeria"
New York Times (09/10/07) Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb was responsible for two recent bombings in Algeria, according to a statement made by the group. On September 8, 2007, a car bomb in Dellys killed 28 coast guard officers who had gathered to raise the flag. The statement, which was published on an Islamic Web site, also claimed responsibility for the bombing on September 6, 2007, which was aimed at Algerian president Abdelaziz Bouteflika, but instead killed at least 22 people waiting to see the president. In the online statement, Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb declared, "We swear to God to continue sacrificing our lives until you stop supporting the crusaders in their war, apply the Islamic tenet and stop your war against God’s religion." To date in 2007, the group has implemented a wave of bombings that has significantly damaged the Algerian government’s endeavors to restore peace to the country. In 1992, an Islamist insurgency erupted in Algeria and widespread violence continued until early in 2007, when the government’s strategy of giving amnesty to reformed militants began to prove successful. The number of militants in the group Salafist Group for Call and Combat began to diminish, as did killings, which may be why the fighters linked themselves to Al Qaeda. The Algerian government has since increased its attacks on Islamic militants.
(go to web site) "ETA Targets Government Building in Failed Car Bomb"
Turkish Press Review (09/10/2007) The ETA has made their third attack in Northern Spain since calling off their ceasefire on June 5, this time targeting a government building in a failed bomb attempt. Two incidents occurred on Sunday and Monday, the first a small explosion near the defense ministry offices in Rioja's capital Logrono, injuring no one, followed by security services defusing 180 pounds of explosives found in a car near the same area on Monday morning. This third incident, along with a July explosion as Tour de France cyclists came through the town of Navarro in July, and an attack on police barracks in Durango in August, are part of a series of attacks that will persist until "there are democratic conditions which allow political schemes to be protected," according to the ETA.
(go to web site) "Group Fears Ties Between Gaza Islamists, Austrian Terror Cell"
Ha'aretz (Israel) (09/13/07) U.S. terrorism experts fear a connection between three citizens recently arrested for an Internet video threat and the Army of Islam group. The three suspects, all of Arab descent, were arrested in Vienna on Sept. 12 in connection with a video released in March distributed through the Voice of the Caliphate. In the video, the group threatened to attack Germany and Austria if their soldiers were not retracted from Afghanistan; Germany has about 3,000 NATO-led peacekeeping soldiers in the country and Austria has only four affiliate officers. SITE, a Washington-based intelligence group that tracks al-Qaeda messages, said in a statement that one of the arrested individuals was likely the ringleader of the Global Islamic Media Front, a group connected with many previous terrorist incidents, and likely the group that released the recent video under a moniker. Authorities say this same individual was highly involved in the kidnapping earlier this year of BBC journalist Alan Johnston in Gaza.
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"Over-Confidence Is Pervasive Amongst Security Professionals"
CSO Online (09/11/07) Security executives may be becoming overconfident when it comes to cyber threats, according to the results of the 2007 E-Crime Watch Survey, which was conducted with the U.S. Secret Service, Carnegie Mellon University Software Engineering Institute's CERT Program, and Microsoft. The study found that while 57 percent of the 671 respondents said they are increasingly concerned about the potential effects of e-crime, 69 percent said they have reduced spending on IT security by 5 percent and corporate security by 15 percent. The survey also found that 37 percent of security executives believed that cybercrimes committed by people outside of their organization caused the most damage, compared with 34 percent who said insider crimes caused the most damage. As a result, many executives are doing less to address insider threats. Background checks were used by 57 percent of organizations this year, down from 73 percent last year, while 84 percent of organizations used account/password management policies this year, down from 91 percent last year. The survey also revealed that most e-crimes, whether committed by an insider or an outsider, are handled internally without involving legal action or law enforcement. When asked why they did not pursue legal action against the perpetrators of e-crimes, 40 percent said that the damage level was insufficient to warrant prosecution, 34 percent said there was a lack of evidence, and 28 percent said they could not identify the individuals responsible.
(go to web site) "Web Sites for Germany's Turks Fuel Fear of Homegrown Terror"
Wall Street Journal (09/13/07) P. A7 ; Crawford, David Islamist Web sites translated into German and Turkish have German authorities concerned that terrorist cells are springing up within the country's borders. According to intelligence officials, several Islamist Web sites affiliated with terror groups, including al Qaeda, have been found which appeal to German's two-million plus Turkish community, soliciting Islamist support and recruits. Though previous Islamist Websites appeared in Arabic only, this new swath of Web sites in German and Turkish appeal to indigenous citizens, which officials say is a greater threat in light of recent terrorist attacks in Europe. "Germany's Turkish population is a huge Internet audience that is worthwhile for Muslim extremists to target," says German intelligence official Herbert Muller. Two ethnic German Muslim proselytes and an indigenous Turk residing in Germany were recently arrested for planning to stage a bombing attack in Germany.
(go to web site) "Interpol Proposes Global, Regional Centers to Fight Cybercrime"
Dow Jones Newswires (09/12/07) On Wednesday, Interpol recommended the establishment of worldwide and regional anti-crime facilities to combat criminal activity on the Internet and respond rapidly to emergency cybercrime notifications. Interpol Secretary-General Ronald K. Noble stated at a global cybercrimes conference in New Delhi that the Internet should not be permitted to become a place where criminals can do what they wish and avoid punishment. The centers would aid police throughout the world in investigations, instruction, and obtaining resources from a team made up of police officers and computer experts, he explained. "Globally, instances of money laundering through e-channels for terrorist funding have assumed menacing proportions," Indian Home Minister Shivraj Patil noted.
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