Accenture to Add New Biometrics to DHS Program on $71M Contract

Accenture‘s federal services subsidiary has been selected to enhance a U.S. Department of Homeland Security biometric and biographic identity management system.

The U.S. Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology program helps federal, state and local officials determine whether travelers can legally enter or remain in the U.S., the company said. 

The company will work to increase the…

Man Sentenced to Prison for Attempting to Corrupt TSA Computer Database

A Colorado man has been handed a two-year prison term for attempting to damage a protected computer while he was employed by government contractor.

According to court documents, Douglas James Duchak worked at Transportation Security Administration’s computer center as a data analyst, employed by a government contractor. Initially, he was responsible for receiving information from various federal government databases, and preparing that information to be uploaded…

Zeus Malware Distributed via Terror-Themed Spam

Spammers are notorious for latching on to the most recent trend in an effort to increase click rates. Recently, a spam campaign containing Zeus malware utilized recent concerns over terrorism to send messages which appeared to be sent by the Department of Homeland Security, TSA and DoD.

Researchers at Sophos Labs have discovered the low-yield campaign which targets government users with enticing subjects like “Report on Defending and Operating in…

Is the U.S. Ready for X-Ray Vision?

The recent attempts by underwear bomber Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab to detonate explosives on flight to Detroit in December and the attempt by a terrorist in Saudi Arabia to blow up Prince Mohammed bin Nayef with explosives in his rectum, has raised concern among transportation officials on how to detect explosives hidden beneath clothing. The U.S., along with several other…

TSA Employee Attempted Sabotage on Terror Database

Former U.S. Transportation Security Agency data analyst, Douglas Duchak, has been accused of trying to sabotage a terrorist database one week after losing his job. The database stores updated information from the government’s terrorist watch-list and criminal histories. Also, the database is used to examine people with access to sensitive information and secure data.

The attack was designed to cause damage intentionally by disrupting data on servers. Planting malicious code…