Homeland & Cybersecurity
The latest coverage of the Department of Homeland Security and cyber threats around the globe.
Iran conflict underscores need for combat portable AI data centers
The U.S. military has used artificial intelligence in active combat operations against Iran, and the race is now on to build the infrastructure needed to protect AI while forward deployed in conflict.
DHS calls furloughed employees back to work amid shutdown
Furloughed Department of Homeland Security staff are being called back to work in the thick of the partial government shutdown.
Trump to take matters into his own hands to pay DHS employees, bypassing Congress
President Trump said he will soon sign an executive order to pay all Department of Homeland Security employees during the seventh week of the partial government shutdown.
Trump responds to photos of Kristi Noem’s cross-dressing husband: ‘That’s too bad’
President Trump expressed concern for former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s family after photos of her husband cross-dressing in private messages to adult entertainers circulated online.
Left-wing lawmakers push data center freeze as Al fears fuel backlash
Some of Capitol Hill’s left-wing lawmakers have seized on mounting opposition to data centers and introduced a bill that would place a moratorium on their expansion “to ensure the safety of humanity.”
DHS pausing new immigrant warehouse purchases amid review of Noem-era contracts
The Department of Homeland Security is pausing the purchase of new warehouses intended to house immigrants as it scrutinizes all contracts signed under former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, according to a senior Homeland Security official.
Lawmakers say verdicts against Meta, Google give momentum for bill to protect kids online
Juries in New Mexico and California have accomplished something Congress has unsuccessfully spent years trying to do: Holding social media companies accountable for endangering children who use their platforms.
Maryland man pleads guilty to exploiting 10 minors online for violent extremist network
A Maryland man who belonged to a violent extremist network pleaded guilty to federal child sex abuse charges stemming from a year-long campaign in which he sexually exploited at least 10 minor female victims online, the U.S. Department of Justice announced.
DHS shutdown surpasses record set in fall’s government-wide lapse, with no end in sight
With Congress at a stalemate again, lawmakers left Washington for the Easter and Passover holidays and are not set to return until the week of April 13.
Border czar Tom Homan says TSA agents could get paid as soon as Tuesday
Border czar Tom Homan says the Trump administration plans to start paying Transportation Security Administration workers as soon as Tuesday, hoping to ease the airport delays and cancellations caused by the funding standoff on Capitol Hill.
House GOP passes 8-week Homeland Security funding; shutdown continues with rejection of Senate bill
The six-week Department of Homeland Security shutdown will continue until at least mid-April after House Republicans rejected a Senate-passed partial funding bill in favor of a stopgap measure that lacks the Democratic support needed to become law.
FBI Director Kash Patel’s email hacked by Iran-linked cyber criminals
FBI Director Kash Patel has been the target of an Iranian-linked hack, with his private emails, photos and purported resume being published online.
Trump Justice Department settles social media censorship case against Biden administration
The Justice Department reached a settlement agreement in a lawsuit alleging that the Biden administration pressured social media companies to remove or suppress disfavored speech by American citizens.
Republicans, Democrats spar on status of DHS negotiations as hope fades for ending shutdown
Democrats are still demanding that immigration enforcement agents stop wearing masks and obtain judicial warrants to enter private property as part of a counteroffer on Department of Homeland Security funding they sent Republicans on Wednesday.
Congress members shut down DHS? Then they can forget Delta’s special services
Delta Air Lines said Tuesday that it’s axing perks for members of Congress amid the Department of Homeland Security shutdown.
Judge questions Pentagon’s motives for labeling Anthropic as a security threat in battle over AI
A federal judge weighing the merits of the Pentagon’s designation of rising Silicon Valley star Anthropic as a security threat repeatedly questioned the government’s reasons for vilifying the company following a dispute over how its artificial intelligence technology can be used in war
GOP plan to reopen DHS falters with Trump ‘unhappy,’ Democrats still demanding big changes for ICE
A Republican-led plan to reopen the Department of Homeland Security without funding ICE’s detention and deportation operations is teetering as President Trump said he is “not happy” with it and Democrats said they cannot vote for it without additional changes.
Multimedia
Document: Cybersecurity 2018: Online Security and Safety in Government, Industry and Civil Society
Download the Special Report available in the January 29, 2018, edition of The Washington Times. (3.8 MB)