IBM, GE Offer Building and Computer Security; U.S. Boosts Funding for Defense of Planes; D.C. Area Loses Water, Power

IBM, GE Offer Building and Computer Security

According to an AP story in todays Boston Globe, companies will be able to tighten their security by linking their computer networks with their building monitoring systems as part of a new service coming from IBM Corp. and General Electric Co. For example, by connecting those systems, a computer network could know that once an employee had exited the building with a swipe card, no one should use his name and password to log on to a computer in the building. The companies will share revenue generated by the project, which IBM and GE believe will help companies better guard against theft of passwords and electronic ID badges and prevent unauthorized access by employees.U.S. Boosts Funding for Defense of PlanesThe San Francisco Chronicle, the decision drew cautious praise on Capitol Hill, where a bipartisan group of U.S. lawmakers has proposed legislation to install antimissile systems on thousands of commercial planes. Intelligence agencies have cited a flurry of reports in recent months suggesting that terrorists affiliated with al Qaeda may be planning new attacks using small, shoulder-fired missiles, which are known to be in the terrorist network’s arsenal and which can be purchased inexpensively on the international arms market. The Bush administration has suggested that a decision to outfit commercial planes may be years away, however. And in the proposal to defense contractors, the Homeland Security Department requested only that prototypes be manufactured.

The Bush administration has decided to commit $100 million to the first phase of development of an antimissile system that could be installed in passenger airplanes. According to a story in

D.C. Area Loses Water, PowerWashington Post. About 4 million customers reportedly lost power in the mid-Atlantic region, including about 1.1 million households and businesses in the D.C. area. The Fairfax County Water Authority announced this morning that electrical failures at three treatment plants left supplies critically low and possibly contaminated. It could be 48 to 72 hours before full service is restored, officials said.

More than a million Northern Virginia residents were urged to begin boiling and conserving their water this morning, as Hurricane Isabel left behind massive power outages, toppled trees, and severe flooding in a smattering of neighborhoods across the Washington region, according to a story in todays