9/11 Panelists Oppose Provisions in House Bill; Security Hardware a Big Sell in Europe; FEMA Intranet Supports Hurricane Victims

9/11 Panelists Oppose Provisions in House Bill

Panelists from the 9/11 commission voiced concerns Thursday over certain provisions of a House bill that will go to the floor next week, according to a report in the Washington Post. At issue are controversial measures that would make it easier to deport undocumented immigrants, add barriers to obtaining asylum and relax standards for sending foreigners to countries where they may be tortured. Also, Thomas Kean, the commission’s chairman and former governor of New Jersey, sharply criticized the House version of the bill (and proposed Senate amendments) which would limit the national intelligence director’s authority over spending and personnel decisions. The Pentagon would retain more of its power in the House version. Said Kean, “This is not an area where one can compromise. If you’re not going to create a strong national intelligence director, with powers both appointive and over the budget, don’t do it.”

For more details, read the full article in the Washington Post.

Security Hardware a Big Sell in Europe

Hardware appliances will overtake spending in other areas, such as firewalls and intrusion prevention systems, in Europe by 2008, according to a report in The Register. “Security in a box is a big advantage. Particularly for firms with a lack of expertise, such as SMEs, but bigger organizations are also seeing the benefits,” IDC Analyst Thomas Raschke told delegates at the IDC Security Conference in London Friday. IDC is a sister company to CXO Media.

For more details, read the full article in The Register.

FEMA Intranet Supports Hurricane Victims

The Federal Emergency Management Agency installed a new intranet system last month to support hurricane victims in the Southeast. According to a report in Computerworld (a sister company of CXO Media), FEMA set up an intranet after Hurricane Charley hit Florida in mid-August. Agency workers could use the system to help process financial relief requests. FEMA hopes the project will lead to further development that will allow it to streamline interaction with other government agencies and establish better contact with first responders.

For more details, read the full article in Computerworld.