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☆ Hurricane Milton might cost insurers up to $50 billion — but it could have been much worse, analysts said
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-11 | by ( Lian Kit Wee | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Hurricane Milton's insured losses could cost between $30 billion and $50 billion, said analysts. AdvertisementHurricane Milton stormed Florida on Wednesday, leaving an estimated $30 billion to $50 billion of insured losses, according to analysts from Fitch Ratings in a Thursday note. Milton's insured losses could range from $30 billion to $50 billion, according to Fitch, making it the largest since Hurricane Ian in 2022, which caused $60 billion in damages. According to a September report by Moody's Analytics, Hurricane Helene's insured losses were between $20 billion and $34 billion. Fitch analysts said local insurers might face insufficient reinsurance coverage to handle the losses and drive up premium rates.

Persons: —, Hurricane Milton, Milton, Alejandro Mayorkas, Fitch, Ian, Morningstar DBRS, Jefferies, Ron DeSantis, Helene Organizations: Service, Hurricane, Fitch, US Homeland, White, Morningstar, Reuters, Analytics, National Hurricane Center, Gov, Moody's Analytics, P, Global, Swiss RE Locations: Florida, Tampa, Swiss, Fitch

☆ Apple alerted Amazon about a potential cloud security risk, prompting a change in AWS's data-deletion process
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-05 | by ( Eugene Kim | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Read previewAmazon Web Services made major changes to its data-deletion process after Apple alerted the cloud giant about a potential security risk, according to an internal document obtained by Business Insider. However, the AWS cloud services involved store information such as software, text, audio, video, images, resource identifiers, metadata tags, and permissions. These people asked not to be identified discussing a sensitive cloud security issue. Security is a top priority for AWSAmazon Web Services CEO Matt Garman AmazonFor AWS, security has always been a top priority. The AWS security team suggested taking actions to "meaningfully improve" the quality of the data-deletion process and "define a clear guideline" around it.

Persons: —, It's, Patrick Neighorn, Neighorn, didn't, it's, Justin Cappos, Fabrice Delhoste, Ken Elefant, Matt Garman, Brad Smith Organizations: Service, Services, Apple, Business, Amazon, AWS, BI, Employees, NYU, Sorenson Ventures, Security, Web, US Homeland Security, Microsoft, Committee

☆ Swarms of drones are a rising threat to the US homeland, and law enforcement isn't ready
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-17 | by ( Michael Peck | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

RAND focused on various ways that terrorists inside the US could wreak havoc with drone swarms. Current technology allows unmanned aircraft to be employed in what RAND terms "surrogate swarm technology," in which formations are only loosely coordinated. James Newsome/US ArmyNations such as America and China are busy developing military drone swarms. Such technology is becoming available to the public: the FAA has already allowed limited use of drone swarms to spray crops. Thus the question isn't if intelligent drone swarms become a domestic security threat, but when.

Persons: —, What's, Alfred Hitchcock's, James Newsome, Daniel Gerstein, Gerstein, isn't, Michael Peck Organizations: Service, RAND Corp, Business, RAND's Homeland, Analysis, Department of Homeland Security, RAND, Kremlin, 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment, Threat Systems Management Office, US Army Nations, FAA, Defense, Foreign Policy, Rutgers Univ, Twitter, LinkedIn Locations: Afghanistan, Ukraine, Russia, America, China, North Carolina, Forbes

“I'm focused on the work,” Mayorkas said, “that's what brings me to Las Vegas today.”The Homeland secretary shared the reason for a seven-minute timeout that paused the AFC championship game between the Baltimore Ravens and Kansas City Chiefs on Jan 28. “Super Bowl is a no-drone zone.”Karon Ransom, U.S. Secret Service agent in charge in Las Vegas, put the number of federal law enforcement agents in Las Vegas for the Super Bowl and related events at 750. Clark County Sheriff Kevin McMahill issued a familiar call for people who see something to say something and noted that Las Vegas has hosted a series of recent headline-grabbing events: the Formula One Las Vegas Grand Prix in November; a University of Nevada, Las Vegas shooting in December; New Year's Eve fireworks that drew hundreds of thousands of revelers to the Las Vegas Strip. At least 65,000 people are expected at Allegiant Stadium for the Super Bowl, and Las Vegas tourism officials estimate the number of hotel guests and visitors in the area will top 330,000. Displaying a table piled high with fake sports memorabilia including jerseys, T-shirts, caps and a silver replica of the Vince Lombardi Super Bowl trophy, officials said investigators seized nearly $1 million worth of counterfeit merchandise over the weekend.

Persons: Alejandro Mayorkas, Mayorkas, “ I'm, ” Mayorkas, “, Cathy Lanier, Karon Ransom, ” Spencer Evans, Evans, Kevin McMahill, ” McMahill, Harry Reid, Vince Lombardi Organizations: Vegas, —, NFL, ” League, FBI, Secret Service, Homeland, Allegiant, . House, Biden Administration, AFC, Baltimore Ravens, Kansas City Chiefs, T Bank, Authorities, “, Super, Las, Prix, University of Nevada, Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, Harry, Harry Reid International, Customs, Border, Transportation Security Administration Locations: U.S, Mexico, Las Vegas, Pennsylvania, Vegas, Clark County

US Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas testifies during a Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on October 31, 2023. WASHINGTON — Members of the House Homeland Security Committee are meeting Tuesday to discuss the Republican-led impeachment articles against Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. House Republicans accuse Mayorkas and the Biden administration of disregarding federal laws on immigration and seek to make Mayorkas the second Cabinet official impeached in U.S. history. According to the first impeachment article set forth by House Republicans, Mayorkas "has willfully and systemically refused to comply with Federal immigration laws." The second impeachment article accuses him of breaching the "public trust" and "knowingly" obstructing "lawful oversight of the Department of Homeland Security."

Persons: Alejandro Mayorkas, Mayorkas, Biden, systemically, Mark Green, Donald Trump, Green, Mayorkas's, Bennie Thompson, Thompson, —, Michael McCaul, Marjorie Taylor Greene, … We're, MAGA, Dan Goldman, Goldman, Joe Biden, President Trump, Glenn Ivey, impeaching, I've, Don Bacon, Nick LaLota, He's, … He's, LaLota, — Rebecca Kaplan Organizations: Homeland, Senate Homeland Security, Government, Capitol, WASHINGTON —, House Homeland Security, Republican, Republicans, House Republicans, Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security, Rep, Congress, United, Constitution, Mayorkas, DHS, Democrats Locations: Washington ,, U.S, Texas, D, New York, Cuba

Canadian Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc speaks at a news conference in Ottawa on September 7. Justin Tang/The Canadian Press/AP/FILECanadian Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc said his government is taking the vehicle explosion at the Rainbow Bridge border crossing “extremely seriously,” and is receiving regular updates from US authorities, Royal Canadian Mounted Police, and border service agencies. “This is obviously a very serious situation,” the minister said, but would not speculate on the “origin” of the incident or fatalities due to its "evolving" nature. He and the Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will receive further updates in the “coming moments," he said. Trudeau echoed the minister's sentiments and said the explosion at is “obviously a very serious situation” and additional measures are being "contemplated and activated."

Persons: Dominic LeBlanc, Justin Tang, Leblanc, Justin Trudeau, Trudeau Organizations: Canadian Public, Canadian Press, Public, Royal Canadian Mounted Police, Canadian Locations: Ottawa

The capability of Hamas to coordinate terrorist attacks on Israeli towns without detection has raised concerns about technological blind spots for US intelligence officials, a senior US intelligence official told CNN. But there was no tactical-level intelligence that alerted US officials that an attack of this size would happen on this day. US intelligence officials are focused on understanding the secure communications and training used for the attacks and whether that knowledge is being shared with other groups elsewhere. Speaking publicly Saturday, Israeli officials acknowledged they were caught by surprise at Saturday’s air assault. “I assume the intelligence question will be talked about down the road and we’ll learn what happened there,” he told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer.

Persons: weren’t, Richard Hecht, “, ”, CNN’s Wolf Blitzer, Michael Herzog, “ We’ll Organizations: CNN, American, Israeli Defense Forces, “, Homeland Security, FBI Locations: Israel, Gaza

"I think the potential for unintended harm from the use of AI exists in any federal agency and in any use of AI," said DHS Chief Information Officer Eric Hysen. And when we interact with people, it can be during some of the most critical times of their lives." Historically, academics have flagged the dangers of AI regarding racial profiling and because it can still make errors while identifying relationships in complex data. The guidelines will also require that facial recognition matches discovered using AI technology be manually reviewed by human analysts to ensure their accuracy, according to a new directive that the agency plans to release alongside the AI memo later on Thursday. Another area where DHS has already uses AI technology extensively is on the southern border, where the agency has deployed more than 200 surveillance cameras, said Hysen.

Persons: Marco Bello, Alejandro Mayorkas, Eric Hysen, Hysen, Alexandra Alper, Christopher Bing, Chizu Organizations: U.S . Department of Homeland Security, REUTERS, Rights, Department of Homeland Security, Customs, Border Patrol, DHS, Thomson Locations: Mexico, U.S, Del Rio , Texas, California's San Isidro Port

☆ Exclusive: Smuggler with ties to ISIS helped migrants enter US from Mexico, raising alarm bells across government
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-29 | by ( Katie Bo Lillis Evan Perez Priscilla Alvarez Natasha Bertrand | Katie Bo Lillis | Evan Perez | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

And they are closely scrutinizing a number of the migrants as possible criminal threats, according to two US officials. The security of the southern border has been a political sticking point between Republicans and the Biden administration. John Moore/Getty Images/FILEAdministration officials have also grappled with limited resources as they face a growing number of migrants at the US southern border. In July, border authorities encountered more than 183,000 migrants at the US southern border, according to US Customs and Border Protection data. Both the Biden and Trump administrations have been forced to wrestle with similar cases of suspected terrorists trying to enter the country at the southern border.

Persons: Adrienne Watson, Joe Biden’s, Biden, ” Watson, John Moore, Christopher Wray, ” Wray Organizations: CNN, FBI, ISIS, National Security, Staff, Department of Homeland Security, Turkish, Biden, DHS, Administration, US Customs, Trump, Migrants Locations: Mexico, United States, Uzbekistan, Central Asia, China, Russia, Asia

☆ Pandemic-related asylum restrictions known as Title 42 expire, straining U.S. immigration system
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-12 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +10 min

The expired rule, known as Title 42, was in place since March 2020. While Title 42 prevented many from seeking asylum, it carried no legal consequences, encouraging repeat attempts. Migrants cross the Rio Bravo river to turn themselves in to U.S. Border Patrol agents before Title 42 ends, in Matamoros, Mexico May 10, 2023. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas had already warned of more crowded Border Patrol facilities to come. They were quickly apprehended by Border Patrol agents.

☆ US Homeland Security secretary to visit border ahead of Title 42 lifting
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

WASHINGTON, May 3 (Reuters) - U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas will travel to the Texas border with Mexico this week ahead of the lifting of Title 42, the department said in a statement on Wednesday. The trip comes as the COVID-19 health policy known as Title 42 is set to end on May 11 and the U.S. prepares for a possible subsequent spike in illegal border crossings. Reporting by Katharine JacksonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

CNN —The ISIS-K leader who planned the deadly 2021 suicide bombing at the Kabul international airport’s Abbey Gate was killed by the Taliban, according to the National Security Council. Kirby did not specify when the Taliban killed the ISIS-K leader, but called it one in a “series of high-profile leadership losses” that ISIS-K has suffered this year. The terrorist who carried out the suicide bombing, Abdul Rehman Al-Loghri, had been released from prison only days earlier when the Taliban took control of the area. ISIS-K stands for ISIS-Khorasan, the terror organization’s affiliate that is active in Afghanistan and the surrounding region. Taylor Hoover, who was killed in the bombing, told CNN that he was notified by the military Tuesday morning.

☆ US Homeland security chief creating artificial intelligence task force
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said Friday that the agency would create a task force to figure out how to use artificial intelligence to do everything from protecting critical infrastructure to screening cargo to ferret out products made with slave labor. While artificial intelligence isn't new, the sudden popularity of OpenAI's ChatGPT in recent months has sent officials around the world scrambling to see how they can best use the technology for good and prevent it from turbocharging disinformation and criminal activity. Mayorkas said the Artificial Intelligence Task Force would also explore how AI could be used to do a better job of doing work like screening cargo coming into the country for illicit goods, like fentanyl or products made with slave labor. Mayorkas said on Thursday the new task force may also investigate the potential for AI to be used for pernicious purposes, and find ways to defend against them. Mayorkas said that artificial intelligence was still in "a nascent stage" and that it was too soon to say whether the harms will outweigh the good.

☆ Dalai Lama 'unfairly labelled' over tongue video - Tibet govt-in-exile
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( Rupam Jain | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama, Patron of Children in Crossfire, speaks during a press conference in Londonderry, Northern Ireland September 11, 2017. REUTERS/Clodagh Kilcoyne/File PhotoNEW DELHI, April 13 (Reuters) - The head of Tibet's government-in-exile on Thursday defended the Dalai Lama over footage of him asking a boy to suck his tongue, saying the incident had demonstrated the country's spiritual leader's innocent and affectionate side. Penpa Tsering, the Sikyong (political leader) of the exiled Central Tibetan Administration, said the Dalai Lama had been "unfairly labelled with all kinds of names that really hurt the sentiment of all his followers". The video clip, filmed in February and circulated this month, has been viewed over one million times on Twitter. The Dalai Lama fled to India in 1959 after a failed uprising against Chinese rule in Tibet.

☆ Dalai Lama apologises after video asking boy to 'suck my tongue'
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

NEW DELHI, April 10 (Reuters) - The Dalai Lama, the Tibetans' 87-year-old spiritual leader, apologised on Monday after footage showed him asking a young boy to "suck my tongue" at a public event. "A video clip has been circulating that shows a recent meeting when a young boy asked his Holiness the Dalai Lama if he could give him a hug," said a statement on the exiled leader's Twitter account, which has 19 million followers. The statement said the Dalai Lama leader "often teases people he meets in an innocent and playful way, even in public and before cameras. The Dalai Lama, who fled to India in 1959 after a failed uprising against Chinese rule in Tibet, is regarded by Beijing as a dangerous separatist. Reporting by Shivam Patel in New Delhi, Editing by Angus MacSwanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ North Korea's intercontinental ballistic missiles could hit central US in just 33 minutes, says Chinese study
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( Mia Jankowicz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

North Korea's ICBMs can conceivably penetrate the US missile defense system, a Chinese study found. The study simulated the launch of a Hwasongpho-15 missile towards Columbia, Missouri. The study simulated the firing of a Hwasongpho-15 missile from the central North Korean city of Sunchon, towards Columbia, Missouri, per the SCMP. The report, released mid-February, came ahead of a series of North Korean test-firings this week. On Monday, two strategic cruise missiles were fired from a submarine off North Korea's eastern coast, according to Al-Jazeera.

☆ A top US general warns ISIS will be able to strike Western interests from Afghanistan within 6 months
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

ISIS could strike Western interests from Afghanistan within months, a top US general says. Gen. Michael Kurilla warned the terror group's Afghanistan affiliate could stage attacks abroad. Its "ultimate goal" is to strike the US homeland, Kurilla told lawmakers, which would be difficult. The terror group continued to carry out attacks across Afghanistan in 2022 — targeting everything from schools to mosques, and killing scores of people. In the latter two countries, US and partner forces have carried out nearly 100 operations against the terror group since the start of 2023, according to CENTCOM fact sheets.

☆ Secret 9/11 memo reveals Bush rewriting the history of the 9/11 attacks and the warnings he'd tuned out
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( Mattathias Schwartz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +19 min

The ten members of the 9/11 Commission got to ask him and Vice President Dick Cheney any question they wanted about the September 11th attacks. What the new memo makes clear is that the White House's lack of urgency in facing down the domestic Al Qaeda threat wasn't all that complicated. Fortunately for Bush, the 9/11 Commission Report was careful not to point the finger directly at the sitting president. Still, when set beside the newly declassified memo, their official version of history as described by the 9/11 Commission Report feels incomplete, and sanitized. On the question of whether Al Qaeda came up during the August 17 briefing, Morell said he did not remember.

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