Tag Archive for: Record

Beefed-up prison security captures record level of contraband

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  • even more jails deploy cutting-edge baggage scanners for prison visitors
  • measures part of £125 million strategy to clamp down on prison rule breakers and cut crime

Game-changing X-ray body scanners have foiled more than 28,000 attempts to smuggle drugs, phones and weapons behind bars as the war on prison rule breakers picks up speed.

Over the last 2 years, more than 90 new advanced scanners have been installed in all closed male jails, producing high-resolution images of concealed contraband so staff can stop more dangerous items from getting in and causing havoc on prison landings.

This tough new security has captured and confiscated illegal contraband concealed on prisoners including mobile phones, vapes and improvised weapons.

Deputy Prime Minister and Justice Secretary, Dominic Raab, said:

Our tough new security measures in prisons are putting prisoners back on the straight and narrow. Allied to our renewed drive to get prisoners off drugs for good, we are cutting crime and keeping the public safe.

This new development comes just days after the government announced plans to roll out cutting-edge baggage scanners to 45 prisons across England and Wales. These will check bags brought in by the thousands of staff and visitors who enter prisons every day – cutting off another route of smuggling. Together these measures have kept mobile phones, drugs and improvised weapons out of the hands of prisoners where they would fuel violence and disorder.

The government’s investment of up to £125 million in next-generation prison security measures has also seen the most challenging prisons kitted out with new handheld and archway metal detectors, and more than 150 specially trained drug sniffer dogs.

This investment has created a new team of specialist investigators to clamp down on the small minority of corrupt staff who have no place in the Prison Service.

And to clamp down on the pernicious smuggling of drugs via prison mail, jails have installed over 135 drug trace detection machines that can detect microscopic smears of new psychoactive substances such as ‘spice’ on letters and items of clothing.

These advances deliver on the government’s commitments…

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T.S.A. Confiscated Record Number of Guns at U.S. Airports in 2022

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The Transportation Security Administration intercepted a record number of guns at airport security checkpoints this year, the agency said on Friday, prompting it to increase the maximum fine for firearm violations. The move comes amid surges in air travel and gun sales across the country.

The agency said that it had stopped 6,301 guns — more than 88 percent of which were loaded — from passing beyond security checkpoints. By the end of the year the administration expects to have intercepted about 6,600 guns in carry-on bags, a 10 percent increase over the previous record of 5,972, set in 2021.

Officials increased the maximum fine for a firearms violation by nearly $1,000, to $14,950, “in order to reduce the threat of firearms at checkpoints,” the agency said in a news release.

“When a passenger brings a firearm to the checkpoint, this consumes significant security resources and poses a potential threat to transportation security, in addition to being very costly for the passenger,” the T.S.A. administrator, David Pekoske, said in a statement.

The announcement came about three months after the agency said that it was on pace to break the record once again, as air travel in the United States neared prepandemic levels.

Besides a drop in 2020, when travelers stayed home amid pandemic lockdowns, the number of firearm interceptions by the T.S.A. has steadily increased each year since 2010.

Passengers are allowed to bring guns in checked baggage, so long as the weapons are unloaded and locked in a hard-sided container. Passengers must also declare guns at the check-in counter. But guns are not allowed in carry-on bags at any T.S.A. checkpoint, even if a passenger has a concealed weapon permit.

That distinction may be behind the thousands of mishaps in recent years, some experts say. Travelers may be unfamiliar with the rules for bringing firearms on planes, especially if they have not traveled since the start of the pandemic, said Sheldon H. Jacobson, a professor of computer science at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and an expert on aviation security.

“The majority of people are not doing it with malicious intent,” Dr. Jacobson said. “They’re simply…

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Opinion: Cybercrime's on the rise | Opinion | record-eagle.com – Traverse City Record Eagle

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Opinion: Cybercrime’s on the rise | Opinion | record-eagle.com  Traverse City Record Eagle

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The Record Delta | Practice cyber safety on Computer Security Day

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In this day and age, it is vital to practice cyber safety every day. However, back in 1988, the Association for Computer Security launched its first Computer Security Day to help raise awareness about computer security issues.

Computer Security Day, which is celebrated on November 30 each year, reminds users to do everything to protect their computers. Every day, computers become faster and more advanced. Protecting the resources, tools and information on them goes hand in hand with protecting the people who use them.

According to the National Calendar Day webpage, “Since the first home computer, how we use them has changed. Today, we use computers to stay connected. We bank and work from home. While computers are on every campus in every school, many gain an education right from home. We do our taxes, attend meetings and research complex issues all on computers.”

It makes sense to do everything possible to keep these powerful machines secure. Some of them hold a lifetime of important data. Precious and irreplaceable photos, journals, novels and passwords are often stored within a computer’s memory. It is vital to protect even a portion of that information. For many computer enthusiasts, their identity is stored within the hard drive.

Identity theft, fraud, ransomware and viruses constantly attack computers. They seek the most vulnerable users. In an instant, they take users offline, derailing a lifetime of accomplishment. Be sure to protect family and even business, by giving computers a security check-up.

National Calendar Day states, “Computer Security Day provides the perfect reminder! It is also important to review your computer’s security on a regular basis. Use the checklist below to secure your computer. If you use social media, it is also a good time to review your settings. Social media is another way identity thieves, viruses and computer fraud is committed. Spread the word on social media using #ComputerSecurityDay to inform others how they can secure their data!”

Here are some tips to help ensure the security of any computer:

• Enable Windows Update

• Install and keep running antivirus software

• Turn on Windows Firewall

• Keep all software…

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