 |
 |
 |
|
|
|
 |
WSIN Indexing Terrorism Subjects by Jerry Adams |
 |
April
2002 |
|
|
The Northwest HIDTA’s Watch Center recently learned that the WSIN will accept the terrorist related names and data that meet 28 CFR Part 23 requirements. All such information has to meet the "Reasonable Suspicion" standards specified in 28 CFR. At a recent WSIN sponsored Anti-Terrorism Training Conference, WSIN Director Dolve Spitz addressed nearly 600 attendees from 410 agencies and expressed WSIN’s commitment to supporting this national law enforcement issue. The State of California has formed a California Anti-Terrorism Information Center (CATIC) for their intelligence collection and analysis. CATIC is using the WSIN Riss.net system for connecting its six task forces to the WSIN file system. WSIN offers an excellent platform for indexing terrorism related data. Recently published media articles note that Bin Laden’s Al-Qaida profited from the drug trade and deployed its militants as smugglers or as guard details for smugglers. Bin Laden’s network is suspected of having accounts all over the world and money laundering experts are following those financial leads. Another financial link reportedly tied to the support of terrorist groups is the transfer of money through the Hawala brokerage system. This ancient world-wide system of transferring/ remitting funds is based on trust and operates without a paper trail. Records of payers and payees are kept only long enough to complete the transaction. Logs of debts with other Hawala brokers are kept only long enough to settle the debt then they are destroyed. These investigative efforts are complex and detailed. HIDTA Investigative Support Centers across the country are extending their intelligence services to terrorism investigators. Computer Forensics and Drug Investigations The product’s description notes, "Disappearing Email lets you send email from Microsoft Outlook that expires when you want it to, whether on the recipient’s hard drive, your company’s mail server, or even a back up tape on a shelf. Disappearing Email sent normally from Outlook is decrypted by the recipient when the message is read. The interface is simple. A ‘Send Disappearing Email’ button with a list of expiration times is added to the message’s toolbar. When you send a Disappearing Email, just click the button." A comment from a "satisfied" customer notes, "Worried whether what you wrote some long time ago is going to be used against you? With this, I don’t feel that my emails are really my emails now." Highly skilled computer forensics investigators are needed more now then ever before. Adult Drug Abuse Monitoring The ADAM project recently underwent a revision. The changes were the adoption of a sampling strategy designed to improve the reliability of the findings and inclusion in the survey instrument of new questions that permit more in-depth examination of issues relating to drug use. Arrestees are additionally asked about their housing situation during the past year, how they supported themselves, whether they have health insurance, and how and where they purchased drugs. A further series of questions explores arrestees’ participation in drug markets, including place and method of purchase and difficulties encountered in trying to obtain drugs. The study’s authors write, "With the data extended in scope, ADAM also becomes more powerful as a platform on which to conduct research that examines the correlates of substance abuse and crime." ADAM data now explores the relative efficiency of police efforts against drug markets. Look for the upcoming HIDTA Threat Assessment for a summary of the ADAM study findings. Inside this issue: |