Category: Security Intelligence

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Dr. Lansing H. Bennett — Central Intelligence Agency

Source: Central Intelligence Agency CIA

Headline: Dr. Lansing H. Bennett — Central Intelligence Agency

This is part of our series about CIA employees who have made the ultimate sacrifice. Here we will look at the lives of the men and women who have died while serving their country.

Currently, there are 125 stars carved into the marble of the CIA Memorial Wall. The wall stands as a silent, simple memorial to those employees “who gave their lives in the service of their country.” The CIA has released the names of 91 employees; the names of the remaining 34 officers must remain secret, even in death.

Dr. Lansing Bennett, 1982

Dr. Lansing H. Bennett, a 13-year CIA employee, was frequently lauded by supervisors and colleagues throughout the Agency and Intelligence Community for his dedication, passion, and incredible perseverance in the medical field. Lansing often served in extremely difficult locations around the globe, and he was known as a consummate clinician. In addition to his military and Agency service, Lansing made outstanding contributions toward land conservation as well as public health in underserved communities.

Dr. Bennett was killed in January 1993 while on his way to work at CIA Headquarters. As Lansing and other Agency employees sat in their cars waiting for a traffic light to change so that they could enter through the main gate of the Agency compound, a gunman opened fire on the stopped cars. In the car adjacent to Lansing’s, Frank Darling, an Agency communications officer, was also shot and killed. Three other people were wounded.

Early Years:

Lansing Bennett was born in Poughkeepsie, New York, and moved with his family to Merchantville, New Jersey, where he attended his first 10 years of public school. He then attended the Mercersburg, Pennsylvania Academy, where he participated in sports, literary clubs, and the school newspaper. He graduated cum laude from Mercersburg in 1944. While in high school he had summer jobs at ranches in Idaho and Utah.

Lansing entered Princeton University in June 1944, in the pre-med program. That December he volunteered for the US Marine Corps and took basic training at Parris Island. As a Marine he served at Camps Lejeune and Pendleton and spent 13 months in Guam. After his discharge, he became a Marine Corps reservist.

Lansing returned to Princeton in September 1946, graduating in June 1949, cum laude, with a BA in Biology. He was recalled by the Marine Corps to serve during the Korean War, but instead joined the Navy, accepting a commission as a Navy ensign.

Lansing entered Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia in September 1950 and graduated in 1953 with a degree in medicine.

From Military to Medicine:

Armed with his newly minted medical degree and Naval reserve status as an ensign, Dr. Bennett served on active duty as an intern in 1953-1954 at the US Naval Hospital in Chelsea, Massachusetts. He finished first in his class and was promoted to Lieutenant in the Naval Medical Corps reserve.

Starting in November 1954, Lansing ran a general medical practice, for two years in Topsfield, then he did the same for 23 years in Duxbury, Massachusetts. His practice included general medicine with substantial cardiopulmonary emphasis, surgical assistance, pediatrics, gynecology, and for a relatively brief time, obstetrics.

Dr. Bennett also developed skills in emergency medicine and underwater medicine. He was a member of the Undersea Medical Society for several years, and he had a strong interest in diving medicine both as a certified diver and physician.

He also enjoyed sailing his frostbite dinghy for winter sailing and his 38-foot yawl along the coast of Maine. In addition, Lansing was an excellent skier, swimmer, amateur archeologist and numismatist (collector of coin and paper currency).

Dr. Bennett’s strong interest in patient care was reflected in his volunteer stints at St. Jude’s Hospital in St. Lucia, West Indies, the US Public Health Indian Hospital in Winslow, Arizona, and the Darbonne Mission in Haiti, where he taught himself the basics of Creole language.

In the 1960s and ’70s, Dr. Bennett served as Chairman of the Duxbury Conservation Commission and secured more than 1,200 acres of conservation land and the passage of the Duxbury Wetlands Protection Bylaw. In honor of his outstanding achievement, 344 acres were dedicated as the Lansing Bennett Forest.

Life at CIA:

After responding to an ad placed by the Agency in a medical journal, Dr. Bennett joined the Central Intelligence Agency in January 1980 as a Medical Officer in the CIA’s Office of Medical Services (OMS).

At the time that his application with the Agency was pending, the US Air Force was also pursuing him, offering him a commission as a Lt. Colonel in the medical corps with a possible first assignment to the United Kingdom. This arrangement was attractive to Dr. Bennett, especially when considering the positive effect of his previous military service on his Air Force salary.

It was nip-and-tuck as to which organization he would select.

He chose to join the Agency’s Office of Medical Services. Friends said he based his decision on the wide variety of overseas assignment opportunities he envisioned in the Agency and the intrigue of providing medical support to operations.

After a brief period of training and orientation, Dr. Bennett’s first assignment with OMS was in 1980 as the Regional Medical Officer (RMO) for Asia. His first wife traveled with him.

In this position he was responsible for providing medical care to CIA, some military, and some state department employees and their dependents throughout the region.

During his tour, the White House officially commended Dr. Bennett for his planning and medical support for a visit to the region by then-President Reagan. Upon completion of his tour of duty, Lansing served a two-year tour as regional medical officer in Europe.

Back at Headquarters:

In the fall of 1986, following his overseas tours, Dr. Bennett returned to CIA Headquarters. This was a busy period for both OMS and Dr. Bennett. During his first year back at HQs, Lansing was frequently away on temporary duty assignments overseas, including two stays in Africa: hardship posts where he filled in for Agency doctors who were away for extended periods.

During his time as a staff physician, Dr. Bennett handled a large patient load with a taxing array of complicated clinical problems. These challenges included dealing with emergency situations, medical evacuations from overseas posts, and assessing employees’ fitness for duty and medical disability retirement assessments. He also participated in special studies and projects. For example, he researched and wrote an extensive medical newsletter on mammography, as well as one on AIDS that drew praise from the DCI. The AIDS newsletter was considered by many who read it, including top medical professionals, to be one of the most comprehensive and effective documents on the subject of HIV infection and AIDS.

With the Agency’s core management courses under his belt, Dr. Bennett assumed the responsibilities of a branch chief starting in 1988. Among his notable accomplishments during this period was his leadership role in an ongoing examination of how best to deliver and integrate medical and psychological services to the Agency population. Lansing also developed comprehensive proposals for revamping the Agency’s periodic health examination system and the Agency’s policies for granting overseas medical clearances.

Abroad Again:

Dr. Bennett began a two-year tour in September 1989 as the regional medical officer in South America. He spent more than one-third of his time “medical-circuit-traveling.” Also noteworthy during this assignment was a trip to the heart of the Amazon jungle—an area of worldwide environmental attention and concern—where he assessed several medical facilities in anticipation of visits by high-level US Government personnel.

During his many overseas assignments, Lansing was repeatedly lauded by chiefs of station for his exceptional medical support, which was oftentimes extremely complicated and dangerous. Dr. Bennett’s OMS colleagues characterized him as a consummate clinician and praised his tireless research and writing on—and advocacy of—health promotion policies.

His Final Mission:

Lansing returned to the United States from South America in the fall of 1991. He was assigned to the VIP Medical Division in the Directorate of Intelligence (now the Directorate of Analysis), where, as a medical officer-analyst, he applied his extensive medical experience to writing assessments on key international leaders.

On Monday, January 25, 1993, at about 8:00am, a number of cars had stopped temporarily because of morning rush-hour traffic in the northbound, left-turn lanes on Route 123 at the main entrance to the Headquarters compound of the CIA. The cars had stopped at the red light and were waiting to turn onto the Agency compound.

With traffic unable to move, a lone gunman emerged from another vehicle, which he had stopped behind the other cars. The gunman, armed with an AK-47 assault rifle, proceeded to move among the stopped vehicles, firing into them. Within seconds, Dr. Lansing Bennett and Frank Darling were killed and three others were wounded, one gravely. The gunman, a Pakistani national later identified as Aimal Kasi, fled the scene. In 1997, he was captured in Pakistan and returned to the US, where he was tried, convicted, and sentenced to death. Kasi was executed on November 14, 2002.

Honoring His Service:

Dr. Lansing H. Bennett was 66 years old when he was killed. He was survived by his second wife, his first wife, and four children. Lansing was posthumously awarded the Agency’s Intelligence Commendation Medal in recognition of his distinguished service to the Central Intelligence Agency.

On May 24, 2002, Agency officers dedicated the Route 123 Memorial to our two fallen colleagues. The Memorial is located on the west side of the Virginia Route 123 entrance (alongside the outbound right lane). It includes a walkway leading to a 9-foot by 3-foot granite wall. Benches dedicated to Lansing Bennett and Frank Darling face each other in front of the granite wall.

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CIA Director Marks One-Year Anniversary in Public Address at American Enterprise Institute — Central Intelligence Agency

Source: Central Intelligence Agency CIA

Headline: CIA Director Marks One-Year Anniversary in Public Address at American Enterprise Institute — Central Intelligence Agency

26 January 2018

Exactly one year into his tenure at the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), Director Mike Pompeo took the stage at the American Enterprise Institute (AEI) to reflect on his first year leading the Agency and discuss hot topics with AEI Resident Fellow Marc Theissen.

In his remarks to nearly 200 AEI members and guests, Director Pompeo highlighted his approach to leading the Agency and his strong belief that the CIA workforce should be positioned to execute our mission free from unnecessary obstacles and overbearing bureaucracy.

One way he’s been able to achieve this goal is by encouraging decisions be made by the experts. “If [the decision] had significant risk– cost, political, military risk to lives of officers – that’s [an] important [decision] for the Director to [make]… but if it’s just coming to me because I was the next fellow in the chain of command – then that’s a mistake because I would inevitably slow it down and I would not be in a position to add any value to that decision making process,” Pompeo said.

Looking ahead to 2018, Director Pompeo highlighted his plans to continue empowering the men and women of CIA to be agile, creative, speedy, and adaptable while ensuring that we preserve the American people’s trust. “That trust that the American people have provided to us [is] central to us achieving our mission.” Pompeo said.

Director Pompeo’s remarks were followed by a moderated discussion with Mr. Theissen covering a range of topics including President Trump’s daily engagement with the intelligence community, the pending threat of North Korea, and how Director Pompeo will position the Agency to take calculated risks to defeat America’s adversaries.

Director Pompeo’s remarks can be seen here or by clicking the video below.

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Small Business Information Sharing: Combating Foreign Cyber Threats

Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)

Headline: Small Business Information Sharing: Combating Foreign Cyber Threats

Chairman Chabot, Ranking Member Velázquez, and members of the committee, thank you for the invitation to provide remarks on the FBI’s role in helping small businesses defend against cyber threats. We consider engagement with the private sector to be a significant factor in our mission to identify, pursue, and defeat nefarious cyber criminals and enemies of the United States.

As the committee is well aware, the growing number and sophistication of cyber threats poses a critical risk to U.S. businesses, and the impact of a successful attack can be devastating to small businesses in particular. We continue to see an increase in the scale and scope of reporting on malicious cyber activity that can be measured by the amount of corporate data stolen or deleted, personally identifiable information compromised, or remediation costs incurred by U.S. victims. Some of the more prevalent or rising cyber threats to small businesses include the following.

Business E-Mail Compromise

Business e-mail compromise (BEC) is a scam targeting businesses working with foreign suppliers or businesses that regularly perform wire transfer payments. By compromising legitimate business e-mail accounts through social engineering or computer intrusion techniques, criminals are able to conduct unauthorized transfers of funds. Notably, BEC scams have been reported in all 50 states and have resulted in hundreds of millions of dollars in losses to U.S. businesses and individuals.

The victims of BEC scams range from small businesses to large corporations across a variety of services. The BEC threat is highly adaptable and constantly evolving, but criminals have been particularly active in targeting small to large companies and individuals which may transfer high-dollar funds or sensitive records in the course of business. BEC compromises can be facilitated through a variety of vectors, including social engineering, phishing scams that lure victims to click on malware, brute force cracking of e-mail passwords, or the obtaining of e-mail credentials online. An actor will use one or more of these vectors to steal the victim’s credentials, impersonate a person with authority to request payments or records, and obtain access to data and e-mail for the purposes of theft; or to impersonate a legitimate vendor or business contact to trick the victim into paying an invoice or transferring payroll records to the actor’s account.

The sophistication of BEC actors varies. In general, transnational organized crime groups may invest more time and resources in high-dollar targets. On the other hand, less sophisticated actors, who likely account for the majority of attempts, steal smaller sums using spoofed e-mails sent in bulk or through e-mail contact with a presumably vulnerable target. Unfortunately, both types of actors can be successful if victims are not vigilant. Popular BEC targets include third-party payroll companies, parties involved in real estate transactions (including buyers, sellers, realtors, and title companies), firms offering legal services, and import and export companies.

When we engage with the private sector, we encourage companies to take certain precautions to safeguard their systems, records, and data. We recommend that businesses require a secondary, independent verification of any payment requests or changes to existing beneficiary accounts; that they use complicated passwords or long passphrases for company and personal e-mail accounts, change passwords regularly, and not use the same password for multiple accounts; implement two-factor authentication; and that they utilize commercial antivirus and anti-spyware products. We also recommend they avoid doing formal business on free web-based e-mail accounts; establish a company domain name and limit formal communications to company e-mail accounts; and, if possible, create intrusion detection system filters that flag e-mails with extensions that are similar to company e-mail.

Ransomware

Ransomware is a type of malware used to encrypt an individual’s or organization’s files and documents, making them unreadable until a ransom is paid. Ransomware targets both human and technical weaknesses in organizations and individual networks to deny the availability of critical data or systems. Ransomware is a simple and proven model that continues to yield profits for cyber criminals. The attacks are difficult to attribute, and they do not require “money mule” networks (i.e., people involved in transferring illegally obtained money on behalf of someone else) to cash out. Malicious cyber actors are increasingly using virtual currency, such as bitcoin, to facilitate their crimes. Mixers, tumblers, and other anonymizing services create challenges for tracing and attribution. While these services use different mechanisms and approaches, they obfuscate the source and destination of funds by mixing funding streams, adding extra layers, or combining transactions.

In short, ransomware actors are using more sophisticated tools that allow the malware to propagate faster, and the campaigns are becoming bigger and causing more damage. For these reasons, we can expect ransomware to remain a significant threat to businesses in the U.S. and worldwide. Popular targets include hospitals, law firms, and businesses needing immediate access to their data. Two typical infection methods include clicking on malicious phishing e-mail links and visiting infected websites. Remote Desktop Protocol, a program that allows one computer to remotely operate another, can also be used as a vector.

Once a machine is infected, typically all files on local and attached drives are encrypted and effectively locked away from the user. The criminal notifies the victim they must pay a ransom in order to receive a digital key to unlock and retrieve their files. It is important to note that even if a ransom is paid, there is no guarantee the business or individual will obtain their files from the cyber criminal. To guard against the ransomware threat, we encourage businesses to schedule regular data backups to drives not connected to their network. These drives can be used to restore a system to the backup version without paying the ransom to the perpetrator. Additional guidance from the FBI for guarding against ransomware is available at https://www.fbi.gov/file-repository/ransomware-prevention-and-response-for-cisos.pdf/view.

Criminal Data Breach Activity

Cyber criminals are continuously looking for vulnerabilities in the networks of U.S. businesses of all sizes, as well as prominent public and private sector officials. Cyber criminals are looking for entry into any network that contains personal or financial information of employees or customers that can be monetized or posted online. Some actors also seek to encrypt corporate data so it can be ransomed. Vectors can range from the use of phishing e-mails in order to steal login credentials to crafting malware to exploit sensitive, vulnerable systems.

Business networks often contain financial information such as credit card and bank account information, as well as personally identifiable information such as names and Social Security numbers. Consequently, we encourage businesses to apply a variety of best practices to secure their network architecture, network activity, and user data as much as possible in order to make it more difficult for an adversary to compromise their infrastructure.

Internet of Things

Internet of Things (IoT) devices and embedded systems are becoming widespread in business, government, and home networks. They provide low-cost, real-time monitoring and automation services to users. The information these devices collect provides billions of data sets useful in analyzing productivity, marketing, consumer and market trends, and user behavior and demographics. However, IoT devices could be compromised by cyber actors taking advantage of lax security standards and inherent device connectivity to increase the impact of cyber attacks, or as a pivot point into personal or corporate networks. Increased connectivity through IoT devices will only increase the potential attack surface for networks, as cyber security is largely under-prioritized from device design through implementation.

In September 2016, an IoT botnet was used to conduct one of the largest distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks ever recorded. Similar attacks have since taken place. These attacks have resulted in widespread Internet outages and are very costly to victims. The source code for multiple IoT malware variants are publicly available, making it easy for cyber actors to create their own IoT botnet. Since October 2017, new IoT malware variants are targeting and exploiting firmware vulnerabilities, increasing the number of devices vulnerable to compromise. Individuals and businesses can prevent their devices from being compromised by changing default user name and passwords, ensuring device firmware is up to date, implementing strong firewall rules, and by turning off or rebooting devices when not in use.The FBI has issued guidance on securing IoT devices through public service announcements, published on the Internet Crime Complaint Center’s (IC3) website at www.ic3.gov. In addition, guidance from the Department of Justice for securing IoT devices is available at https://www.justice.gov/criminal-ccips/page/file/984001/download. Other agencies are working to address this challenge as well, notably, the Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology, which is in the process of collaborating with businesses, academia, and government stakeholders to develop standards, guidelines, and related tools to improve the cybersecurity of IoT devices.

FBI Cyber Private Sector Engagement

In light of these and other cyber threats to U.S. businesses, the FBI has made private sector engagement a key component of our strategy for combating cyber threats. Recognizing the ever-changing landscape of cyber threats, the FBI is enhancing the way it communicates with private industry. Traditionally, the FBI used information developed through its investigations, shared by intelligence community partners, or provided by other law enforcement agencies to understand the threat posed by nation states and criminal actors. However, we are now also looking to integrate private industry information into our intelligence cycle to enhance our ability to identify and respond to both emerging and ongoing threats. We also utilize our intelligence to prioritize sector engagement and potential vulnerabilities. Private industry has unique insight into their own networks and may have information as to why their company, or their sector, may be an attractive target for malicious cyber activity. Companies may also be able to share intelligence on the types of attempted attacks they experience. We believe it is important the FBI integrate this type of data into its own intelligence cycle. As we move forward to enhance our sector-specific analysis capabilities, we are looking to private industry to help us gain a better understanding of their companies and their respective sectors. This type of information sharing enables us to provide more specific, actionable, and timely information to our industry partners so they can protect their systems in a proactive manner.

In fiscal year 2017, FBI Cyber Division reorganized its analytic and outreach resources to focus on this intelligence-driven approach to FBI engagement with critical infrastructure entities on cyber threats. FBI Cyber Division has published intelligence directed queries that direct field offices to address collection needs in cyber space when engaging with sector partners.

In addition, the FBI disseminates information regarding specific threats to the private sector through various reporting mechanisms. Public service announcements (PSA), published by the IC3 on www.ic3.gov, provide timely and practical information to U.S. businesses and individuals on the latest threats and scams. Each PSA typically contains information about a threat, warnings signs and indicators businesses should look for, precautions organizations should take to protect their data and networks, and steps for mitigation in the event of a compromise. We have released nearly 70 of these announcements over the past five years, including seven in 2017 that addressed such topics as business e-mail compromise, IoT vulnerabilities, and tactics being used by nefarious actors to launch DDoS attacks.

We also offer several other types of reports to the private sector, including private industry notifications (PIN), which provide contextual information about ongoing or emerging cyber threats, and FBI Liaison Alert System (FLASH) reports, which provide technical indicators gleaned through investigations or intelligence. These communication methods facilitate the sharing of information with a broad audience or specific sector and are intended to provide recipients with actionable intelligence to aid in victim notifications, threat neutralization, and other investigative efforts. In some instances, the FBI may work with other government agencies to release joint products for private industry. These joint products may include joint intelligence or indicator bulletins (JIB), joint analysis reports (JAR), or other miscellaneous products.

The FBI believes it is critical to maintain strong relationships with private sector organizations to allow for the successful responses to cyber attacks. One example of an effective public/private relationship is the National Cyber-Forensics and Training Alliance (NCFTA), a non-profit 501(3)(c) corporation focused on identifying, mitigating, and neutralizing cyber crime threats globally. Working hand in hand with private industry, law enforcement, and academia, the NCFTA’s mission is to provide a neutral, trusted environment that enables two-way information sharing, collaboration, and training. The NCFTA works directly with 136 member organizations from the banking, retail, critical infrastructure, health care, and government sectors. NCFTA recently expanded from its headquarters location in Pittsburgh and is now operating additional offices in New York City and Los Angeles.

The FBI Cyber Division regularly coordinates initiatives for engagement with private sector partners to prevent threats and ultimately close intelligence gaps. In recent years, we have launched public awareness campaigns or “open houses” to educate businesses on serious cyber threats. In 2016, the FBI collaborated with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), U.S. Secret Service (USSS), Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and the National Council of Information Sharing and Analysis Centers (NC-ISAC) to host conferences and workshops at FBI and USSS field offices across the country to educate businesses on the ransomware threat. The FBI and USSS jointly hosted these workshops in 14 key cities, targeting small, medium, and large organizations. More than 5,700 individuals were briefed during this campaign.

Similarly, in 2017, the FBI collaborated with DHS, USSS, and NC-ISAC to host workshops on the BEC threat in strategically identified locations across the country. These workshops were launched in October 2017 to coincide with National Cyber Security Awareness Month and continued into early fiscal year 2018. Nearly 2,500 business leaders were briefed during this campaign.

The FBI Cyber Division continues to engage directly with businesses in other ways as well. The FBI Cyber Division either hosts or participates in briefings, conferences, workshops, and other meetings providing strategic-level information to key executives throughout industry. These briefings include both classified and unclassified discussions regarding cyber threats. Over the past five years, the FBI Cyber Division has completed nearly 2,800 such engagements, not counting the many informal contacts and interactions we have with businesses on a regular basis.

In addition, the FBI leverages its unique, decentralized field office model to ensure it can engage effectively with small and local businesses across the country and work side-by-side with state and local law enforcement for the furtherance of cyber investigations. The FBI is made up of 56 field offices spanning all 50 states and U.S. territories, each with a multi-agency Cyber Task Force (CTF) modeled after the successful Joint Terrorism Task Force program. The task forces bring together cyber investigators, prosecutors, intelligence analysts, computer scientists, and digital forensic technicians from various federal, state, and local agencies present within the office’s territory. Our field-centric business model allows us to develop relationships with local businesses, companies, and organizations, putting us in an ideal position to engage with potential victims of cyber attacks and crimes. Cyber-trained special agents are in each field office, providing locally available expertise to deploy to victim sites immediately upon notice of an incident. Computer scientists and intelligence analysts are also stationed in field offices to support incident response efforts and provide intelligence collection and analysis as well as technical assistance and capability.

The Bureau has had success with operating joint investigations with local law enforcement through our cyber task force officers to dismantle large criminal enterprises engaging in computer intrusion and cyber-enabled crimes. Additionally, the Bureau works with local law enforcement on various Internet fraud matters through our Operation Wellspring platform, through which we package complaints from the IC3 and provide them to local law enforcement to work independently or in coordination with their local FBI field office.

Recognizing small businesses often engage state and local law enforcement as a first line of defense during a cyber incident, the Bureau offers our state and local partners access to FBI cyber training, including private sector training that offers certifications in the cyber security industry. The FBI’s Cyber Division—working with the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) and cyber experts from Carnegie Mellon University—has developed the Cyber Investigator Certification Program (CICP). This self-guided, online training program is available free of charge to all local, state, tribal, territorial, and federal law enforcement personnel and provides training in how to conduct effective cyber investigations.

When a small business has been victimized by a cyber crime and reaches out to the FBI for assistance, we coordinate with the individual business to determine the best course of action to address the incident. The FBI’s approach in working with potential or actual victims of cyber intrusions or attacks is to first and foremost, and to the best of our ability, use our processes to protect the victim from being re-victimized, and to provide confidentiality and discretion during the investigative process. No matter what course of action is deemed appropriate, the FBI views a company that has been attacked as a victim and will protect investigative information appropriately. Our goal in each instance to work with the business side by side to investigate the systems and data at play in the incident. We will work with the victim to determine attribution, which can lead to prosecution of the subject. Through its work with other government agencies, the FBI and Department of Justice can provide information that can be used to initiate indictments, affect arrests, generate demarches, or produce international sanctions against those who conduct cyber attacks or aggressive actions against entities in the United States.

We at the FBI appreciate this committee’s efforts in making cyber threats to small businesses a focus and to committing to improving how we can work together to better defend U.S. business from cyber adversaries. We thank you for the opportunity to speak about our cyber outreach efforts; we look forward to discussing these issues in greater detail and answering any questions you may have.

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Stopping Human Trafficking

Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)

Headline: Stopping Human Trafficking

Williams’ victims are now free to move on and recover from the things they experienced, and that is the best reward for the case’s investigators.

“These victims went through horrific things,” Miller said. “It’s extremely rewarding to know that they’re going to be more secure knowing the man who did this to them will no longer be on the streets. We’ve also been able to see the victims rebuild their lives.”

Two of Williams’ known victims that the FBI and Racine non-profit organizations provided assistance to are getting their lives back on track. Both are working, and one is going to school.

“In these cases, you see the physical violence, the beatings, the punches to the women’s faces. They are visual reminders of how dangerous these guys are, and the mental coercion is a really sick part of it as well,” Lofy said. “To see a woman who a year and a half ago was being beaten, held against her will, and forced to have sex with strangers and give up all the money—now she’s in school, working, earning her own money, and living her own life. There’s a satisfaction in that. That’s a true turnaround.”

Racine also takes what Lofy calls a “victim-centered approach.” Human trafficking victims often need counseling, drug treatment, job training, and housing assistance to truly escape their traffickers. Lofy is the co-founder of a non-profit organization, Fight to End Exploitation, that works to advocate for victims, connect them with services, and educate the community on human trafficking.

Lofy said when he first began investigating human trafficking cases and worked with the FBI on a previous operation, he saw the human toll and the amount of support the victims needed to get their lives back on track.

“We’re not looking to arrest the women in these situations—we’re looking to help them change their lives,” he said.

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Matthew Moon Named Special Agent in Charge of the Administrative Division for the Los Angeles Field Office

Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)

Headline: Matthew Moon Named Special Agent in Charge of the Administrative Division for the Los Angeles Field Office

FBI Director Christopher Wray announced the appointment of Matthew Moon as the special agent in charge of the Administrative Division for the Los Angeles Field Office. Mr. Moon most recently served as the section chief of the Public Corruption and Civil Rights Section of the Criminal Investigative Division.

Mr. Moon entered on duty as a special agent with the FBI in 1996, and was first assigned to the New York Field Office, where he worked organized crime, gang, and drug investigations involving Asian criminal enterprises. After the September 11th terrorist attacks, he was re-assigned to work counterterrorism matters.

Throughout his career, Mr. Moon has held leadership positions in the Counterterrorism Division at FBIHQ, the Los Angeles Field Office, as well as holding the position of Legal Attaché in Seoul, South Korea.

Mr. Moon will report to the Los Angeles Field Office for his new role in early February.

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IAEA to Mark World Cancer Day with High-level Panel Discussion

Source: International Atomic Energy Agency – IAEA

Headline: IAEA to Mark World Cancer Day with High-level Panel Discussion

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) will mark World Cancer Day with a special event at the Vienna International Centre (VIC), including a high-level panel to be opened by Director General Yukiya Amano, Her Royal Highness Princess Dina Mired of Jordan and Indonesian Minister of Health Nila F. Moeloek.

The panel presentation and discussion, entitled ‘A Roadmap to a Cancer-free World’, will take place on Friday, 2 February, at VIC Conference Room C1 (C building, 2nd floor) from 10:00-12:00. It will focus on how nuclear techniques can support the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of cancer and help countries better manage the disease.

The event will be followed by a health fair in the VIC Rotunda from 12:00-14:00, where visitors can have their skin and moles checked, and get information from medical specialists about screening and treatment options for breast, prostate and colon cancer.

A live tumour board demonstration will take place from 14:00-15:30 at VIC Conference Room C1. A group of doctors and health specialists from multiple disciplines will discuss a case and share expertise to determine the best possible cancer treatment plan for a patient. The afternoon session will also provide examples of successful IAEA cancer projects across the world.

The full programme for the day can be found here.

Cancer is a major killer worldwide, with approximately 14 million new cases and 8 million cancer-related deaths every year. More than 60 per cent of the world’s total new annual cases occur in low- and middle-income countries, which account for about 70 per cent of the world’s cancer deaths. The IAEA supports the fight against cancer by providing Member States with assistance in applying a comprehensive approach to the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of cancer covering four main areas: nutrition; diagnosis and follow-up; radiation oncology and radiotherapy; and quality assurance.

Live video streaming will be available from 10:00. Please note that the video stream will be broadcast on a view-only channel.

Interviews with individual speakers can be organized upon request.

Accreditation:

All journalists are requested to inform the IAEA Press Office of their plans to attend. Journalists with permanent credentials to the VIC need no additional credentials. We encourage those journalists who do not yet have permanent accreditation, to request it at UNIS Vienna.

Others should contact Gaukhar Permetova for accreditation. Please email G.Permetova@iaea.org or call [+43-1] 2600-22048 or [+43-1] 2600-21273.

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The World Factbook — Central Intelligence Agency

Source: Central Intelligence Agency CIA

Headline: The World Factbook — Central Intelligence Agency

The Office of Public Affairs (OPA) is the single point of contact for all inquiries about the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).

We read every letter, fax, or e-mail we receive, and we will convey your comments to CIA officials outside OPA as appropriate. However, with limited staff and resources, we simply cannot respond to all who write to us.

Contact Information

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  • Employment: We do not routinely answer questions about employment beyond the information on this Web site, and we do not routinely answer inquiries about the status of job applications. Recruiting will contact applicants within 45 days if their qualifications meet our needs.

    Because of safety concerns for the prospective applicant, as well as security and communication issues, the CIA Recruitment Center does not accept resumes, nor can we return phone calls, e-mails or other forms of communication, from US citizens living outside of the US. When you return permanently to the US (not on vacation or leave), please visit the CIA Careers page and apply online for the position of interest.

    To verify an employee’s employment, please contact the Employment Verification Office.

  • Solicitations to transfer large sums of money to your bank account: If you receive a solicitation to transfer a large amount of money from an African nation to your bank account in exchange for a payment of millions of dollars, go to the US Secret Service Web site for information about the Nigerian Advance Fee Fraud or “4-1-9” Fraud scheme.
  • If you have information which you believe might be of interest to the CIA in pursuit of the CIA’s foreign intelligence mission, you may use our e-mail form. We will carefully protect all information you provide, including your identity. The CIA, as a foreign intelligence agency, does not engage in US domestic law enforcement.
  • If you have information relating to Iraq which you believe might be of interest to the US Government, please contact us through the Iraqi Rewards Program —