Homeland Security Outlook

By Bill Sapp, [hyperlink to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ] President, Ultra Electronics Criticom

Video communications technology is an integral element of many government processes: it supports training across global organizations, from the command center to field operations; it connects law enforcement with first responders and intelligence organizations on the front lines of homeland security, and it helps bust counterfeit rings, which provide funding for terrorists and organized crime.

Counterfeiting of trusted products is big business, funding terrorist organizations as well as organized crime. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), takes counterfeit crimes seriously, and has amped up efforts to clamp down on this effort that funds terrorist activities while also posing safety and security risks to the American people. According to the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and US. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the domestic value of goods seized for intellectual property rights (IPR) violations in fiscal year 2008 increased by 38.6 percent to $272.7 million from $196.7 million in FY 2007. Seizures of products posing potential safety and security risks by these agencies within the DHS increased by more than 124 percent in domestic value, from $27.8 million to $62.5 million. China was the top source country for IPR seizures of infringing products in FY 2008, accounting for 81 percent of the total domestic value seized.

As the largest investigative arm of the DHS, ICE plays a significant role in targeting criminal organizations responsible for producing, smuggling, and distributing counterfeit products. The ICE-managed National Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center (IPR Center) is the federal government's central point in the fight against violators. It houses DHS employees from ICE and CBP along with staff from the Department of Commerce, Health and Human Services' Food and Drug Administration, the Department of Justice's Federal Bureau of Investigation and Computer Crime And Intellectual Property Section, and the US Postal Inspection Service. In this state-of-the-art facility, the partners employ a task force model to more effectively use their authorities and resources to attack the international problem of counterfeit, tainted and substandard goods.

Located in Arlington, Virginia this multi-agency center is responsible for coordinating a unified government response regarding IPR enforcement issues. The IPR Center's responsibilities include:

• Coordinating US government domestic and international training and law enforcement activities involving IPR issues.

• Serving as a collection point for intelligence provided by private industry, as well as a channel for law enforcement to obtain cooperation from private industry (in specific law enforcement situations).

• Integrating domestic and international law enforcement intelligence with private industry information relating to IPR crime.

• Disseminating IPR intelligence for appropriate investigative and tactical use.

• Developing enhanced investigative, intelligence and interdiction capabilities.

• Serving as a point of contact for all US government agencies, the Administration, Congress, and media outlets regarding IPR law enforcement related issues.

One of the tools the IPR Center uses in its fight against counterfeiters is a video wall, built with video communications technology from Ultra Electronics Criticom. The video wall enables experts to examine up to 12 video feeds at once, to compare, contrast, notice similarities, disparities, anomalies, and fraud in support of their work to identify counterfeit goods that are being marketed to the public as trusted brands. The video wall has feeds coming in from up to 24 different desktop computers connected to three different network classifications, providing the ability to put information from several agents local PCs, through these feeds -- all on one wall.

The wall is 6 foot by 12 foot, and each person in the IPR Center can send their computer display, streaming media, IP camera feeds, surveillance camera feeds, cable network feeds, DVDs and other network accessible sources to the wall. The feeds can be aggregated, displayed, controlled and shared onto the video wall with a variety of screen layouts via the user friendly control software. For example, one agent might have video of suspected counterfeit pills, which can be compared to close-up shots of the originals, or to other information surrounding this investigation, which might include packaging, shipping materials, similar pills that were formerly confiscated, etc.

Utilizing video technology that displays information from multiple organizations concurrently on one large wall enables the team to easily see patterns and similarities that might never show up when research is isolated.  This unique cooperative effort, using Criticom secure, automated video communications technology, enables real collaboration, careful analysis and comparisons, and integration of information  a significant improvement over the old compartmental isolated investigative approach.

Video communications is also valuable as a collaboration tool to help experts communicate with subject matter experts in other organizations around the world, building communities of interest. And video communications provides an excellent training platform, enabling information to be accessed by many from one source. It is a tool that supports many aspects of Homeland Securitys mission by providing secure accessibility to information for those dedicated to that mission.

William Sapp is President of Ultra Electronics-Criticom, www.ultra-criticom.com providers of secure video communications and providers of ISEC secure video communications technology.