Second Life Terrorists, New BAE CEO, Tech 2014 – Daily Intelligence

Day before Friday & Just too weird.

FROM THE DESK OF CLEARANCEJOBS.COM

1. Where the jobs are, and aren’t. Contributor Jillian Hamilton’s Recruiting Round-Up: “It might be a new year, but tech hiring is not going to get any easier in 2014. In fact, it could get harder. Salary requirements have been a key driver in hiring and retention. A recent hiring survey by Dice.com (sister company of ClearanceJobs.com) found that 75 percent of tech pros cite salary as a key driver in moving. Until the supply catches up with the demand, candidates will continue to drive salary requirements for the tech field.”

2. $15,000 and many, many thanks. Editor Lindy Kyzer reports, “ClearanceJobs donated more than $15,000 to Operation Gratitude in 2013, enough to send more than 1,000 care packages to deserving service members, wounded warriors and veterans. The donations were a part of an on-going charity campaign. For every ClearanceJobs subscription purchase made in 2013, a donation of $15 – enough to send one care package – was made.”

THE FORCE AND THE FIGHT

1. Syrian rebels take al-Qaeda base. Aljazeera.Com reports, “Fighters from several Syrian rebel groups have seized the headquarters of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant in Aleppo . . . . Wednesday’s takeover is a victory for rebels battling al-Qaeda allies in Syria, but the movement to remove President Bashar al-Assad from power remains in disarray, with groups fighting each other for control of the north.” Also, see AP eval, “al-Qaeda linked group ramps up regional violence”: “Al-Qaida is positioning itself as a vanguard defending the Sunni community against what it sees as persecution by Shiite-dominated governments across Syria, Lebanon and Iraq.”

2. Pakistan’s critique of U.S. in Afghanistan. Khaama.Com reports, “The top Pakistani security advisor criticized Washington’s Afghanistan mission, and said that the United States has not achieved its stated objectives in Afghanistan. Sartaj Aziz, national security advisor to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, said United States has not achieved its objectives to bring peace and democratic stability in Afghanistan by defeating terrorism. . . . While speaking during a ceremony in Islamabad on Wednesday, Aziz said that United States was fighting a wrong war, with wrong methods and with wrong people.”

3. Cyberspace spillover and Terrorist recruiting. Wired.Com’s David Kravets reports, “When American and British spies were infiltrating virtual-world games like Second Life and World of Warcraft in a bid to detect real-world terrorists, U.S. intelligence warned that jihadists might create an Osama bin Laden avatar that could ‘preach and issue new fatwas for hundreds of years to come,’ according to a once-confidential report disclosed today. . . . The report concluded ‘there is little evidence that militant Islamist and jihadist groups have begun extensively exploiting the opportunities presented by virtual worlds.’” Read the report: “3D Cyberspace Spillover: where virtual worlds get real.”

4. U.S. Air Force helo crash kills 4 in Britain. DefenseNews.Com’s Katy Lee reports, “British police and American military officials were investigating Wednesday after a US Air Force helicopter crashed in eastern England, killing all four crew onboard. The HH-60G Pave Hawk chopper, based at RAF Lakenheath air base, crashed at a nearby nature reserve in Cley-next-the-Sea, Norfolk, while flying low on a training exercise on Tuesday evening. . . . The US 48th Fighter Wing, based at the Lakenheath base, said the names of the four airmen would be released once their families had been informed.”

CONTRACT WATCH

1. Interview with the contracting money-man Frank Kendall. DefenseNews.Com’s Marcus Weisgerber’s sit-down with U.S. Undersecretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Frank Kendall: “Frank Kendall . . . oversees hundreds of billions of dollars in procurement programs. But that has not stopped him from taking on some side projects. He recently rewrote the Pentagon’s acquisition bible, known as Defense Department Instruction 5000.02. The new guidance implements Better Buying Power initiatives developed by Kendall and his predecessor, Ashton Carter.”

2. BAE’s new Head: former Acquisition Chief Jeff DeMuro. DoDBuzz.Com’s Brendan McGarry reports, “European defense giants BAE Systems Plc and Airbus SAS have announced new chief executive officers for their U.S. businesses. Jerry DeMuro will succeed Linda Hudson as president and CEO of BAE Systems Inc. effective Feb. 1 . . . . DeMuro was a longtime acquisition official in the Defense Department and most recently was corporate vice president of General Dynamics Corp.‘s Information Systems and Technology group . . . . He will report to Michael Chertoff, the former head of the Homeland Security Department who is now chairman of the board for BAE Systems, Inc., and to Ian King, the parent company’s CEO.”

TECH, PRIVACY, & SECRECY

1. Putting on NSA’s brakes. AP’s Julie Pace reports, “President Barack Obama is expected to restrict National Security Agency access to Americans’ phone records and rein in spying on foreign leaders . . . . Among the changes Obama is expected to announce is more oversight of the National Intelligence Priorities Framework, a classified document that ranks U.S. intelligence-gathering priorities and is used to make decisions on scrutiny of foreign leaders. . . . The president also is said to be considering one of the review board’s most aggressive recommendations, a proposal to strip the NSA of its ability to store telephone records from millions of Americans and instead have phone companies or a third party hold the records.”

2. Tech 2014. NextGov.Com contributor Alexis Madrigal imagines, “This year, I think this uneasy balance busts. It’s not that the underlying tensions will go away, but one can only remain anxious for so long. We will make our peace with our smartphones, either succumbing or overcoming, or something. Attention will turn elsewhere. 2014 feels like the beginning of a new cycle, and that’s where my focus will be. I find myself astonished at the reporting possibilities that are apparent to me this year. And I want to share some of my hypotheses with you.”

3. Cybersecurity investment – put your money where your threat is. VentureBeat.Com contributor Yoav Tzruya explains, “The increasing ferocity and scope of cyber-attacks worldwide, growing awareness of the problem, and the steady blurring of the lines between cyber security and our personal, financial, and national security has led to a significant global upswing in investment over the past two years.”

POTOMAC TWO-STEP

1. They broke it; we’ll fix it: “In a major, 40-minute speech that had clear election-year overtones, the Senate Republican leader assailed the Democratic majority, seeking to tie its policies and reign as the crux of Washington’s dysfunction. . . . The Kentucky senator, who is up for reelection in 2014, said his proposed changes would help lift the partisan gridlock that stymied the Senate last year. Democrats, meanwhile, blame the paralysis on Republican filibusters and obstruction.”

2. Biden buy-in: “The White House sought Wednesday to portray Biden as a trusted presidential adviser, allowing news photographers to shoot Obama and Biden eating lunch together in the president’s dining room, as the two paused between a national security briefing and a flurry of meetings with intelligence community leaders and Secretary of State John Kerry. They noted Biden had spoken with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki to pledge U.S. support and aid as his government battles al Qaida-backed insurgents. Press Secretary Jay Carney said the timing of the luncheon was a coincidence – and that photographers were allowed in as part of the administration’s promise to improve press access. And he said Biden routinely attends major national security meetings when he’s in town.”

OPINIONS EVERYONE HAS

1. “How the Fall of Fallujah Could Be Good For the U.S.” DefenseOne.Com contributor Michael Hirsh argues, “For the first time since 2011, when U.S. troops left Iraq, Washington has leverage with recalcitrant leaders like Maliki.” Fallujah Veteran Marine William would probably disagrees.

2. “Obstacles to Syrian cease-fire aren’t insurmountable.” Christian Science Monitor contributor David Owen argues, “We were told it would be impossible to get rid of chemical weapons in Syria without bombing – yet they are on track to be destroyed and abolished, because of cooperation between Russia and the United States, helped by bombing being blocked by the British Parliament and the US Congress. Iran has a chance to demonstrate its traditional position as a country content to live within its existing boundaries. And now that the distrust and antagonism raised over Libya has eased, the UN Security Council is at long last working together.”

3. “Avoid false choices in the Middle East.” Aljazeera.Com contributor Marwan Bishara argues, “If it all looks chaotic and senseless from Washington, New York and Brussels and you think it’s dizzying to watch the region unravel, try living in Egypt or dying in Syria. Apathy towards this suffering is immoral and politically short-sighted.”

4. “Why Al-Qaeda in Iraq Is Maliki’s Problem, Not America’s.” DefenseOne.Com contributor Peter Mansoor argues, “Until he agrees to such arrangements, Prime Minister Maliki should be left to handle the situation in his country on his own. America should support an Iraqi government, but only if it is a government worth supporting.”