FROM THE DESK OF CLEARANCEJOBS.COM
Backdoor dangers. Contributor Christopher Burgess explains, “The Juniper Network compromise of their VPN systems via a backdoor aptly demonstrates the fallacy in the logic of building backdoors into encryption systems. The backdoor can be exploited by a third-party entity and thus the backdoor facilitates the compromise of the encrypted content by potential adversaries.” See also, “Juniper backdoor raises questions.”
Job prospect: Fulcrum. Editor Lindy Kyzer writes, “The president of [Fulcrum] attends every new hire session. And it’s not uncommon for employees at Fulcrum to run into the executive team in the hallways. And while company size gives advantages when it comes to job stability and company growth, it also has a very direct impact on culture and workplace environment, as well.”
THE FORCE AND THE FIGHT
Defense report. Defense One’s staff reports, “The Army wants more troops. The Air Force wants more money and newer planes. The Navy wants more ships and is battling over what to do with the fleet it has. And the Marines — well the Corps isn’t sure what comes next, but they’re staying in the fight. . . . The state of defense, from top to bottom, is everywhere. It’s a time of changes, to the force and its mission. But there is clear priority at the Pentagon: the war against ISIS.” See also, “Defense Issues, Leaders and Programs To Watch in 2016” and “US general fears military will lower standards for women.”
Arming S. Korea. Reuters’ Ju-Min Park and Jee Heun Kahng report, “The United States and its ally South Korea were discussing on Monday sending more strategic U.S. weapons to the Korean peninsula, a day after a U.S. B-52 bomber flew over South Korea in response to North Korea’s nuclear test . . . . China called for all sides to avoid raising tension.” See also, “Submarine-launched missile test,” “U.S. Conducts B-52 Bomber Overflight in South Korea, ” and “U.S. troops put on highest alert.”
Peace in Afghanistan. AP’s Kathy Gannon reports, “A key gathering opened on Monday in Islamabad in which four countries – Afghanistan, Pakistan, China and the United States – hope to lay the roadmap to peace for the war-shattered Afghan nation. The meeting comes as Afghanistan’s battlefield losses are mounting and entire swaths of the country that cost hundreds of U.S.-led coalition and Afghan military lives to secure slip back into Taliban hands.”
CONTRACT WATCH
Contractor cybersecurity training. Federal Times’ Aaron Boyd reports, “Cybersecurity is becoming big business, which can make it difficult for small businesses that don’t have the funds to buy needed security tools. To help those businesses improve their cybersecurity postures, the Small Business Administration is developing a training regimen and is looking for vendors to support that effort.”
Hellfires to Iraq. Defence Talk reports, “The State Department has made a determination approving a possible Foreign Military Sale to Iraq of Hellfire missiles and Captive Air Training Missiles, related equipment and support. The estimated cost is $800 million. . . . The Government of Iraq has requested a possible sale of five thousand (5,000) AGM-114K/N/R Hellfire missiles; Ten (10) 114K M36E9 Captive Air Training Missiles; associated equipment; and defense services.”
TECH, PRIVACY, & SECRECY
Anti-terrorism tech. Defense One’s Patrick Tucker reports, “Going after terrorists has never been a simple or straightforward affair, but does it really require something called ‘laser doppler vibrometry?’ Affirmative, according to the Combating Terrorism Technical Support Office, or CTTSO . . . . CTTOS’s wish list includes more mundane and predictable fare like data analysis and fusing, secure communications, etc. But the most revealing item isn’t technological at all; it’s a request for analysts’ best guess as to how counterterrorism operators will proceed in a future environment where enemies are much more able to use consumer technology against them.”
Laser drones. Scout Warrior’s Kris Osborn reports, “Air Force drones will one day fire high-tech laser weapons to destroy high-value targets, conduct precision strikes and incinerate enemy locations from the sky . . . . The Air Force Research Laboratory is already working on a program to develop laser weapons for manned aircraft to arm cargo planes and fighter jets by the mid-2020s. When it comes to drones, there does not yet appear to be a timetable for when fired lasers would be operational weapons – however weapons technology of this kind is moving quickly.”
Drone dragnet. Michigan Tech’s News Wise reports, “It’s a deceptively simple system: a launcher that shoots a big net attached to a large drone by a string. The system can be autonomous, controlled by a ground-based human pilot or a combination of the two. After an intruding drone is spotted, the drone catcher takes up the chase and fires the net at it from a distance of up to 40 feet. Because the net is so big and can be deployed so quickly, it can overwhelm even the fastest, most maneuverable small drone.”
POTOMAC TWO-STEP
Half-full. “President Barack Obama will paint an optimistic picture in his final State of the Union televised address on Tuesday, drawing a contrast with Republicans running to replace him in the November 2016 presidential election . . . . ‘You’ll hear a big, optimistic, generous view of the future of America from the president on Tuesday,’ [White House Chief of Staff] McDonough said . . . .”
Postscript. “The president’s last State of the Union will come a week after unveiling executive actions on gun control, including measures to expand background checks. His speech is expected to touch heavily on the gun issue, which has frustrated him throughout his presidency. White House officials have signaled that the president’s speech will focus on a broad vision for the country, rather than the policy wish list he has delivered in past State of the Union addresses.”
OPINIONS EVERYONE HAS
“Can South Korea Fight North Korea Without America?” National Interest contributor Dave Majumdar argues, “[I]f it came to a shooting war with the North—unless the conflict were to become a nuclear confrontation (which it very well could) or China intervened—the ROK would be able to handle an invasion by the so-called Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.”
“Even a failed test makes North Korea’s nuclear arsenal scarier.” Reuters contributor Sharon Squassoni argues, “North Korea has been busier than ever testing its ballistic missiles and it won’t be too long before its warhead improvements allow its missiles to reach the continental United States.”
“3 Types of Questions Smart People Never Ask.” Inc contributor Jeff Haden argues, “I asked the wrong question. We all do it. We ask leading questions. We ask limiting questions. We ask questions that assume a certain answer. (Shoot, sometimes we don’t even listen to the answers–we’re too busy presuming we’re right.) Here are some ways people ask questions the wrong way. . . .” See also, “Ask your team these questions in order to succeed.”
