Critical Releases in Homeland Security: February 23, 2022

From the Highlights: "On January 6, 2021, thousands of demonstrators surrounded the U.S. Capitol Building. Demonstrators attacked and injured law enforcement officers and eventually breached the building. The Capitol Police is responsible for protecting the Congress, its Members, staff, visitors, and facilities. The Capitol Police Board oversees the Capitol Police. GAO [Government Accountability Office] was asked to review the Capitol Police's physical security efforts for January 6. This report addresses the Capitol Police and the Board's: (1) physical security planning for January 6; (2) response to that day's events, including the procedures for obtaining outside assistance; and (3) process for assessing and mitigating physical security risks."

From the Introduction: "This report provides a brief overview of implications for U.S. defense of the emergence of great power competition with China and Russia. The issue for Congress is how U.S. defense planning should respond to the renewal of great power competition, and whether to approve, reject, or modify the Biden Administration's proposed defense funding levels, strategy, plans, and programs for addressing great power competition. Congress's decisions on these issues could have significant implications for U.S. defense capabilities and funding requirements. This report focuses on defense-related issues and does not discuss potential implications of the renewal of great power competition for other policy areas, such as foreign policy and diplomacy, trade and finance, energy, and foreign assistance."

From the Summary: "From at least January 2020, through February 2022, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), National Security Agency (NSA), and Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) have observed regular targeting of U.S. cleared defense contractors (CDCs) by Russian state-sponsored cyber actors. The actors have targeted both large and small CDCs and subcontractors with varying levels of cybersecurity protocols and resources. These CDCs support contracts for the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) and Intelligence Community in the following areas: [1] Command, control, communications, and combat systems; [2] Intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance, and targeting; [3] Weapons and missile development; [4] Vehicle and aircraft design; and [5] Software development, data analytics, computers, and logistics."