04 Nov 10. The military’s new Cyber Command, responsible for shielding 15,000 military computer networks from intruders, has become fully operational, the Defense Department said on Wednesday. More than 100 foreign intelligence organizations are trying to break into U.S. networks, Deputy Defense Secretary William Lynn wrote in the September/October issue of the journal Foreign Affairs. Some already have the capacity to disrupt U.S. information infrastructure, he said. Gates ordered the new unit’s creation in June 2009 to address the growing threat of cyber-attack. It consolidates offensive and defensive operations under Army General Keith Alexander, who also heads the National Security Agency, the Defense Department’s intelligence arm that protects national security information and intercepts foreign communications.
“Cyberspace is essential to our way of life and U.S. Cyber Command synchronizes our efforts in the defense of (Defense Department) networks,” Alexander said in the Pentagon announcement.
Lynn declared the unit, based at Fort Meade, Maryland, fully up and running in a memorandum dated October 31, said Colonel Rivers Johnson, a Cyber Command spokesman. The new unit began work in May, establishing a joint operations center and transitioning personnel and functions from the old structures. It is part of the Offutt Air Force, Nebraska-based Strategic Command, the organization responsible for U.S. nuclear and space operations as well as information warfare and global military intelligence. (Source: Reuters)

04 Nov 10. Sypris Electronics, LLC, a subsidiary of Sypris Solutions, Inc. has signed a Technology Information Exchange Agreement (TIEA) with Cassidian, formerly known as EADS Defence & Security, the second largest division within the EADS Group. The TIEA will enable the global leverage of mutual capabilities in several critical information assurance areas, including key management, secure communications, and cyber security. Specifically, the TIEA between Sypris Electronics and Cassidian allows the Companies to expand their market reach for existing information assurance hardware and software solutions, by utilizing new domestic and international sales channels. This agreement gives Sypris and Cassidian an opportunity to round out their respective portfolios as they relate to global information assurance.
“For years, Sypris and Cassidian have protected the most classified data and networks in the world,” stated John Walsh, President of Sypris Electronics.
“This agreement allows access to best-in-class technologies, which will help both organizations to launch new secure, robust, and comprehensive security solutions that will benefit the U.S. Government, International Ministries of Defence, and aerospace and defence contractors worldwide.”
Doug McGinn, VP of Security Solutions at Cassidian, said “This relationship provides a unique opportunity for our companies to work together and leverage our products and capabilities to address the growing need for information security across the global cyber domain”.

26 Oct 10. When the country was threatened with an H1N1 flu pandemic in 2009, nearly every sector of society got involved with educating the public. Agencies such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention set up websites, public-service TV ads were aired, schools preached good hygiene, and supermarkets posted signs and other advisories.
“Now, it’s a cyber epidemic,” said Bob Dix, vice president for U.S. government and critical infrastructure protection for Juniper Networks. “Why aren’t we educating people?”
Dix was speaking on a cybersecurity panel Oct. 25 at the Executive Leadership Conference, about the growing growing threats to cybersecurity. The panel was called “Taking it to the Net: Security Boon or Bane.” ELC, staged by the American Council for Technology and the Industry Advisory Council, took place in Williamsburg, Va. Dix and the other panelists said the interconnected nature of syst