Japan faced a full-on cyber attack across government departments Tuesday in a drill aimed at bolstering national security. Similar to the ethical-hacker testing for the London 2012 Olympics, 50 cyber defense specialists gathered at an emergency response center in Tokyo, with at least three times that many offsite, to defend against a simulated attack across 21 state ministries and agencies and 10 industry associations.
The United States is advising airlines with direct flights serving Russia to be aware of the possibility of explosive materials concealed in toothpaste or cosmetic tubes. Rep. Michael McCaul, chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, said the Department of Homeland Security issued a bulletin to airlines flying to Russia warning of the potential threat. The bulletin said that officials believed that the explosives might be used during flights or smuggled into the city of Sochi, where the Winter Olympics begins this week.
Two Austrian athletes have received kidnap threats if they should compete in the Sochi Winter Olympics, which heightens security concerns at the games and triggered an investigation by counter-terrorism experts.
The State Department is telling American athletes competing in the upcoming Sochi Winter Olympics to avoid wearing team gear outside the games’ venues.
Russia began implementing stringent security measures Tuesday in Sochi, one month before the start of the 2014 Winter Olympics. According to CBSNews, tens of thousands of Russian police, security agents, rescue workers and army troops are being deployed from the games.
Visitors to the upcoming Olympic Games in Sochi, Russia, will be able to access the Internet faster and in more places than any previous Olympics, all for free to guests. However Russia’s FSB security service is reportedly installing a sweeping and invasive surveillance service to ensure that they will be able to intercept, read and even filter every digital communication passing through the city’s telephone and Internet networks during the game, leading to many security experts suggesting that visitors leave their devices at home.
Do you have employees making plans to travel to the 2014 World Cup or the 2016 Summer Olympic Games in Brazil? Make sure they go prepared – consider crime trends, health concerns and locations.
September 1, 2013
Brazil will be on the world stage as it gears up for the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Summer Olympic Games.
Take a look back at the London Olympics' security woes -- the successes, failures and lessons to be learned from the event's use of private security officers.