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that we can draw on for a complete solution to the problem. But there are models
that can help us address particular aspects of it. For example,
* Expeditionary forces within the military provide a good example of how we can
find new approaches to preventing and responding to attacks by capitalizing on
technology, skills and capabilities, and flexibility. These are forces that are
designed, trained, and organized in a fashion very different from that of
conventional forces, which previously relied on highly structured and
standardized approaches to war-fighting and require a considerable infrastructure
in their deployments.
" The President's Council on Year 2000 Conversion can provide a model for
leadership and coordination. To address the Y2K problem, the Council used a
sector-based approach and established effective public-private partnerships
necessary to address the problem. The more than 25 sector-based working
groups, which were led by one or more federal agencies that established
partnerships with over 250 organizations, gathered information critical to the
nation's Y2K efforts and addressed issues such as contingency planning. In
addition, the Chair of the Council formed a Senior Advisors Group composed of
representatives from private-sector firms across key economic sectors. Members
shared perspectives on cross-cutting issues, information sharing, and appropriate
federal responses to potential year 2000 failures.
* Intrusion detection systems provide a good model for building systems that can
protect major cities and infrastructures. These systems are built based on data on
normal use of system and network activity as well as known attack patterns.
Deviations are discovered based on data from analyses of network packets,
captured from network backbones or local area network segments, or data
sources generated by the operating system or application software. The concept
could be applied on a bigger scale using geospatial digital information tools,
including remote sensing and satellite imagery technology. Doing so, however,
will be challenging. For starters, determining what is normal and abnormal
activity relative to terrorist activity would be difficult because it would require
developing an extensive body of knowledge-beyond just intelligence
information-to build a baseline for terrorist activity when the activity itself is
elusive, fluid, and difficult to predict.
There are also models for integrating agencies into the new homeland security
department, particularly private sector merger and acquisition efforts (both
successful and unsuccessful), which we plan to study. Private sector models may be
more instructive than past government reorganizations, due to the private sector
imperative to maintaining customer focus and "profitability" during reorganization.
The Department of Homeland Security should similarly focus upon reducing the
extent and duration of decreased agency effectiveness due to major reorganization.
5. In your testimony to the Subcommittee, you stated that there are three
broad challenges to be faced in order for the country to develop and
implement a national preparedness strategy for homeland security: the
difficulty in identifying and differentiating key information; the cultural,
legal and technical barriers to collecting and sharing information; and theGAO-02-1048R National Preparedness Challenges
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United States. General Accounting Office. National Preparedness: Technology and Information Sharing Challenges, text, August 30, 2002; Washington D.C.. (https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc296464/m1/4/: accessed April 25, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, UNT Digital Library, https://digital.library.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.