Reposted from Security Management

​The concept that small acts can have large ramifications is called the butterfly effect. The phrase, based on a thesis by American mathematician and meteorologist Edward Lorenz, refers to the idea that a butterfly's wings could create tiny changes in the atmosphere that may ultimately delay, accelerate, or even prevent the occurrence of a tornado in another location.

The level of awareness exhibited by security personnel can have a butterfly effect on an active assailant's perception of risk. Active shooter attacks often end when the perpetrator is apprehended or killed by law enforcement, or when the attacker commits suicide—rarely do assailants run or escape. Having security guards onsite may mitigate the chances of an attack, but this type of embedded response is no guarantee that the attacker will be deterred or stopped. 

In the case of the Orlando Pulse Nightclub massacre, for example, there was a uniformed Orlando police officer onsite providing security. At Mandalay Bay where a gunman opened fire on the crowd below, killing 59 people, a security officer exchanged gunfire with the assailant during the massacre. And most recently, an armed school resource officer was on campus during the February shooting that killed 17 people at a high school in Parkland, Florida.

However, security officers can also focus on the events that occur before an attack. People who intend to commit violence often give themselves away by their physical appearance or behavior. By engaging people with simple hospitality principles, a security officer is more likely to observe warning signs. This enhanced awareness allows the guard to implement security methods that may deter the attacker.

Even when the worst-case scenario occurs, a security officer's situational awareness is critical. Early detection enables officers to respond more quickly and help others by providing instructions that can mitigate the attack. By observing physical and behavioral cues, acting upon concerns, and implementing effective response methods, unarmed guards can help prevent or mitigate active assailant attacks.​

Preattack Indicators

Because most attacks represent the killer's first and last act of violence, the assailant often exhibits telltale signs of the incident to come. With little to no prior criminal record or experience in extreme violence, they may show behavioral and physical indicators that give their bad intentions away. Looking out for these early warning signs, or preattack indicators (PAINs), can alert the security practitioner to potential trouble and possibly thwart attacks.

PAINs are physical actions that include movement patterns, carried objects, appearance, or dress. They are also behavioral elements, such as facial expressions or demeanor. PAINs do not automatically indicate danger, because they can be consistent with perfectly innocent explanations. By carefully and prudently observing people who are determined not to be a danger, the officer can learn how to better distinguish future threats.

In the rare instances when PAINs are associated with imminent danger and immediate action is required, awareness will greatly improve response, because the element of surprise that may elicit the fight-or-flight response is removed.

Normalcy bias. Trying to look for someone in a crowd who could be an attacker is like looking for a needle in a stack of needles. Since active assailant attacks are rare, there is a tendency to discredit PAINs in favor of the norm. Effective security requires a certain level of paranoia that avoids the "it can't happen here" mentality.

Establishing a thorough understanding of what is normal allows the guard to have a baseline. Then the security officer remains alert and vigilant during normal activities, and can easily transition to a heightened state of alert when a change occurs to the baseline.

Customer service. Proactivity on the part of the guard is not to be confused with aggression, because customer service is still a priority. Security should view each person as a customer, not a suspect, until a significant change to the baseline occurs. Professional and nonthreatening behavior from security is more likely to elicit cooperation.

In customer service, the 10-5 Rule is a gold standard. The rule states that when the staff member is within 10 feet of guests, staff should make eye contact and smile to acknowledge them. Within five feet of a guest, a sincere greeting or friendly gesture should accompany the eye contact and smile.

The 10-5 Rule reminds others of the presence of a professional security force while keeping the security officer engaged with visitors.

Making eye contact with a person is an effective first step to determine if a basic level of mutual trust exists. At around 10 feet, make brief eye contact with a pleasant demeanor, then scan for PAINs. (See infographic, page 41.)

If PAINs are observed, engage the person in a focused conversation. In this context, professionalism is key. A focused conversation should not resemble interrogation.

Active engagement. The purpose of a focused conversation is to determine if the person poses a risk. A polite "where are you heading?" to learn that person's trip story can be an effective conversation starter. 

There are two types of trip stories—past and future. A past trip means the person has completed the purpose of the trip, and a future trip means the person is on their way to a specific place. This basic framework helps the officer determine whether the trip story is verifiable by providing specific details of sights seen and actions taken. A vague, unverifiable trip story does not indicate imminent violence, but it does indicate deception.

Officers should expect occasional negative reactions and be prepared to encounter individuals who refuse to cooperate. Appropriate measures should be taken to deal with such persons, including asking for another officer to help and continuing to question the individual.

Low-risk groups. Just as there are universal indicators of imminent danger, there are groups of people that, absent an overt hostile act, can be statistically discounted as a threat. These low-risk groups can be removed from the 10-5 Rule, including families, children, people older than 70 years, known guests of the facility, and people known and trusted by the officer.

High-risk people. After the focused conversation, those not eliminated as a possible threat must be monitored. Ideally, the person can be denied access and escorted out of the area. If not, supervisors need to be alerted and the person should be followed by an officer. Using video surveillance is also a possibility. The officer should be prepared to document their concerns and articulate—based on PAINs and the focused conversation—why the person was considered a threat.

If it becomes apparent that the person is dangerous, immediate action should be taken. The first step is to alert others and request assistance. The following actions will be based upon the perceived threat and the location. Options may range from initiating heightened security procedures and observing the subject to an immediate evacuation of the area.​

Attack Response

Regardless of the specific factors leading up to the situation, it is imperative that security officers understand how to respond to a violent attack. 

Some responses require compartmentalizing occupants away from the assailant, which is associated with the lockdown concept. However, not all situations call for these measures. Lockdown or compartmentalization is a valid tactic, but it lacks the flexibility needed to adequately mitigate all active assailant attacks. A lockdown does not help people in areas that cannot be secured or those having direct contact with the perpetrator. In an active assailant attack, these are the people at the greatest risk.

Not every human-based threat or intrusion requires Run. Hide. Fight. decisions. Under these far more common nonactive shooter events, using the word "lockdown" can cause a high percentage of occupants to falsely assume there is an active shooter, creating unnecessary panic and anxiety. Instead, these scenarios require heightened security procedures.

Heightened procedures. Situations requiring heightened security can range from a threat of school or workplace violence to civil unrest. What measures are taken to increase security depend on several factors, including the nature of the threat, the mission of the facility, the architecture and layout of the facility, and law enforcement presence or response time.

Based on these factors, leaders must determine which measures are most prudent given the circumstances, and security officers should be prepared to guide facility occupants.

When necessary, guards should communicate the fact that security has been heightened in simple language, such as "Attention, guests: we have a situation that requires heightened security. Please move inside a secure location." These messages get people's attention without causing unnecessary panic. Additional information can be shared as needed.

Attacks. All leading U.S. federal preparedness and response organizations, including the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, the U.S. Department of Education, and the U.S. Department of Justice, recommend the option-based Run. Hide. Fight. approach. This recommendation is not limited to U.S. government agencies—Run. Hide. Fight. can be applied to many organizations and settings.

When deciding which option is best, determining whether the guard has direct or indirect contact with the shooter is essential. Direct contact means there are no barriers between the guard's location and the attacker, and the assailant is close enough to pose immediate danger.

With indirect contact, the attacker is inside or near the facility or general area, but distance or barriers delay the attacker's ability to cause harm.

After determining the level of contact, the survival options of the protocol are applied. The guard should also be prepared to advise those around him or her on which option to choose and to assist others.

Given their large presence at events, facilities, schools, and other venues, both armed and unarmed security officers play a critical role in preventing and mitigating active assailant attacks.

Because the killer is likely to have a target location for the attack in mind—whether it be a school cafeteria, concert, or church service—the presence of trained, engaged, and aware security can disrupt the attack.

Unarmed guards have a variety of tools at their disposal to protect the public and mitigate potentially dangerous situations. With a combination of active observance, engaged conversation, and–when necessary–heightened security procedures, security personnel can serve as a major deterrent against those who intend to commit harm.  

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Reposted from The Busselton Mail

The cause of the fire at Busselton’s Old Buttery Factory remains unknown.

The March 27 blazed caused approximately $400,000 damage to The Busselton Museum and destroyed precious artifacts on the building’s second floor.

Busselton Historical Society president Sandra Johnston told the Mail the fire claimed the museum’s most valuable historical collection.

“All the wedding dresses are gone as is the cape Stewart Bovell was knighted in and the furniture in the main upstairs room,” she said.

“The other three rooms with the nursery, music room and kitchen are all badly smoked damaged.”

Ms Johnston said the loss was like a death in the family for the volunteers.

“For the first few days everyone was in tears,” she said.

“It was horrid, we are exhausted but we are thankful more damage wasn’t done.”

More than 30 firefighters from Busselton, Dunsborough and Bunbury were involved in saving the Busselton icon.

Ms Johnston praised the volunteer firefighters for their quick response to the situation.

“Without them there would be no museum, and that is not an exaggeration,” she said.

“They saved the museum by containing it to the one room.

“I can’t say enough about them, downstairs is in exceptionally good condition, with almost no damage and that is down to their skills and efforts.”

The City of Busselton will work with museum board and volunteers as well as the members of the Busselton Pottery Club who share the Butter Factory premises, to progress a schedule of works aimed at reopening the building as soon as possible.

The first step would be to ensure the building was safe and this would include an asbestos contamination risk assessment.

City of Busselton mayor Grant Henley said council shared the upset of museum personnel and the broader community and would do all it could to progress repair work and ensure the building was operational in the shortest possible time frame.

The Old Butter Factory recently celebrated its 100 years with an official ceremony for former workers and families and a community open day.

WA minister for culture, arts and heritage David Templeman, who attended the centenary celebrations, has expressed his sadness to Ms Johnston and the Busselton Historical Society volunteers.

“This is a significant loss for the local community and the state as a whole,” he said.

“I have asked the Western Australian Museum and State Heritage to assist in any way possible.”

Ms Johnston thanked the community for the outpouring of support and offers of donations.

A Go Fund Me page will be set up in coming days.

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Reposted from TeleSur

The Government of Venezuela recovered 196 cultural heritage pieces in 2017, which were extracted illegally from Costa Rica for auction in the U.S.

Venezuelan institutions and authorities were commended Thursday for their role in the fighting against the illicit trafficking of archaeological and cultural objects in Venezuela and abroad by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

Speaking after the commendation was received Venezuela’s Ministry of Culture, Ernesto Villegas said: “Venezuela’s voice is heard with respect at the World’s Heritage Center, where the country’s good practices and contributions to the implementation of UNESCO conventions are recognized.”

In a video published through Villegas’ Twitter account, Omar Vielma, president of the country's Institute for Cultural Heritage, said Venezuela gave a “global example of how to protect our cultural objects, and we took action last December by recovering and repatriating to Costa Rica 196 pieces seized in Venezuela as the result of the policies that our committee against illicit trafficking of cultural goods has… We were asked to bring the documented experience of how we repatriated these goods to the next meeting.”

Villegas also announced that Venezuela has submitted an application for the tradition of the Blessed Palm of Chacao and Margarita to be considered as part of the country’s Intangible Cultural Heritage.

He also requested the support of Unesco’s General Director Audrey Azoula in Venezuela’s quest to have the Piedra Kueka, a large stone that forms part of the Pemon people’s heritage and myths, returned by Germany.

A German artist took the stone in 1998, and it now resides in the metropolitan Tiergarten Park in Berlin as part of an installation titled “Global Stone.”

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Reposted from Security Now

YouTube employees fled the company's headquarters in terror last week, as a woman, now identified as Nasim Najafi Aghdam, shot and wounded three people in the company's outdoor courtyard before killing herself.

It's not clear what drove Aghdam to target the company's headquarters in San Bruno, Calif., although the New York Times noted that she had criticized YouTube's policies.

At first blush, this tragedy may come across as something that only a company's physical security team should handle. But as more active shooter episodes erupt across the nation this year from the Parkland, Fla., attack that killed 17 high school students to the Yountville, Calif., veterans home attack that resulted in the deaths of three people and the shooter, more attention may be paid to the long-standing debate about merging IT security teams and physical security teams into one consolidated department, according to several experts.

"Most businesses today are relying on human intervention in order to mitigate these situations and security alerts. The use of technology to augment these situations is more important than ever," Tony Ball, vice president and general manager of identity and access management for Entrust Datacard, told Security Now.

Technology has now enabled people to have a physical and digital footprint, Ball added. And these footprints indicate whether or not a person should be in a certain location or in a certain situation. These footprints, as a result, can alert security -- either physical or IT-based -- to "shut down" an access point, whether a physical door or a system, Ball said.

Active shooter challenges
In the case of April 3 YouTube incident, the shooter is believed to have entered an open, less secure area where employees could gather to eat their lunch. Because a secured, physical perimeter was not likely breached, there would have been no security alerts to send to the IT security team, who in turn could have sent the physical security staff to investigate, security experts theorized. 

However, Ball notes there may be situations that do arise where an active shooter enters an area that is more secure and that is the time converged IT security and physical security teams would greatly benefit being part of the same team.

For example, an active shooter is more than likely carrying a mobile device. This device can say a lot about the shooter, such as where the person has been, whether or not person has been in a certain location previously, or whether or not the person exhibited certain behaviors, Ball explains.

Once a security team knows "who" this person is via their digital footprint, the IT security team can choose to increase or decrease their risk level based on these characteristics, Ball said. An integrated security team can either physically send security personnel to intervene in the situation or disable access privileges via connected IT security and physical access systems, he added, noting that the device can help security personnel locate an individual based on global location services embedded in the device.

Additionally, if biometric measures are in place, when a known, or unknown person, enters a perimeter, cameras can detect if the individual should be there or not, Ball said. If they are allowed certain access privileges, the security team can allow entry. If the individual is not supposed to be in that location, the security team can "challenge" the request for access by increasing the physical or digital security measures.

Other tools and processes organizations may want to consider for their converged security teams are a common identity management system, video analytics and a single governance body for the merged security team, according to Cisco Systems' white paper "Why Integrate Physical and Logical Security?"

A long debate
Both physical and IT security departments have been talking about convergence for more than ten years, Michael Gips, chief global knowledge and learning officer for ASIS International, told Security Now. He noted the use of physical security devices getting placed routinely on corporate networks accelerated the discussion of convergence.

And in 2010, ASIS's CSO Roundtable, which is now called the CSO Center, found 10% to 15% of large companies they surveyed had reported that they fully converged their IT security and physical security departments. That percentage, however, largely did not change when a subsequent survey was conducted in 2014, Gips said.

Several issues, however, are preventing more organizations from merging their security teams.

"IT and physical security professionals have complementary skills, which makes convergence seem to be a logical solution," Gips said. "But both sides think they should be running the converged department."

Some team members are also worried that the word "converged" is synonymous with lay-offs, which is a threat, he explained. And lastly, IT security and physical security professionals often report up through entirely different lines, Gips says. IT security reports into IT, operations or administration departments, while physical security team members tend to report into legal, facilities or human resource departments, says Gips.

"Convergence, thus, would require organizational surgery, so to speak," he says. 'But a lot of security people think wide-scale convergence is inevitable because of the presumed cost savings to companies."

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Reposted from Security Informed

Today’s security professionals are tasked with protecting the entirety of a facility or campus from every possible threat. It’s a big task, given the range of solutions available; from cybersecurity to prevent hacking, to video surveillance to monitor the goings-on within the facility, to the physical security of the building itself. 

For most businesses and schools, keeping the entrances and exits to a building secure is an extremely high priority—when an individual cannot get into the building they will have a harder time causing trouble for those within it.

With quantum leaps happening in security technology, architectural revolving doors may not always be top-of-mind when designing a new security system from scratch.

However, with recent technological advances in the last decade, and considering that they occupy less floor space and are extremely good at reducing unwanted air infiltration into an interior, it is definitely time to examine how they can participate in a complete physical security plan as well.

Restricted Access For Business Continuity

The exterior door to a building or premises, often a public entrance during business hours, is typically the first line of defense against unwanted persons or activity making its way into an organization.

If lobby or security staff sense trouble outside (distress, fights, weapons, protests, etc.), they need a quick and effective way to block anyone from entering the building and creating danger for those inside.

Should this type of incident make its way into a building, it creates a number of risks, including the expenditure of unnecessary resources, loss of productivity, violence, and liability for the business.

For example, recently a well-known financial company in the Midwest was the target of a protest against their financing of a controversial initiative. A large crowd gathered outside on the street, pushed inside the building, and took over the interior lobby.

The protesters not only disrupted the retail banking business at the lobby level, but also attempted to block employees from going to work on the upper floors. The protest lasted hours, making it difficult to do business, and was stressful for employees. In addition, the news cycle around the protest created an image problem for upper management and the overall brand.

Revolving Doors For Access Control

Beyond the immediate risks of theft and violence, crime has numerous intangible effects on employees, residents or students that can have a more profound and lasting impact. These include physical pain and suffering, along with a feeling of anxiety, stress, and uncertainty around future security.

According to a survey conducted by Workplace Options in 2015, 53% of American workers have experienced a traumatic event while at work—with workplace violence or criminal activity listed as one of the top four events that cause trauma.

Revolving doors can be a reliable solution for providing this necessary security. They are often deployed in buildings where public use is needed during the day, but controlled access is required in the evening—for example, banks, museums, commercial buildings, condominiums, libraries, dorms, recreational centres, and more.

Thanks to technology employing electricity, today’s manual revolving doors are more capable than ever before and can potentially save lives or buy the time necessary to alert security staff or notify law enforcement to deal with a dangerous situation in time to prevent harm, stress, or liability.

Enhanced Security With Electronic Lock Control

The following security features are now available for manual revolving doors being deployed in buildings right now:

• Emergency security lockdown: Facility or reception staff can electronically lock the door in place, regardless of position, at the push of a remotely located button. In the event of an immediate security threat outside the entrance (weapons, protests, drunk and disorderly conduct, etc.), access to a lobby or entrance can be instantly denied, and those within protected.

• Remote locking: In an earlier time, the manual pushing of a pin was required to lock a revolving door’s wing into the ceiling or the floor. Today, you can lock a manual revolving door by using a remote pushbutton, or, an access control system can lock the door automatically at a specific time of day. If anyone is still in transit during the lock command, the door will allow them to exit before locking. Once the door is locked, staff can easily unlock it with the same remote mechanism if there is an authorized visitor.

• Access control integration: Integration with access control systems gives manual revolving doors even more capabilities. Secure access can be made possible via an access control device such as a keycard reader, mounted on the outside of the door. Upon valid authorization, the door will unlock and the user can push to enter the facility. Once all compartments are clear, the door finishes rotating by positioning its door wings at the end posts of the throat opening and relocks.
  

Efficient Incident Management

Consider the usage of these features for a building such as a downtown high-rise condominium. During the day or night, residents can enter by showing credentials outside the door to the access control system. Any deliveries would have to stand outside, ring the doorbell and wait for reception to unlock the door and let them in.

If anything threatening occurs during rotation, reception staff can immediately lock the doors to keep trouble out and call for help. At a high-rise office building, it can work differently. The door can be unlocked during the day for public entry with guards keeping a watchful eye outside, ready to lock the doors instantly if trouble happens outside. The access control system can lock the doors at 5pm until 7am the next morning, requiring employees or cleaning crew to present their credentials to enter.

Access Control Integration

It should be noted that standard revolving doors are not equipped to detect or prevent tailgating (an unauthorized person following an authorized person through an entrance). They should not be confused with a security revolving door, which is intended for individuals trained to use these doors at employee-only entrances.

With this in mind, consider that with access control integration, a standard revolving door will unlock when presented with an authorized credential, but will continue to rotate as long as anyone is inside the door to prevent entrapment.

Tailgating is still a possibility with these entrances, so if this is a concern, your revolving doors should be the first of several layers of physical security including, potentially, additional turnstiles, guard staff, surveillance cameras, additional locking mechanisms for restricted areas, and so on.

Ensuring Compliance With Code Requirements

Finally, modern code requirements for revolving doors are defined by a number of different agencies—ANSI, IBC, and NFPA. All require that a revolving door’s wings be able to collapse or ‘book fold’ to create a path of escape during a fire, and that a swinging or sliding door must be present within 10 feet of any revolving door, on the same building plane.

To make sure this additional door isn’t a security weak point, the extra sliding or swinging door can be ‘exit only’, or locked to those trying to enter from outside the building, but unlocked to those trying to exit from inside the building.

To keep building interiors safe, standard revolving doors can be a simple, cost-effective and easy to implement solution that helps prevent unwanted entry by those looking to do harm and create unwanted liability. Considering revolving doors can be a first step into securing the entrances and exits of your building, and protecting everyone and everything within.

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Reposted from ABCNews

Packages intended to be placed on a truck, like the bomb that exploded Tuesday at a FedEx facility in Texas, are not screened as carefully as items carried by passenger planes.

Largely that is because of the high cost of screening every parcel intended for domestic delivery.

Delivery companies such as FedEx and UPS rely on a risk-based strategy. They hope to detect illegal or dangerous shipments by spotting something unusual about the package or the shipper. Some security experts give the companies good marks while pointing out the limitations of their approach.

FedEx and UPS say only that they have security measures in place and cooperate with law enforcement. They declined to discuss specifics, saying that would compromise security.

Here are some questions and answers about security of parcels:

ARE ALL PACKAGES SCREENED?

Cargo on passenger planes must be screened, usually by computed-tomography scanners although explosive-trace detection and dogs are also used, said Jeffrey Price, an aviation-security expert at Metropolitan State University in Denver.

If a package is going to be placed on a truck for delivery within the United States, as with the device that exploded on a conveyer belt at a FedEx facility in Schertz, Texas, "there is much less likelihood that it's going to be physically screened with X-ray or even a person examining the package," said John Cohen, a former counterterrorism coordinator at the Department of Homeland Security.

HOW ARE SHIPMENTS CHECKED?

For truck shipments, cargo carriers train employees to look for suspicious behavior, including anything that looks odd about the package, or a shipper who buys too much insurance for what he says is in the box, Cohen said. Those procedures developed in the 1980s to detect shipments of drugs or guns and evolved to be used to find explosives.

An employee at a FedEx center in Austin, Bryan Jaimes, 19, told reporters he never received new guidance from managers about handling packages as Austin authorities look for what they've called a "serial bomber." He said his job is to load the trucks and that he assumes other workers earlier in the shipping chain give packages a once-over before they get to him.

FedEx and UPS officials declined to say whether they screen ground-shipping packages at drop-off points or distribution centers. On Tuesday, investigators closed off an Austin-area FedEx store where they suspect that the bomb was dropped off.

The most stringent screening rules apply to packages that will be carried on passenger airplanes.

FedEx and UPS each have their own fleet of planes, and the rules are not as strict. Price said the companies aren't required to use X-ray, explosive-trace detection or canine screening but can at their option. He said they are required to physically inspect all packages.

HAVE TERRORISTS TRIED TO HIDE BOMBS IN CARGO?

Yes. The threat posed by bombs given to delivery companies was highlighted in a 2010 plot aimed at blowing up planes flying to the United States.

Bombs hidden in printer cartridges were shipped from Yemen but intercepted in Dubai and the United Kingdom and were defused. The bombs were pulled off U.S.-bound planes after officials got a tip from authorities in Saudi Arabia. The U.S. then banned large toner and ink cartridges from passenger planes and ordered new inspections of high-risk shipments on cargo planes coming into the country.

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Reposted from FOX6 Milwaukee

It has been weeks since a valuable, signed and original Pablo Picasso print was stolen from DeLind Fine Art Appraisals in Milwaukee. The 1949 print, which is one of just 30 in the world, is worth up to $50,000. Milwaukee police and the FBI continue to seek information that would lead them to the prized art.

In the meantime, FOX6 News talked exclusively with a Milwaukee FBI expert who said stealing art is usually the easy part. What happens next is not.

"They take a piece of art or an artifact simply because it's a crime of opportunity," said David Bass, a member of the FBI's Art Crimes Team.

Bass said finding the crook and art may be difficult, but it is also difficult for the thief to turn a profit.

"The hard part is selling it. The reason for this is that these things tend to be one-of-a-kind, unique. They could be identified," Bass said.

Dealers can look up an item on the internet and Interpol Red List of stolen items to find out if a work of art is stolen.

"Stealing something that's worth $5 million, well, it must be worth $5 million stolen. The truth of the matter is, it's not worth much at all if you can't sell it," Bass said.

The FBI has been involved investigating art and artifact thefts from museums, such as from looted galleries in Syria and Baghdad. But Milwaukee also has its share.

In 2014, a Lapinski Stradivarius was taken from the Milwaukee Symphony's Concertmaster. The instrument, valued at $5 million, was later discovered in the attic of a Milwaukee house. The thief arrested. But there is always an additional concern.

"They're not familiar with these objects. They don't know how to handle these objects -- and as a result, they're usually not well-cared for. And as a result, we're very concerned about that -- that they will suffer damage or not be kept properly," Bass said.

The Picasso print stolen in Milwaukee was not only signed, it was numbered. So it is very easy to figure out if it is the stolen piece -- and not many people want to risk buying it. Bass said many stolen pieces end up stored or hidden for years -- or are just missing.

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Reposted from Jamaica Observer

Minister of Gender, Culture, Entertainment and Sport, Olivia Grange says the government would be moving to amend legislation as well as ratify international conventions as part of a coordinated response to the theft and export of invaluable cultural artifacts which belong to the people of Jamaica.

Addressing the opening of a workshop being hosted by the ministry to sensitise stakeholders on the government's proposed response to the pilfering and illicit export of cultural properties, Grange explained that Jamaica's existing legislative regime does not address trade in cultural material per se and all cultural material are not protected under the JNHT Act.

“But we are moving to change that. In this regard, we will be proposing amendments to the JNHT Act to address the more fundamental legal issues,” said Grange.

The culture minister said Jamaica's efforts would not stop with amending the JHNT Act but that action would be taken through ratification of international conventions, which would be the focus of the workshop discussions.

“We have been studying, with the aim of ratifying, two conventions to deal with the illicit trafficking of cultural heritage:

- the UNESCO Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property, and

- the UNIDROIT Convention on Stolen or Illegally Exported Cultural Objects

“Both Conventions support each other. The UNESCO Convention, in establishing a framework for international cooperation, takes preventative measures against illicit trade of declared/designated cultural property and imposes provisions for the return/restitution to the place of origin. And the UNIDROIT Convention underpins the provision of the UNESCO Convention in the area of return and restitution of cultural objects.”

Grange further added that it was critical that key stakeholders, including customs agents, members of the security forces, cultural regulators and practitioners, as well as collectors are engaged in efforts to protect Jamaica's material cultural heritage both inside and outside of our borders.

She said wide consultations will help in determining “what constitutes the legal transfer of significant cultural objects; what cultural objects cannot leave the country; how we will limit the illicit movement of artifacts within Jamaica; how to restrict/contain the removal of artifacts from archaeological sites; how to facilitate the sharing of private collections with the Jamaican public and how to prevent the loss (destruction and export) of cultural heritage objects.”

Grange shared with her audience that in 2016 a team of Archaeologists, led by the Jamaica National Heritage unearthed three whole skeletons, four zemís, over one thousand ceramic sherds and thousands of shells at a site in St Catherine.

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Reposted from StaySafeOnline

In 2017, ransomware became so powerful that it managed to finally make a name for itself as a business model. Ransomware as a service (RaaS) allows hackers to simply buy or sell their own ransomware for the purpose of damaging individuals or businesses.

Considering that, and the fact that all the other businesses affected by hackers, cybersecurity has become extremely important for every business today. It doesn’t matter what industry you pertain to – the reality is that hackers can access your data and sell it for a profit or perform other maleficent actions.

This is why investing in business IT solutions can help protect your company from this type of attack. Creating the right protection plan is essential to your business. Even if you believe that your business is not important enough to attack, the reality is that every organization could become a victim. Our dedicated team created a quick list of three things you need to do to keep your files safe.

Data Backup and Protection

One of the main benefits of business IT support and data protection solution is that they can keep your data safe from prying eyes. Hackers won’t have easy access to your sensitive data. Also, having a professional data backup and protection plan will make you less prone to malware and viruses. You get to save money this way, and in the end, hackers will find it more difficult to take advantage of any human errors. Plus, protecting your data will help you stay in compliance with the current laws. Use this type of service, and there will be less need to worry about the safety of your data.

Cloud Solutions

Most companies that use cloud services may be targeted by hackers. With help from a great IT support team and other dedicated services, you can help negate that issue. A dependable business technology solutions team password protects all your content, filters it and heavily monitors company information to ensure that only the authorized parties will be able to access designated files. This way everyone will get to see only what they need to.

24/7 Business IT Support

A dependable IT support team knows that cybersecurity issues can appear at any time, regardless of the hour. Services like these can bring you the best business computer services and reliable solutions in no time.

If you opt for round–the-clock IT support, you won’t have to worry about any data security issue, and the team can also help you deal with any other type of IT issues, not only security related stuff. This also ensures you that the company files are safe. A well managed IT services firm would also have heavily monitored data centers. Only authorized personnel goes into this building, which means that all your sensitive data will be stored by a professional and reliable business.

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Reposted from Motherboard

At around midnight just over 28 years ago a pair of thieves broke into the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston, Massachusetts masked by darkness. The intruders, who were disguised as police officers, tied up museum security guards and used box cutters to rip the paintings. They made off with $500 million worth of art from the museum’s walls.

Among the stolen pieces were three paintings by Dutch Baroque artist Rembrandt and five by French impressionist Degas. Today, the case remain the largest unsolved art heists in history and no arrests have been made. The spaces where the 13 artworks once hung lay bare.

While we may never know the location of the physical paintings, a group of technologists are using augmented reality to virtually return these stolen works.

Using Apple’s ARKit, a team of nine technologist at Cuseum—a group that helps bring AR experiences to museums—have recreated Rembrandt's, “A Lady and Gentleman in Black” and “Christ in the Storm on the Sea of Galilee,”—two of the 13 stolen artworks. The group is calling the project, which is not sanctioned by the museum, Hacking the Heist.

"Something like this would not have been technologically possible a year ago but now with some of the recent advances in AR the phone has the ability to recognize vertical surfaces and images and react accordingly,” Brendan Ciecko, a technologist at Cuseum told Motherboard over the phone. “It dawned on me that a lot of people don't actually realize what the paintings that were looted look like.”

Ciecko’s Apple ARKit build runs on the latest iOS currently available only to developers. As soon as Apple releases the new version of iOS to the public, museum goers can download an app and view the virtually restored paintings on their own devices. Until then, the technologists hope to lend some iPads to the museum so that visitors can experience the work even if they don’t have the app.

Currently the team’s work is still a proof of concept, but according to Ciecko they intend to work with the museum to create a project open to the public in the near future.

Augmented Reality technologies have made strides in commercial use in the past year. The technology has also been utilized by many for artistic endeavors, like this group that recently used the technology to host their own AR exhibit in the Metropolitan Museum of Modern Art.

“Back in the day AR used to be pretty twitchy,” Ciecko said. “You would scan some sort of marker and it would pull up the video but it would be pretty twitchy because it couldn't track in high fidelity.”

Apple’s ARKit uses an iPhone or iPad camera to detect surfaces and does not require a marker or a QR code to place 3D objects in the environment. In the case of the Gardner museum paintings these technological advancements are essential because the actual space where the painting should be is empty.

Rather than rely on a marker, Ciecko and his team had to detect the canvases adjacent to the missing paintings. The team used the surrounding paintings as anchors rather than the more traditional approach of laying an image over another.

Since the work was not sanctioned by the museum, Ciecko and his fellow technologists experienced a close call with one of the museum's guards during their early stages. According to Ciecko after spending over 45 minutes in front of the paintings to test the technology, the guard became suspicious and a supervisor was called.

Tourists passing by saw the images of the paintings on the technologists’ ipads as they tested their AR and would often ask questions and take pictures according to Ciecko.

Looking to the future Ciecko said he hopes this work will inspire more people to use AR to create cultural and educational experiences.

“Looking at this specific institution there were 13 pieces that were looted," he said."It is a dark and evil act to loot an institution that is open for the public enjoyment so we really wanted to highlight our feelings about this especially as technologists, especially as artists and especially as Bostonians.”

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