Readersforum.Industrial Espionage industrial espionage Acquisition of trade secrets from business competitors. Industrial spying is a reaction to the efforts of many businesses to keep secret their designs, formulas, manufacturing processes, research, and future plans. The article, "U.S. Companies Exposed to Industrial Espionage," (September 2002, page 6) offered some excellent advice to businesses regarding the need to think of the value to competing companies if they should have access to corporate plans or technical details of projects or designs in the works. In my opinion, bringing such ideas out into the public's consideration is extremely important. I say that because of my experience in technical surveillance countermeasure (TSCM TSCM technical surveillance countermeasures (US DoD) TSCM Tactical Strike Coordination Manager TSCM Tactical Strike Coordination Module TSCM Temperature Scram Circuit Monitor TSCM Tomahawk Strike Coordination Module ), in which we use specialized equipment and procedures to check client companies for any possible electronic eavesdropping Secretly gaining unauthorized access to confidential communications. Examples include listening to radio transmissions or using laser interferometers to reconstitute conversations by reflecting laser beams off windows that are vibrating in synchrony to the sound in the room. or other actions to collect valuable information. However, the vulnerability that we find regularly does not require our very specialized skills. Frequently, we have to tell our client in our report that it makes no sense to spend their money to hire us to check for high tech espionage, when they have not taken the simple step to have a company employee present while the clean-up contractor employees are working to be certain that they do not sort through the trash for items of possible value to a competitor. For example, one night, a member of our crew handed me a letter draft from a wastebasket that specified the full details of an offer that involved another company that was joining in with our client to buy a third company. It specified the amount of money being offered, timetable, etc. Gad! James A. Ross MANASSAS, VA Smart Munitions mu·ni·tion n. War materiel, especially weapons and ammunition. Often used in the plural. tr.v. mu·ni·tioned, mu·ni·tion·ing, mu·ni·tions To supply with munitions. In the first paragraph of "U.S. Army Presses Ahead On Precision-Guided Artillery" (October 2002, pg. 34) the subject article under "Range and Accuracy," makes the statement that "Current U.S. howitzers are outgunned by those used by potential adversaries, such as Iraq and North Korea, according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. Army officials." As a retired guy who worked armament R&D and ammunition, the above statement by "Army officials" is totally incorrect. We may be out-ranged, but we are far from out-gunned. Our field artillery soldiers are the best trained, and our target acquisition, communications and ammunition are the best in the world. We are a long way from out-gunned! The XM982 family is much needed and will add to our superiority. James W. Boddie Jr. DESTIN, FLORIDA For Céline Dion's single by the same name, see Destin. Destin is a city in Okaloosa County, Florida, commonly known as "The World's Luckiest Fishing Village."[1] Destin has grown from a historic fishing village to a premier resort destination. Civil Servants' Protection My comment is in reference to Security Beat, "Eisenhower Would Have Been Appalled." (November 2002, page 8) Perhaps Ike would have been appalled, but it is no surprise that civil servants being proposed for transfer to the new Department of Homeland Security Noun 1. Department of Homeland Security - the federal department that administers all matters relating to homeland security Homeland Security executive department - a federal department in the executive branch of the government of the United States are not enthusiastic about forfeiting the protections they were hired and remain employed under. If military personnel were told that, upon assignment to the Department of Homeland Security, they could be forced out of their service by a more expeditious ex·pe·di·tious adj. Acting or done with speed and efficiency. See Synonyms at fast1. ex means and with less oversight and protections than afforded to all other military personnel, do you think they would be happy about it? The obvious compromise is to phase in the proposed special civil service rules for new hires for Homeland Security Noun 1. Homeland Security - the federal department that administers all matters relating to homeland security Department of Homeland Security executive department - a federal department in the executive branch of the government of the United States but for civil servant transfers, they would retain the civil service protections they currently have. Civil servants projected for transfer to the Department of Homeland Security should "suck it Suck It is the first episode of the second season of Robot Chicken. List of skits Renewal of Robot Chicken by [adult swim] Seth Green thanks Adult Swim for the renewal of the new season of Robot Chicken. up" for the cause of national security and not stand in the way. Mike Pettitt OCEAN TOWNSHIP, NJ Please e-mail us at letters@nationaldefensemagazine.org |
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