Managing Homeland Security

Synonyms

Counterterrorism; Cybersecurity; Managing Risk; Network Organization and Management; Threats and Vulnerabilities

The terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 exposed not only the vulnerability of the US homeland to catastrophic acts of terrorism but also the need to define what is meant by homeland security, to build institutions to counter threats, and to plan an effective strategy to manage homeland security activities.

What do we mean by “homeland security?” Is there a shared definition, a common meaning for the term, which exploded on the nation’s consciousness with the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon that September day? In the wake of the first major terrorist attacks on U S soil, most definitions focused almost solely on terrorism. The USA PATRIOT Act (Public Law 107-56), hastily drawn in the first month after 9/11, focused on ways in which law enforcement agencies could gather information on and detain suspected terrorists. Even as the Department of...