Inquiry Finds Port Security Lacking

A new report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) has found that the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT) program hasn’t been faithfully followed, opening the door to potential terrorist attacks.

In an article in the New York Times, Mike Nizza says the report, leaked to the Associated Press, says the program isn’t quite working. The C-TPAT program offers companies shipping cargo the chance to follow a list of security precautions in exchange for faster scrutiny at US ports.

“Unfortunately, those protocols are not being faithfully followed abroad, opening the door to terrorists,” Nizza reports. Among the study’s findings:

– A company is generally certified as safer based on its self-reported security information that Customs employees use to determine if minimum government criteria are met. But due partly to limited resources, the agency does not typically test the member company’s supply-chain security practices and thus is “challenged to know that members’ security measures are reliable, accurate and effective,” according to the report.
– Companies can get certified for reduced Customs inspections before they fully implement any additional security improvements requested by the U.S. government. Under the program, Customs also does not require its employees to systematically follow up to make sure the requested improvements were made and that security practices remained consistent with the minimum criteria.

Nizza says this also isn’t the first time the program has been criticized. In 2005, the G.A.O. found several faults, particularly the lack of following up with members of the program.

To read the full article, click here: http://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/05/27/inquiry-finds-port-security-lacking/?hp