By ANINE KRIEGLER, VANYA GASTROW AND ASIVE XALI

This report documents South Africa’s first multi-site, evidencebased policing experiment. The DKNG Hotspots Policing Project was a collaboration between the South African Police Service (SAPS), the Western Cape Government (WCG), and the City of Cape Town (CCT). Implementation was supported by the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) and the Hanns Seidel Foundation (HSF). The project aimed to reduce violent crime by implementing tested evidence-based policing (EBP) strategies. Using data, research, and analysis, EBP ensures that policing strategies are informed by the best available evidence of what works. The strategy tested was a specific approach to hotspot patrols. The first test was in 2023 as part of South Africa’s first EBP experiment in Mitchells Plain, which used data-driven methods to identify and direct patrols to a violent-crime hotspot in Tafelsig. The Mitchells Plain pilot experiment demonstrated that the strategy had the potential to contribute to a reduction in violent crime. The DKNG hotspots policing project builds on the success of the initial intervention in Mitchells Plain by incorporating lessons learned and expanding the strategy to four new areas: Delft, Khayelitsha, Nyanga, and Gugulethu (DKNG). It comprises the first multi-site, hotspots policing experiment on the continent and is a significant step in bringing EBP to South African policing. In just four months, the DKNG intervention demonstrated significant impacts across various areas of public safety. These impacts include:

• Preventing 100 violent crimes in eight hotspots: During the four-month monitored deployment period, there was a notable reduction in contact crimes compared with the same four months of the previous year. Specifically, there were 100 fewer contact crimes recorded in the hotspots than expected if these areas had followed the same trend as the control areas. This indicates that the intervention effectively prevented these crimes in the targeted hotspots. • Substantial year-on-year reductions in multiple crime categories: The intervention contributed to significant decreases across various crime categories. This achievement highlights the effectiveness of the targeted strategies employed. • Efficient use of resources: The strategy demonstrated that it is possible to achieve marked improvements in safety without additional resources. By optimising existing capabilities and focusing efforts where they are most needed, the project managed to enhance overall effectiveness. • Management improvements: The intervention also led to management and leadership enhancements at the station level. Commanders adopted new tracking and monitoring tools, which improved the oversight and execution of policing strategies. These achievements underline the potential of EBP strategies to significantly enhance public safety outcomes, even within a limited timeframe and without increasing resources . Targeted hotspot patrols are not the singular solution to South Africa’s challenge of violent crime, a highly complex phenomenon requiring a multifaceted approach. However, the strategy’s effectiveness indicates that it could be a valuable component of a broader violent-crime reduction strategy. It also demonstrates the value of testing strategies to ensure their efficacy in terms of crime reduction and preserving limited state resources. This report describes the project’s careful planning and rigorous implementation and assesses the strategy’s impact on crime. It highlights the strategy’s contributions, challenges, and lessons learned, offering practical, scalable recommendations for future public safety and policing strategies. By promoting awareness of EBP principles in South Africa, the report seeks to encourage the broader uptake and scaling of EBP for greater impact. While addressing crime requires broader efforts beyond policing, this approach can play a key role in fostering safer communities by providing tested strategies and services, helping communities move closer to living in peace and safety

Pretoria: Institute for Security Studies 2025. 48p.

By Tin Kapetanovic 

This article analyses the expansion of Jama’at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin (JNIM) across the Sahara-Sahel, using the transplantation framework from criminology to explore how the group relocated. By focussing on this case study, the article offers an examination of how JNIM strategically embedded itself in a new environment. The study incorporates qualitative data from semi-structured interviews with NATO analysts and military personnel involved in counterterrorism in the Sahara-Sahel, data from the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project and a review of open source literature. The findings show that JNIM’s expansion was driven by push factors, including military pressure in northern Mali following the French-led Operation Serval in 2013 and competition with other illicit groups. Pull factors encompassed weak state presence, ethnic tensions between Fulani herders and Dogon farmers, economic opportunities in illicit gold mining and smuggling routes and the region’s strategic location. JNIM adapted organisationally by integrating local leaders, intermarrying, providing services, and establishing Sharia governance structures. However, their expansion faced constraints from local self-defence militias and increased military operations by Malian and international forces. The transplantation framework reveals JNIM’s strategic organisational adaptations and environmental exploitation, offering insights beyond traditional models of ideological diffusion or networks.

Journal of Illicit Economies and Development, 7(1): pp. 1–19

By Alex H. Kral, Jamie L. Humphrey, Clyde Schwab, Barrot H. Lambdin, Bradley Ray,

Importance Opioid-involved overdose mortality has been on the rise for 2 decades in the US, exacerbated by an unregulated drug supply that is unpredictable and has increasingly contained highly potent fentanyl analogs starting a decade ago.

Objective To determine whether there is a geospatial association between law enforcement drug seizures and opioid-involved overdose mortality in San Francisco.

Design, Setting, and Participants This cross-sectional study used location- and time-stamped overdose mortality data from the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner and publicly available crime data from the San Francisco Police Department between 2020 and 2023 to assess whether location and time of law enforcement drug seizures were associated with subsequent opioid-involved overdose mortality. Data were analyzed from January 2020 to September 2023.

Exposures Time-stamped locations of law enforcement drug seizures involving a drug distribution charge.

Main Outcomes and Measures The primary outcomes were the time and location of (1) overdose mortality involving any opioid and (2) overdose mortality involving fentanyl or any fentanyl analog. The relative risk (RR) and 95% CIs for endemic and epidemic factors were calculated.

Results There were 2653 drug seizure crime events that involved any drug distribution charge and 1833 overdose deaths that tested positive for any opioid or synthetic opioid, including heroin and fentanyl analogs. Within the surrounding 100 meters, law enforcement drug seizures were associated with increase risk of fatal opioid-involved overdoses the day following the drug seizure event (RR, 1.74; 95% CI, 1.06-2.83; P = .03) and elevated risk persisted for 7 days (2 days: RR, 1.55;95% CI, 1.09-2.21; P = .02; 3 days: RR, 1.45; 95% CI, 1.08-1.93; P = .01; 7 days: RR, 1.27; 95% CI, 1.11-1.46; P = .001). Similar statistically significant spatiotemporal patterns were observed in the 250- and 500-meter spatial bandwidths. Within each space-time kernel, the strength of the association, all of which were statistically significant, dissipated the further away in time and distance from the law enforcement drug seizure event.

Conclusions and Relevance The findings of this cross-sectional study suggest that the enforcement of drug distribution laws to increase public safety for residents in San Francisco may be having an unintended negative consequence of increasing opioid overdose mortality. To reduce overdose mortality, it may be better to focus on evidence-based health policies and interventions.

JAMA Netw Open. 2025, 11p.

By His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue (UK)

The effective investigation of crime is fundamental to the legitimacy of policing and to public confidence. It also influences how safe people feel and it prevents future offending. When a crime is reported, the public have a right to expect that the police will record and investigate the crime effectively. There has been a long-term decline in successful prosecutions, meaning that too few criminal investigations are leading to justice for victims. There is a general perception among the public that the police aren’t doing a good job of tackling the crimes that affect local communities. Therefore, as part of our 2022–25 programme of inspections, we inspected how effectively the police investigate crime. During our inspection, we saw numerous examples of initiatives forces have introduced to improve the standard of crime investigations and achieve better outcomes for victims. We have included 24 case studies in this report to highlight some of these initiatives. Understanding demand Crime experienced by individuals and households has generally decreased over the last 10 years. However, since 2015, police-recorded crime rates per 1,000 population have increased by 44 percent. Improved police recording practices, and an increase in public reporting of crime, are likely to have contributed to this increase in police-recorded crime. Since 2010, after accounting for changes in the population, the number of police officers in England and Wales has decreased by 6 percent. Over this period, the number of police staff decreased by 13 percent and the number of police community support officers decreased by 59 percent. We have previously reported that a shortage of resources negatively affects the police’s ability to detect crime. During our fieldwork, we heard about a lack of resources in every force we inspected. Interviewees told us that officers and staff often couldn’t investigate crime as well as they wanted to because their workloads were too high, they were under pressure and they didn’t have enough time. Frequently, we also saw the effect of this strain on their supervisors, line managers and chief officers, who repeated the same message. We concluded that in order to investigate volume crime more effectively, forces need more officers and staff. Forces don’t have an in-depth understanding of their crime-related demand. Most forces have a good understanding of their crime patterns, but analysis of future crime rates is inconsistent. The amount of digital evidence that investigators need to gather and examine has increased considerably over the past decade. This increase in digital evidence adds complexity to crime investigations. Forces need to consider this when analysing their crime-related demand. 

Birmingham, UK:His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue, 2025. 135p.

By Monica C. Bell

The Black Lives Matter movement has operated alongside a growing recognition among social scientists that policing research has been limited in its scope and outmoded in its assumptions about the nature of public safety. This essay argues that social science research on policing should reorient its conception of the field of policing, along with how the study of crime rates and police departments fit into this field. New public safety research should broaden its outcomes of interest, its objects of inquiry, and its engagement with structural racism. In this way, next-generation research on policing and public safety can respond to the deficiencies of the past and remain relevant as debates over transforming American policing continue.

  Journal of Economic Perspectives—Volume 35, Number 4—Fall 2021—Pages 29–48  

By Katherine Del Valle Hoogesteyn, Meret Sarah Hofer, Travis Anthony Taniguchi, Jennifer Rae Rineer.

Maintaining adequate staffing levels to ensure public safety is a critical challenge for law enforcement agencies, especially with rising officer turnover driven by sociopolitical factors and changing workforce demographics. This narrative review examines strategies to enhance officer retention by synthesizing findings from both policing and related fields. These strategies are organized into five categories: (1) compensation and financial incentives, (2) career development and professional growth, (3) workplace environment and support, (4) wellness and resilience, and (5) feedback and organizational learning. The review underscores the importance of context-specific, tailored approaches and calls for rigorous studies to evaluate the implementation and effectiveness of these strategies. Recommendations include adapting organizational structures to foster innovative retention strategies, optimizing resource management, and implementing continuous evaluation processes to promote sustained officer retention.

Research Triangle Park, NC: RTI Press.2025. 22p

By Katherine Hoogesteyn; Travis A. Taniguchi

This paper presents the results of a review of literature discussing potentially effective practices and strategies for interviewing human trafficking victims in a law enforcement setting; the paper discusses the methodology for identifying applicable research reports as well as the findings, indicating limitations to the available research and implications for policy and practice.

Abstract

Victims of human trafficking play a key role in the investigation and prosecution of traffickers; however, their involvement in the interview process and the information they disclose largely depend on the quality of their interactions with interviewers. Victims of trafficking represent a challenging and complex subset of victims. Unfortunately, little is known about the effectiveness of interviewing strategies specifically with trafficking victims. Law enforcement agencies have limited evidence-based or actionable guidance to strengthen interviewing practices with this subset of victims. In addition to systematically identifying and describing the available literature on interviewing potential human trafficking victims in a law enforcement context, this report discusses interviewing practices and recommendations stemming from the literature, research gaps, and future research directions.

Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, National Institute of Justice. 2024. 52p.

By Jessica M. Eaglin

Much public debate circles around grassroots activists’ demand to “defund the police,” raised in public consciousness in the summer of 2020. Yet confusion about the demand is pervasive. This Essay adopts a literal interpretation of “defund” to clarify and distinguish four alternative, substantive policy positions that legal reforms related to police funding can validate. It argues that the policy debates between these positions exist on top of the ideological critique launched by grassroots activists, who use the term “defund the police” as a discursive tactic to make visible deeper transformations in government practices that normalize the structural marginalization of black people enforced through criminal law. w. By recognizing this socially contextualized meaning to the call to defund the police, this Essay offers two important insights for the public in this current moment. First, it urges the public to confront the structural marginalization of black people when evaluating legal reforms that may impact police budgets. Second, the Essay encourages the public to embrace the state of confusion produced by the demand to “defund the police” when considering social reforms going forward.

Stanford Law Review Online Volume 73 (2020-2021), 21p.

By Bocar A. Ba , Dean Knox, Jonathan Mummolo3, Roman Rivera

Diversification is a widely proposed policing reform, but its impact is difficult to assess. We used records of millions of daily patrol assignments, determined through fixed rules and preassigned rotations that mitigate self-selection, to compare the average behavior of officers of different demographic profiles working in comparable conditions. Relative to white officers, Black and Hispanic officers make far fewer stops and arrests, and they use force less often, especially against Black civilians. These effects are largest in majority-Black areas of Chicago and stem from reduced focus on enforcing low-level offenses, with greatest impact on Black civilians. Female officers also use less force than males, a result that holds within all racial groups. These results suggest that diversity reforms can improve police treatment of minority communities. 

Science, 371, (6): 2021, 8p.

By Richard Odin Segovia 

This systematic review explores the recruitment and retention challenges in law enforcement, focusing on their impact on operational effectiveness and community safety. The goal is to synthesize existing literature to identify research gaps and suggest directions for future studies. By examining qualitative and quantitative research, this review aims to provide practical strategies to improve recruitment and retention in law enforcement. Methods: Searches were conducted using Google Scholar, JSTOR, and ProQuest to capture a broad range of law enforcement recruitment and retention studies. The selection process involved a systematic search that yielded 135 records. After removing duplicates, 42 studies were screened based on title and abstract, leading to 34 full-text articles assessed for eligibility. Twenty-five studies met the inclusion criteria and were included in the qualitative and quantitative synthesis, and five additional sources were used for background and contextual information. This review adhered to PRISMA guidelines. Results: The review highlights key factors influencing recruitment and retention, including public perceptions, competing labor markets, and organizational culture. Enhanced recruitment efforts, such as digital campaigns and targeted outreach, significantly increase applications and improve the quality of applicants. Supportive workplace environments and wellness programs substantially reduce turnover rates and improve job satisfaction. Effective recruitment and retention strategies also enhance community trust and workforce diversity. Conclusions: The review underscores the need for well-structured research to substantiate effective recruitment and retention strategies. It recommends areas for in-depth exploration in future studies, especially longitudinal research on the long-term impacts of innovative recruitment and retention strategies. Application to Law Enforcement: Integrating digital recruitment, community engagement, and wellness programs can enhance workforce stability  and effectiveness for law enforcement leaders. These strategies improve officer recruitment and retention, reduce turnover, and build stronger relationships with the community, leading to more effective policing outcomes.    

Lynchburg, VA: Liberty University, 2024. 43p.

 By Logan Seacrest and Jillian Snider  

  This policy study explores the recruitment and retention crisis in U.S. law enforcement, analyzing historical, social, and economic factors that have shaped the problem. It describes the staffing shortage, evaluates its consequences, and explores innovative strategies to address the issue. The findings and recommendations offered in this paper provide a practical, comprehensive framework for agencies to build and sustain a strong, resilient workforce

R Street Policy Study No. 31, 2025. 27p.

Contributor(s): National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine; Transportation Research Board; National Cooperative Highway Research Program; Xiao Qin; Yang Li; Habib Tabatabai; Andrew Graettinger; Mohammad Wael Amer; Frank Gross; Bob Scopatz; Sam Arnold; Jason J. Bittner; Dan D'Angelo; Hannah Silber; Neil Janes

Bridge and tunnel strikes inflict serious damage to vehicles, highway bridges, and tunnels; cause injuries and fatalities; and impose detours and costly delays on highway users. Attempts by state departments of transportation (DOTs) and other bridge and tunnel owners to prevent bridge and tunnel strikes include signing, lighting, height detection systems, and actuated warning devices.

NCHRP Research Report 1132: Bridge and Tunnel Strikes: A Guide for Prevention and Mitigation, from TRB's National Cooperative Highway Research Program, presents state-of-the-art information to assist state DOTs in the prevention and mitigation of bridge and tunnel strikes by overheight motor vehicles.

Supplemental to the report is NCHRP Web-Only Report 411: Prevention and Mitigation of Bridge and Tunnel Strikes. (2025).

NCHRP. 2025.

By National Academy of Sciences

From the webpage: "At the request of the National Security Commission on Emerging Biotechnology, Strategic Report on Research and Development in Biotechnology for Defense Innovation provides an overview of the current landscape of artificial intelligence and machine learning (AI/ML)-enabled biotechnology, the opportunities it presents, and the challenges it poses. This report offers a strategic vision for connecting scientists and technologists to build on, leverage, and tailor advances at the intersection of AI/ML, automated experimentation, and biotechnology to drive innovation in defence-related biotechnologies. Strategic Report on Research and Development in Biotechnology for Defense Innovation recommends addressing long-standing challenges with limited research, development, prototyping, testing and evaluation, and eventual use of biotechnologies. Addressing these challenges will help to advance U.S. national security and defence by improving the performance of existing capabilities, enabling the creation of domestic supply chains of valuable products, reducing reliance on processes and chemicals that are harmful to the environment, and/or adding new capabilities not currently possible with established technologies." Contributors include the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine; Division on Earth and Life Studies; Board on Life Sciences; and Committee on Biotechnology Capabilities for National Security Needs-Leveraging Advances in Transdisciplinary Biotechnology.

NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS (U.S.) 2025. 67p.

By Holly Bird, Jodie Bradshaw, Roger Grimshaw, Habib Kadiri and Helen Mills

The Labour government came into office earlier this year, with an ambitious ‘aim to halve knife crime in a decade’. Early moves have included, in September, the launch of a ‘Coalition to Tackle Knife Crime’, aiming, as the press release put it, to ‘bring together campaign groups, families of people who have tragically lost their lives to knife crime, young people who have been impacted and community leaders, united in their mission to save lives and make Britain a safer place for the next generation’. This was followed, in November, with proposals to fine senior executives of online companies if they market illegal weapons, along with moves to ban the sale of so-called ninja swords. The government is also proposing both ‘rapid intervention and tough consequences’ for those caught in possession of a knife and a network of ‘Young Futures hubs’, to improve access to support for young people at risk of criminalisation. The second of these proposals, which prioritise prevention and support for young people at risk, has a strong evidence-based underpinning it. ‘Decades of research and evidence gathering’, this briefing points out, ‘has shown that the drivers of serious violence are insecure employment prospects, poverty, substance misuse, mental health issues, volatile drug markets, experience of violence’. The same cannot be said of the ‘rapid intervention and tough consequences’ proposals, which tend to prioritise often short-term enforcement over longer-term prevention. One recent example of such action, the subject of this briefing, is the Serious Violence Reduction Order (SVRO), currently being piloted in four police areas in England. At its simplest, the imposition of an SVRO on an individual in effect gives the police carte blanche to stop and search them, at any time and in any place, and without the police having to demonstrate ‘reasonable suspicion’. Previous research on so-called suspicion-less stops and searches, cited in this briefing, found no evidence that they had any impact on the levels of violent crime. Indeed, there is scant evidence that stop and search in general has much of an impact on underlying crime levels (Bradford and Tiratelli, 2019). This is not an argument for no police enforcement. The police clearly perform important public order functions. But it is an argument for the importance of effective, evidenced-based policing. The roll-out of the SVRO pilots are shrouded in secrecy, with information hard to come by. While they are subject of an evaluation, there are some questions over whether it will provide the rigorous evidence of impact (or not) required, or, indeed, whether it will ever be published.

London: Centre for Crime and Justice Studies , 2024. 18p.

By The College of Policing (UK)

Key points Successfully identify stalking or harassment „ Think stalking first using the stalking mnemonic FOUR. Are the behaviours Fixated, Obsessive, Unwanted and Repeated? „ In cases of harassment, review and reconsider why the case does not meet the description of stalking. Investigate thoroughly „ Establish any pattern of behaviour and relevant history, reported or otherwise. „ Follow all lines of enquiry, whether they point towards or away from the suspect. „ In cases of stalking or harassment it is likely there will have been use of technology to facilitate the behaviour, and reasonable lines of enquiry must be pursued. Care for the victim „ Be compassionate and understanding in your approach. „ Do not make judgements about a victim’s behaviour – focus on the evidence. „ Remember that safeguarding the victim and reducing risk take priority over a criminal justice outcome. „ Recognise that victims may be traumatised and in need of specialist support. „ Remember that victims may be entitled to an enhanced service under the Code of Practice for Victims of Crime. „ Keep the victim updated on relevant stages of the investigation (eg, arrest, charge or release).

This advice will assist investigators responsible for a case once it has been transferred following the initial police response. This may be investigators working within public protection or CID, or in some forces, local policing investigators who retain stalking or harassment cases following an initial response

London: College of Policing (UK), 2024. 33p.

By Janice Goldstraw-White, Martin Gill and Mark Button

Levels of economic crime have soared to alarming levels in the last decade. Even with significant underreporting, the volume of offences has placed a strain on police resources and this has served to undermine the ability of law enforcement to respond effectively. Meanwhile, parts of the private and not-for profit sectors dedicate significant resources to combatting economic crime. Banks and insurance companies for example, employ thousands of staff in antifraud roles. This expertise is largely invisible to the police, representing a massive, wasted opportunity. Efforts to harness the work of the private and not-for-profit sectors to assist public policing initiatives to tackle economic crime have been slight, an observation as true for the UK as it is other countries. Much of the focus, where it does exist, appears to centre on data sharing while there are many other initiatives. Indeed, the link between the lack of resources and the potential to harness the work of others is rarely made. How can such a glaring gap exist? The overall aim of this project was to begin to address this question, more specifically:

• To identify the forms of joint efforts taking place that can serve as a reference point to inspire and guide future initiatives;

• To highlight some successful examples of engagement;

• To indicate the factors that are needed to replicate success;

• To lay the foundations for a larger scale study examining the ways in which additional resources from the private and not-for-profit sectors can cost effectively be harnessed to significantly improve the law enforcement response to fraud.

To understand the landscape of organisations working together we employed three key methodologies. First, we mapped the services provided by both private and not-for-profit entities that support (or have the potential to support) law enforcement responses to economic crime. Second, we developed a set of five illustrative case studies to demonstrate diverse forms of engagement. Third, we conducted in-depth interviews with stakeholders involved in various aspects of fraud prevention and enforcement to identify both the potential opportunities and the existing barriers to working together.

The output is designed to provide a resource for law enforcement, counter-fraud leaders and policymakers. Our mapping of existing initiatives will serve as a reference guide, facilitating opportunities to benefit from current provisions and inspiring replication and new ways of working.

Tunbridge Wells, UK: Perpetuity Research and Consultancy International Ltd and CCEC, Portsmouth, UK: University of Portsmouth , 2024. 61p.

United States. Department Of Homeland Security. Office Of Inspector General

From the document: "The United States Secret Service (Secret Service) planned and conducted protective operations at several sites on January 6, 2021, including the Capitol, and took actions to assist the United States Capitol Police (USCP). We initiated this review to evaluate the Secret Service's preparation for, and response to, the events of January 6, 2021. [...] We conducted this review to evaluate the Secret Service's preparation for, and response to, the events of January 6, 2021. [...] We made six recommendations to improve the Secret Service's policies and processes for planning and responding to similar events."

United States. Department Of Homeland Security. Office Of Inspector General . 31 Jul, 2024 .

By Robles, Nicolas M.; Alhajjar, Elie; Geneson, Jessie; Moon, Alvin; Adams, Christopher Scott; Leuschner, Kristin; Steier, Joshua

From the webpage description: "Building on research on quantum machine learning, researchers investigated the effect of quantum-enhanced artificial intelligence within the context of the six U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) missions. For each mission, the authors illustrate how quantum boosts could help DHS perform its computational duties more efficiently. They also explain some situations in which quantum computing does not provide benefits over classical computing. Last, they provide recommendations to DHS on how to leverage quantum computing. This paper should be of interest to policymakers, researchers, and others working on quantum computing or artificial intelligence."

RAND CORPORATION. 27 AUG, 2024.

By United States. Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency

The following passage from the document contains multiple links embedded in the text: "The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) conducts Risk and Vulnerability Assessments (RVAs) for the federal civilian executive branch (FCEB), high priority private and public sector critical infrastructure (CI) operators, and select state, local, tribal, and territorial (SLTT) stakeholders. Concurrently, the United States Coast Guard (USCG) conducts RVAs on maritime CI operated by SLTT and private-sector organizations. The RVA is intended to assess the entity's network capabilities and network defenses against known threats. In Fiscal Year 2023 (FY23), CISA and the USCG conducted a combined total of '143' RVAs across multiple CI sectors. [...] The goal of the RVA analysis is to develop effective strategies to improve the security posture of FCEB, CI, maritime, and SLTT stakeholders. During each RVA, CISA and the USCG collect data through remote and onsite actions. This data is combined with national threat and vulnerability information to provide organizations with actionable remediation recommendations prioritized by risk of compromise. CISA designed RVAs to identify vulnerabilities threat actors could exploit to compromise network security controls. After completing an RVA, CISA and the USCG provide the assessed entity a final report that includes recommendations, specific findings, potential mitigations, and technical attack path details. The FY23 reports provided these general observations: [1] Assessors completed their most successful attacks via common methods, such as phishing, valid accounts, and default credentials. [2] Assessors used a variety of tools and techniques CISA has captured in previous RVA analyses to successfully conduct common attacks. [3] Many organizations across varying CI sectors exhibited the same vulnerabilities. [4] CISA assessment personnel used common vulnerabilities facilitated by shortcomings in secure by design and default principles and other misconfigurations to compromise systems."

UNITED STATES. Government. Washington DC. SEP, 2024. 24p.

By Jason Wagner

Fare evasion and license plate fraud are costly and growing problems for New York City, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), the New York State Thruway Authority, and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. In 2023, the cost to the MTA alone was more than $700 million—an amount equal to the amount of funding that would be raised through two rounds of fare hikes; and the evidence suggests the cost is growing.1 Increasing fare and toll compliance is critical to funding the region’s transit agencies and providing reliable, high-quality, affordable public transit services. While much of the lost revenue is from fares, license plate fraud is increasingly chipping away at the bottom line of entities that collect tolls, as evaders become more brazen and sophisticated. This trend presents a risk to the success of the Central Business District Tolling Program (congestion pricing), which is set to begin in June 2024. Congestion pricing revenues are critical for the MTA; they will fund more than a quarter of the MTA’s 2020 2024 Capital Program and support numerous capital projects that modernize the system and bring it to a state of good repair. The State, the City, and affected public entities need more tools and should take additional steps to lower the fiscal risk from revenue loss. The Citizens Budget Commission (CBC) supports Governor Kathy Hochul’s Executive Budget for Fiscal Year 2025 proposed policies, which would strengthen laws and efforts to enforce fare and toll compliance.

New York: Citizens Budget Committee, 2024.yp.