View as a webpage / Share

Volume 22 — Issue 23 | June 9, 2022

Silicone wristbands track firefighters’ exposure to harmful chemicals

Firefighters have a 9% higher risk of being diagnosed with cancer and a 14% higher risk of dying from the disease than the general adult population, according to studies by the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health and other agencies.

Recent research by scientists at Duke University could give doctors and public health officials a new tool for tracking firefighters’ exposures to cancer-causing chemicals and determining where and when the risks might be greatest.

The research involves firefighters wearing silicon wristbands on and off the job. The silicon absorbs any semi-volatile organic compounds the firefighters may have been exposed to.

In this research project, wristbands worn by firefighters were analyzed for 134 different chemical compounds, including phthalates, brominated flame retardants, organophosphate esters, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), and per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), all of which have been linked to increased incidence of certain cancers.

The results showed that levels of PAH, brominated flame retardants and organophosphate esters were 0.5 to 8.5 times higher in the wristbands worn while on duty than in those worn while off duty. Bands worn by firefighters on days they actively fought a fire also contained 2.5 times more PFOS — a type of PFAS — than bands worn while off duty.

In contrast, wristbands worn on off-duty days contained higher levels of phthalates and pesticides.

The research demonstrates that silicone wristbands can be used to quantify occupational exposure in firefighters and distinguish these from non-occupational exposures.

Peer-reviewed findings from this study were published on April 26 in the journal Science of the Total Environment.

(Source: Duke University)

Highlights

Silicone wristbands track firefighters’ exposure to harmful chemicals

Revised Field Triage Guideline for EMS providers now available

CISA’s SAFECOM releases guide to Interoperable Communications Technical Assistance Program offerings

NVFC releases online training for response to pipeline emergencies

Cyber Threats

The U.S. Fire Administration operates the Emergency Management and Response – Information Sharing and Analysis Center (EMR-ISAC).

For information regarding the EMR-ISAC visit www.usfa.dhs.gov/emr-isac or contact the EMR-ISAC office at: (301) 447-1325 and/or fema-emr-isac@fema.dhs.gov.

Revised Field Triage Guideline for EMS providers now available

Injury is the most common reason for use of 911 emergency medical services (EMS) in the U.S., with EMS playing a critical role in the early evaluation and care of injured patients.

An important aspect of EMS care is field triage - the process of identifying seriously injured patients who need care in specialized trauma centers from the larger number of patients with moderate or minor injuries who can be cared for in non-trauma hospitals. To accomplish this task quickly and efficiently, EMS providers use specific prehospital criteria known as the Field Triage Guideline.

Last month, the American College of Surgeons’ Committee on Trauma (ACS-COT) published a significant update to its Field Triage Guideline (FTG).

The 2021 National Guideline for the Field Triage of Injured Patients is a decision-making tool for EMS providers that uses evidence-based criteria related to injury patterns, mental status and vital signs, mechanisms of injury, and other factors to determine whether a patient needs to be transported to a trauma center or a hospital. If a trauma center is needed, the Guideline criteria help to determine which level trauma center is warranted.

The FTG was originally developed in 1976 by the American College of Surgeons, with periodic revisions every 5 to 10 years. The last version of the FTG was developed in 2011, led by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The new 2021 FTG revises the stepwise algorithm of the 2011 FTG with a simplified set of “high risk criteria” (red) and “moderate risk criteria” (yellow). This was done to reflect the flow of information to EMS providers and actual use in the field.

In addition to the organizational changes to the decision-making tool, some of the criteria themselves were updated since the 2011 version. The 2021 FTG criteria are based on a scientific literature review conducted by Oregon Health and Science University as well as the results from a broad stakeholder feedback tool, which aimed to capture the perspective from those in the field.

The 2021 FTG was developed by a multidisciplinary expert panel led by the American College of Surgeons (ACS) with support from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the Health Resources and Services Administration’s (HRSA) Maternal and Child Health Bureau, and EMS for Children Program.

The 2021 FTG, related training materials and performance measures are available at the American College of Surgeon’s website. Here, the ACS also provides links to several manuscripts that were published to describe the evidence used to update the criteria and the rationale for the changes. EMS1 provides a summary of the key changes in a recent article.  

(Sources: ACS, EMS1)

CISA’s SAFECOM releases guide to Interoperable Communications Technical Assistance Program offerings

This week, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency’s (CISA’s) SAFECOM program announced the release of a new Interoperable Communications Technical Assistance Program (ICTAP) Service Offerings Guide (TA-SOG).

The ICTAP TA-SOG is CISA’s principal reference for no-cost technical assistance available to state, local, tribal and territorial (SLTT) emergency communications partners to assist in areas such as cybersecurity, communications interoperability, and communications personnel training.

Services offered in the new TA-SOG are delivered via webinars, workshops and exercises, consultation with subject matter experts, and through access to CISA’s Communication Assets Survey and Mapping (CASM) Tool.

Technical assistance areas include but are not limited to:

• Development of governance and policies, including Statewide Communication Interoperability Plans (SCIPs), a formal Communications Unit, and funding sources for emergency communications.
• Development of standard operating procedures.
• Emergency communications technology, including capabilities and needs assessments, selection and implementation, planning for next generation 911, cybersecurity awareness and risk assessments, and setting up emergency alerts and warnings capabilities.
• Support for day-to-day operations as well as significant event pre-planning and after-action assessments.

Version 7.0 of the TA-SOG has been expanded to include:

• Virtual technical assistance offerings.
• A comprehensive suite of cybersecurity offerings.
• An updated all-hazards communications unit awareness overview.
• The newly refreshed communication assets survey and mapping (CASM) tool. This tool modernizes and simplifies the user interface with modern web browser framework technologies, making it more intuitive for users and making workflows more efficient.
• The addition of a cybersecurity focus area to the Statewide Communication Interoperability Plan (SCIP) workshop.

Along with the updated TA-SOG, the TA request process has also been updated. Requests for technical assistance are no longer tied to a fiscal year or limited in number of requests. When a TA need is identified, a request may be submitted at any time throughout the year to meet interoperability requirements.

The TA-SOG and the TA request form can be viewed and downloaded on CISA’s SAFECOM website at: cisa.gov/safecom/ictapscip-resources.

(Source: CISA)

NVFC releases online training for response to pipeline emergencies

Pipeline emergencies are high risk, low frequency events that require preparedness and planning from fire departments and hazardous materials teams.

The National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC) just released a free online training course entitled Pipeline Response PREP: Achieving Organizational Readiness for Pipeline Emergencies.

The course teaches fire department personnel about different types of pipelines and how they impact emergency response considerations, the role that effective risk management plays in preparing for and responding to a pipeline incident, and key resources to conduct pre-incident planning, increase preparedness, and improve response.

This training is part of the Fire Department Pipeline Response, Emergency Planning, & Preparedness (FD PREPP) initiative, a program created through a partnership between NVFC and the Department of Transportation, Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA). FD PREPP aims to improve responder safety and better protect communities by providing resources, tools, and training regarding pipeline incidents.

To take the free online training, visit the course page in NVFC’s Virtual Classroom.

You can learn more about the initiative and access the FD PREPP Toolkit at www.nvfc.org/pipelines.

(Source: NVFC)

Cyber Incident Assistance

MS-ISAC
SOC@cisecurity.org
1-866-787-4722

IdentityTheft.gov

IC3

Cybercrime Support Network

General Information

StopRansomware.gov

CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities Catalog

FTC scam list

CISA alerts

Law Enforcement Cyber Center

TLP Information

People’s Republic of China state-sponsored cyber actors exploit network providers and devices

CISA, the National Security Agency (NSA), and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) have released a joint Cybersecurity Advisory (CSA) to provide information on ways in which People’s Republic of China (PRC) state-sponsored cyber actors continue to exploit publicly known vulnerabilities in order to establish a broad network of compromised infrastructure across public and private sector organizations. The advisory details PRC state-sponsored targeting and compromise of major telecommunications companies and network service providers. It also provides information on the top vulnerabilities associated with network devices routinely exploited by PRC cyber actors since 2020. CISA, NSA, and the FBI encourage organizations to review People’s Republic of China State-Sponsored Cyber Actors Exploit Network Providers and Devices to learn about PRC tactics, techniques, and procedures and to apply the recommended mitigations.

(Source: CISA)

CISA provides criteria and process for updates to the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog

CISA has updated the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog webpage as well as the FAQs for Binding Operational Directive (BOD) 22-01, Reducing the Significant Risk of Known Exploited Vulnerabilities, which established the KEV catalog. The updates provide information on the criteria and process used to add known exploited vulnerabilities to the KEV catalog. 

(Source: CISA)

CISA challenges partners and public to push for “more than a password” in new social media campaign

CISA is announcing a collaborative effort with industry to dramatically increase adoption of multi-factor authentication (MFA) and ensure widespread understanding of why it is one of the strongest tools to prevent cyber intrusions. CISA is embarking on a campaign to encourage widespread awareness and understanding of the benefits of MFA, to ensure that every American knows the simple steps they can take to keep themselves safe online, and to urge technology companies to make MFA available as a default option. CISA’s More Than a Password campaign includes a newly launched webpage with resources, how-to guides, and social media content throughout the month of June.

(Source: CISA)

The return of Emotet and the threat to the Health Sector

This Threat Brief from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Health Sector Cybersecurity Coordination Center (HC3) examines the malware Emotet, and what makes it a significant threat to the health sector. According to one report, almost 80% of the malware affecting computer systems in the healthcare industry are Trojans, and the most common of them is Emotet.

The presentation gives an overview of Emotet; a chronology of the major milestones in Emotet malware; the impact on the Health Sector; the steps in the Emotet infection lifecycle and how the tactics, techniques, and procedures of Emotet attacks have changed; and Emotet defense and mitigation resources.

Read the full Threat Brief on HHS HC3’s website.

(Source: HHS HC3)

Windows zero-day exploited in US local govt phishing attacks

European governments and US local governments were the targets of a phishing campaign using malicious Rich Text Format (RTF) documents designed to exploit a critical Windows zero-day vulnerability known as Follina. Local governments in at least two US states were targeted by this phishing campaign.

The attackers used salary increase promises to bait employees to open the lure documents, which would deploy a Powershell script as the final payload. The security flaw exploited in these attacks is tracked as CVE-2022-30190 and was described by Redmond as a Microsoft Windows Support Diagnostic Tool (MSDT) remote code execution bug.

(Source: Bleeping Computer)

CISA warned about critical vulnerabilities in Illumina's DNA sequencing devices

CISA and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have issued an advisory about critical security vulnerabilities in Illumina's next-generation sequencing (NGS) software. Three of the flaws are rated 10 out of 10 for severity on the Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS), with two others having severity ratings of 9.1 and 7.4.

The issues impact software in medical devices used for "clinical diagnostic use in sequencing a person's DNA or testing for various genetic conditions, or for research use only," according to the FDA. "Successful exploitation of these vulnerabilities may allow an unauthenticated malicious actor to take control of the affected product remotely and take any action at the operating system level," CISA said in an alert.

(Source: The Hacker News)

The InfoGram is distributed weekly to provide members of the Emergency Services Sector with information concerning the protection of their critical infrastructures.

Fair Use Notice:
This InfoGram may contain copyrighted material that was not specifically authorized by the copyright owner. The EMR-ISAC believes this constitutes “fair use” of copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Law. If you wish to use copyrighted material contained within this document for your own purposes that go beyond “fair use,” you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.

Disclaimer of Endorsement:
The appearance of external hyperlinks does not constitute endorsement of the linked websites or the information, products or services contained therein. Reference to any specific commercial products, process or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer or otherwise, does not necessarily constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation or favoring by the EMR-ISAC or the U.S. government.

Section 504 Notice:
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act requires that FEMA grantees provide access to information for people with disabilities. If you need assistance accessing information or have any concerns about access, please contact FEMAWebTeam@fema.dhs.gov.