Introduction

State-owned and operated fusion centers serve as focal points in states and major urban areas as a resource to receive, analyze, gather, and share threat-related information between State, Local, Tribal, and Territorial (SLTT), federal, and private sector partners. They offer Homeland Security and Law Enforcement unique value by sharing information and providing partners with perspective on threats to their state or locality.

Fusion centers also serve as the primary contact between frontline personnel, state and local leadership, and the rest of the Homeland Security Enterprise.

The National Network of Fusion Centers Fact Sheet published by the Department of Homeland Security outlines four Critical Operational Capabilities (COCs):

• Receive: Ability to receive classified and unclassified information from federal partners
• Analyze: Ability to assess local implications of that threat information through the use of a formal risk assessment process
• Disseminate: Ability to further disseminate that threat information to other state, local, tribal, territorial, and private sector entities within their jurisdiction
• Gather: Ability to gather locally generated information, aggregate it, analyze it, and share it with federal partners as appropriate

Enhancing fusion centers’ capacity to implement COCs enables these critical hubs to effectively share information with federal, state, local, tribal, and territorial partners amidst time-sensitive and emerging threats.

The tasks at hand

One particular fusion center provides intelligence and investigative support to local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies. Serving as the key investigative resource and subject matter expert on issues like drugs, human trafficking, motorcycle gangs, security threat groups, domestic violent extremism, and cyber attacks, this agile team sought a versatile solution to address a diverse spectrum of concerns.

On top of the human-enabled security threats they manage are critical events like natural disasters, initially drawing them to Flashpoint. Throughout the evaluation and procurement process, Flashpoint identified several concerning situations shared on social media related to a recent natural disaster that even the Department of Emergency Services wasn’t previously aware of. With the ability to find and disseminate this information in near-real-time, the team knew that selecting Flashpoint would help make them a better partner to their associated agencies, improving their ability to prepare assets and assign personnel confidently and efficiently.

“When a major event takes place or a public figure visits the state, Flashpoint helps streamline our threat assessment process. It enables us to verify information coming in from multiple sources, and quickly separate the real threats from innocent chatter.”

Fusion Center Analyst

Challenge

At a high level, this customer faced many challenges, including:

• A lean analyst team tackling myriad responsibilities
• Budget considerations and a need for vendor consolidation
• A need for real-time information about a wide range of critical events pertaining to specific locations

Before the team deployed Flashpoint, they relied heavily on searching surface web search engines like Google and conducting investigations directly within various social media networks. 

Although these tactics can effectively collect general information, they have significant limitations. As well as being time and resource-intensive, basic search engines fail to deliver access, insights, and actionable intelligence

Solution

Flashpoint provides the Fusion Center with access to a wide range of open-source data including social media, news articles, and chatter from illicit communities where threat actors are most active. This data is collected and delivered in real-time, allowing the Fusion Center to quickly identify, analyze, and respond to threats.

At a high level, this customer faced many challenges, including:

• Increased efficiency: Flashpoint has helped the Fusion Center to be more efficient in its investigations. Analysts can quickly find the information they need across myriad networks, saving time and resources. Example: While onboarding new analysts to Flashpoint solutions, customers have reported shortening the learning curve from approximately two weeks on the previous solution to two hours with Flashpoint.
• Improved accuracy: Flashpoint has helped the Fusion Center improve its intelligence accuracy. The Fusion Center can now identify threats more quickly and accurately, helping to mitigate infrastructure damage, prevent crimes, and protect citizens.
  Example: Flashpoint alerts helped prevent a potential shooting at an NYC synagogue. Read the full story here.
• Enhanced collaboration: Flashpoint has helped the Fusion Center enhance its collaboration with other law enforcement agencies. The Fusion Center can now share information more easily with other agencies, which has helped improve the state’s overall security.
• Alleviated budget constraints due to higher analyst productivity: With the best data and the best intelligence from a single vendor, Flashpoint enables the team to do more with less, accelerating intelligence cycles and bolstering the team’s ability to take decisive action.

Results

This customer finds Flashpoint to be a valuable force multiplier, facilitating efficiency, accuracy, and collaboration among its team. As a result, the Fusion Center is now better able to protect the state from the array of security threats they face and to be a better partner to their neighboring states and allied agencies. 

“When a major event takes place, or a public figure visits the state, Flashpoint helps streamline our threat assessment process. It enables us to verify information coming in from multiple sources and quickly separate the real threats from innocent chatter.” – Fusion Center Analyst

As the industry leader in threat data and intelligence. Flashpoint enables mission-critical organizations worldwide to proactively and decisively confront security challenges with the most powerful data at the core. Book a demo to see how Flashpoint’s combination of superior data, curated intelligence, and technology can force multiply your team to better protect people, places, and assets.