HOMELAND POLICE LET CONTRACTORS RIG TEST

CNET - A new report by the U.S. Government Accountability Office charges that the Department of Homeland Security used biased methods to enhance performance results in tests on a new generation of radiation detectors meant to protect U.S. ports. At stake are $1.2 billion in contracts to produce advanced spectroscopic portal monitors and thousands of lives should they fail to work.

The agency found that the DHS' Domestic Nuclear Detection Office "used biased test methods that enhanced the performance of ASPs." Specifically, it conducted preliminary tests and then allowed contractors access to the results, which they then used to adjust systems accordingly. It is "highly unlikely that such favorable conditions" would be found in a real-world situation, the GAO report deadpanned.