How America’s top bioterror cop patrols for warning signs of an attack

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As a supervisory special agent in the weapons of mass destruction directorate in the FBI’s Washington, D.C., headquarters, [Edward You] is effectively America’s top biology cop. His job: track fast-moving developments in labs and make sure they don’t lead to a bio-attack.

You refers to his network of sources as a “web of detection” that allows him to learn what scientists are worried about…It is really more the biology equivalent of “911 calls about people driving recklessly,”  he says.

You is often the first to hear about scientists’ darkest worries. Lately some of these have been connected to the gene-editing method CRISPR, which can be used to create self-spreading gene alterations in insects or DNA-slashing viruses.

Another security risk that You has been looking into is connected to large DNA and biological databases. The U.S. is mounting a million-person precision medicine study that will gather such data, and vast commercial troves exist already. Even though it’s not yet clear why intruders might want to hack such data, You is sponsoring workshops on “safeguarding the bioeconomy” that will delve into the possible hazards.

The GLP aggregated and excerpted this blog/article to reflect the diversity of news, opinion, and analysis. Read full, original post: On Patrol with America’s Top Bioterror Cop

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