SAFETY Act encourages development/use of anti-terrorism solutions

Technological innovation moves at incredible speed. Think about how quickly mankind progressed from the first powered flight to landing on the moon – just 66 years! One of the ways the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) helps foster continuous innovation is to minimize the risk of liability to new solutions through the Support Anti-Terrorism by Fostering Effective Technologies Act (SAFETY Act).

The SAFETY Act helps ensure proven and innovative anti-terrorism solutions can reach the market by capping their insurance liability. It’s one way S&T encourages the development and use of anti-terrorism technologies that can reduce potential loss of life. By addressing some of the risk associated with providing these technologies, the SAFETY Act makes it more likely that effective anti-terrorism technology will be incorporated into our nation’s stadiums, shopping malls and other public venues. The SAFETY Act provides legal protection so innovative technology can help protect our nation.

How it Works

The SAFETY Act provides two levels of liability protection:

• Designation – DHS caps a seller’s insurance liability in the event of an act of terrorism among several other legal protections.
• Certification – in addition to the Designation benefits, the seller can assert the Government Contractor Defense for any claims arising from acts of terrorism.

By obtaining either Designation or Certification, companies obtain a level of legal protection in case their technology is ever put to use during a terrorist attack. You can learn more about the government and seller’s responsibilities in our brief SAFETY Act presentation (pdf, 987kb, 27 pages).

What it Covers

Potential attackers are creative in their methodologies, so the SAFETY Act covers several types of anti-terror technologies to help stay ahead of evolving threats. Solutions can include products, services, software or other types of intellectual property that can help officials identify, detect, deter, respond to or mitigate acts of terror. The nation needs innovative ideas to help protect people from those who wish to do us harm. Your company may have a way to make a difference, and S&T wants to help make sure you can bring it to market.

To start the Designation process, head over to the SAFETY Act website to learn how to apply for coverage. I’m encouraged by the solutions we’ve already approved through the SAFETY Act, and I know there are even more ways we can all contribute to our nation’s safety.  

Read more about how the NFL, MLB and NBA are embracing the SAFETY Act, and follow S&T on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn for updates on the latest approved technologies.