The issue of Wake County school security will continue to be on the agenda as the district's task force on school safety holds its first meeting this afternoon.

The group, chaired by Wake County Sheriff Donnie Harrison and retired Raleigh Police Capt. Al White, is supposed to review Wake school safety policies to come up with recommended changes. The meeting, starting at 4:30 p.m. at Crossroad II, 110 Corning Road in Cary, is open to the public.

Security was also an issue for Wake County school board members during Wednesday's facilities committee meeting.

More to come later, but the security topic that got the most discussion at today's Wake County school board facilities committee meeting was the practicality of setting up a buzzer system at all elementary schools.

Staff assured the board that there would be people in the front office to promptly answer when visitors buzz to try to get into what would now become the locked front doors of elementary schools. Staff also told the board that the office personnel would be trained in who to let inside.

There was also some discussion about having a networked visitor sign-in system at all 169 schools. Only 27 schools have the LobbyGuard system with other schools having a free system that staff said doesn't meet security needs.

UPDATE

Click here for the story from the committee meeting..

Would you be more willing to approve a Wake County school bond issue it it included $18.1 million in funding for security upgrades at schools?

As noted in today's article, school facilities staff will present to the school board's facilities committee today a proposal for between $7.1 million and $18.1 million in security measures. It's part of a presentation on items that could be included in the next capital improvement program.

The proposal would fund things such as more surveillance cameras, an electronic door locking system, a centralized electronic visitor sign-in system, an entrance buzzer system for all elementary schools and a centralized public address system.

North Carolina officials have warned about 26,000 retired government employees that their Social Security numbers may have been exposed to public view in an apparent security breach made in January.

The N.C. Department of Sate Treasurer this month advised beneficiaries to remain vigilant for signs of identity theft that could result from the "data security incident."

"We are notifying you so you can take action along with our vendor's efforts to minimize or eliminate potential harm," the letter states. "A victim's personal information is sometimes held for use or shared among a group of thieves at different times."

A security vulnerability has been discovered in iOS 6.1, 6.0.2 and 6.0.1 that allows an iPhone's passcode to be bypassed.

Secured passcode access to a device can be overcome by a few simple button presses after making and canceling an emergency call.Expect an update form Apple sooner than later.

Here is the process in action from YouTube user Videosdebarraquito posted a week ago - as away to prank your friends. BGR spotlit the risk this morning.

Several liberal advocacy groups are opposing placing more armed personnel in Wake County schools and say they want to be involved in the school district's review of security practices.

In this statement dated Thursday from the Education Justice Alliance, the group says the Sandy Hook shootings shouldn't cause people "to repeat mistakes of the past." They say these mistakes include increasing police presence at schools following the 1999 shootings at Columbine High School.

"Some local leaders are proposing that we place armed guards in all Wake County elementary schools, arm principals, introduce marshals, and provide teachers with mace or tazers, among other similarly reactionary and ineffective proposals," according to the press release. "A state senator has introduced SB27, lobbying for school personnel and volunteers to be trained in weapon use. These practices would only further create a prison-like environment in our public schools and criminalize youth of color."

Wake County school board chairman Keith Sutton is warning about severe consequences should county commissioners have their way and get their legislative changes approved.

As noted in today's article, Sutton repeatedly characterized the changes commissioners want in school ownership, charter school facilities funding and at-large school board elections as a "power grab." He said there's nothing showing things would improve if commissioners have their way.

“The plan is to decimate the public school system as we know it and build it up in some other way,” Sutton said in a meeting Thursday with News & Observer reporters and editors.

Wake County school board chairman Keith Sutton announced Tuesday that he’s creating a new task force led by Sheriff Donnie Harrison that will review school safety in the district.

Sutton said that the task force will conduct a comprehensive review of school safety and security plans and come up within 90 to 120 days with recommendations to improve campus safety. The task force is being created in the aftermath of the December massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut in which a gunman killed 20 children and six school employees.

“I’m certain through this effort that Wake County schools will be better prepared,” Sutton said.

If it became law, would the Wake County school board be willing to designate school safety marshals to have more armed people on school campuses?

As noted in today's article, state Sen. Stan Bingham said he expects rural as opposed to urban districts to embrace the new bill. The bill expands who can have firearms on campus, allowing school boards to either hire people or take applications from school employees or volunteers to be marshals.

Bingham's thinking is that rural districts, where it could take longer for law enforcement to respond, might be more willing to have a trained school employee or volunteer on campus with a gun.

After all the recent controversy about whether Wake County elementary schools should have unarmed or armed security, a new state Senate bill could affect the situation.

The "Public School Protection" bill introduced Thursday would authorize school boards to designate people to the newly created position of school safety marshal. These people, who could be school employees, school volunteers, or people specially hired for the position, would be authorized to carry firearms on campus.

These new marshals would have to complete a training program from the North Carolina Criminal Justice Education and Training Standards Commission. Training would include the use of firearms, focusing on their use in a crisis situation that may involve unarmed bystanders.