It's actually pretty scary. I also work in biology, and I'd have to say that it would be actually rather easy for me to manufacture a custom virus.
-> as i said: Inside job.
It's another thing if you're an outsider. Then you don't know where to get the machines and chemicals, and if you're not ordering from a lab or company, then you'll directly be suspicious.
What is moderately scary is the inherent dual use of biotechnology. In nuclear industry, it is relatively easy to make sure someone isn't building a bomb (although it's sometimes problematic to persuade people who don't want to be persuaded, see the Iran controversy).
Really?
[URL="http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2011/08/02/swedish-man-builds-nuclear-reactor-in-his-kitchen/"]Swedish Man Builds Nuclear Reactor in His Kitchen[/URL] said:Swedish authorities have detained a man who attempted to build a nuclear reactor in his kitchen, Helsingborgs Dagblad reported Tuesday.
[...]
The unnamed enthusiast brought radioactive materials, as well as a Geiger counter which he ordered from the US. He also dismantled smoke detectors, which contain small amounts of nuclear material.
[URL="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Hahn"]Wikipedia: David Hahn[/URL] said:David Charles Hahn (born October 30, 1976), also called the "Radioactive Boy Scout" or the "Nuclear Boy Scout", is an American who attempted to build a homemade breeder nuclear reactor in 1994, at age 17. A scout in the Boy Scouts of America, Hahn conducted his experiments in secret in a backyard shed at his mother's house in Commerce Township, Michigan. While not successful in creating a nuclear reactor, Hahn attracted the attention of local police who found radioactive materials in the trunk of his car. His mother's property was cleaned up by the Environmental Protection Agency ten months later as a Superfund cleanup site. Hahn attained Eagle Scout rank in the Boy Scouts of America prior to the creation of his reactor.
I guess even for nuclear things it's not that easy to prevent anyone from building anything.