Personal protection tips are a necessity for business travellers. Over the last 50 years we have seen significant changes in the travel security industry. From the Post Vietnam War era of kidnapping and ransom scenarios throughout South America to terror attacks against western cultures in Europe and the US, the number and types of threats faced by travellers continues to increase. Unfortunately, what we have yet to see is same level of advancement in mitigation strategies and personal protective measures.
Regardless of the industry, more and more
business travellers are being placed in situations where they realise
unacceptable levels of risk and personal protection tips can help. Gone is need
for the ambiguous security plans of the ‘60s and ‘70s, developed to fuel the
egos of corporate executives. Business travelers need protective measures and
personal protection tips that are both tangible and effective.
In order to mitigate this rapidly changing risk, security consultants today must have intimate knowledge of the impact each lost asset will have on the client's business, as well as all of the stressors their clients may face both while traveling at home and abroad. Most importantly, and sadly the most often neglected factor in the risk equation, is the need for effective risk mitigation strategies.
Edward Clark
Remain Vigilant is Not a Tangible Tactic for Travellers
All too often we see pundits, media darlings, self-proclaimed
"experts" and even consulting products provide mitigation strategies
that are either just general precepts on what to do or tactics that are too
ambiguous to be effective. As most of us have recently seen from the
attacks in France and Belgium, business travellers, expatriates and students studying
abroad face legitimate threats, regardless of their destinations.
The duty of care for those responsible for that travel requires that they provide effective and actionable protective measures and not lofty strategic doctrine that has no substance. But what is that exactly? What does an effective protective measure look like? Let's continue on with our Paris example to find the answer.
Even as the attacks were occurring in Paris, corporate crisis management teams, newscasters and public officials were broadcasting the need to "be more vigilant" to "raise the level of awareness" and "implement a heightened sense of security," but failed to let us know what that looks like. What actions do you take or what equipment do you deploy to "be more aware?"
Another point supporting this dynamic shows a
summary of information collected on the actions taken by security professionals
during the actual attacks. While most organisations did what they were
trained to do, most if not all of those tasks performed would prove to be
ineffective in actually mitigating the risk from a violent attack against a
traveler. Let's look at some details to better realise the difference
between strategic guidance and effective protective measures.
Expert
Tactics That Can Help Keep You Safe
When we tell someone to be more aware of their
surroundings, by definition, we are telling them to be more cognisant or
conscious of the people and objects in their environment in hopes of
identifying someone or something that has the potential of causing them harm
and hopefully avoiding closer contact with that person or object. So we see
that by recommending that a person be more
aware, we have actually asked them to perform three tasks that include:
- Identify the
physical space that actually constitutes "your operational
environment"
- Determine which objects in that space may cause you
harm
- Determine the people in that space that may cause
you harm
This brings us to the point where we realise
that the difference between a precept and a tactic is not so much in telling
someone what to do, but how to do it.
Let's continue on with our example of becoming more aware.
While we have simple and effective methodologies
for identifying your operational space and potentially hazardous substances or
devices, let's focus on how we
identify someone who has the intent to commit an act of violence (or any other
crime for that matter).
Keep in mind, we are using this technique to identify those who may potentially cause us harm and not imposing a death sentence. The point being is that it’s OK to move away from someone you have determined may harm you without harming that person if they are innocent.
The more you practice this, the better and more "aware" you become. While it may initially seem like a lot to do, after one overseas trip of applying this technique, you can perform this analysis in just a few seconds.
The tactic revolves around the acronym FACE:
FACE
- Focus
- Attitude and
Actions
- Clothing and
Appearance
- Environment
F
= Focus.
What is the focus of the person you are
evaluating? People generally focus on the reason they are in a certain
situation, like watching a sporting event. They are focused on the field or
court, perhaps focused on a colleague with whom they are discussing a play.
Someone there to commit a crime will also be
focused on their reason for being
there. Searching for a place to plant an explosive, going against the grain,
searching for a concentration of people or focused on the weapons they will use
to commit their crime.
- What
is the focus of the person you are analysing?
- Is
it similar to those around you?
- Is
it appropriate for the situation?
A
= Attitude and Actions.
In this case, we are trying to determine if the
attitude and actions of the person we are assessing are appropriate for the
situation. You expect a deliverymen to be anxious or hurried. People waiting in
line may be irate or rude.
Someone waiting in line that is mumbling to
themselves, fumbling with objects in a pocket or backpack or for whatever reason,
their attitude or actions do not seem appropriate, consider this person
suspicious.
C
= Clothing and Appearance.
Seeing someone with blue hair and blue paint on
their chest would raise suspicion at the White House or the Vatican, but this
same person in Kansas City would be considered nothing more than a loyal Royals
baseball fan. Again, we are not looking for someone that you personally
feel is odd, but someone whose clothing and appearance are not appropriate for
the current situation.
Is this person wearing a heavy coat while the
rest of the crowd is in t-shirts and shorts? Are they attempting to portray a
certain culture such as a US Cowboy, hip hop star or other cultural group?
(Especially in an attempt to mask their true intentions.) Are they sweating
profusely, despite cooler temperatures? Heavily perfumed? Do they act or appear
to be under the influence of drugs or alcohol?
E
= Environment.
When considering the environment, there are two
factors, one is the physical
environment such as time of day, weather, geography and seasons and the other
is the operational environment. Has
an attack already occurred? Are people evacuating an area? What environmental
factor is currently impacting the behaviour of those around me? These situations
will all change the meaning of what is "appropriate" for the current
situation.
We see that we can very quickly go from providing
moderately helpful precepts, such as "remain vigilant" to specific
actions you can take to actually be more aware. As leaders, executives and
administrators, the responsibility is now ours to go beyond the basic factors
of knowing the risk profile for people we have placed in harm's way by knowing
what we must protect, what we must protect them from and what we have to
protect them with. We must also ensure that we understand how these personal protection tips will be used and ensure
that they are effective in mitigating the risk to
our institution assets.
By Edward D. Clark, Senior Security Consultant, iJET International. iJet is exhibiting at the Business Travel Show - 22-23 February at Olympia London. Register now for a free visitor pass.
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