Criminal culture and methods of operation vary from place to place. While there are some aspects which are somewhat universal, there is also a great deal of specificity based on location. Understanding these aspects for location where you are living and operating is a key component of personal security. This knowledge allows you to better…
There are certain situations where individuals may be specifically targeted for attack. It may arise from a business or personal dispute, due to perceived wealth, political profile or another reason. Assuming you are not a head of state, high net worth person or other individual with a large security detail and other protective infrastructure support,…
Adversarial mindset is important to any security program whether you are protecting a Fortune 500 company, critical infrastructure, a high net worth person or yourself. We discussed some of the elements of using adversarial mindset here: http://iprotectiveconcepts.com/4-steps-to-taking-the-adversarys-perspective-and-enhancing-your-security/. I should empathize at this point I am mainly looking at protection against physical threats and not looking…
Assuming you are not a head of state or other individual with a large security detail and therefore need to do it yourself or with limited resources: Avoid time & place predictability. This is generally considered the number one way people are successfully ambushed/assassinated. This means varying your routes and times of departure, arrival and…
Most people when they think of a kidnapping think of a violent, dramatic event. The victim is ambushed, dragged from his car, threatened with weapons and restrained before being moved to a location where he is isolated. Many kidnappings do follow this model or something very similar. Speed, violence, “shock and awe” are effective tools…
US citizen Shezanne Cassim and four other men are currently being detained in United Arab Emirates for making a satirical film about a fictional martial arts school in Satwa neighborhood of Dubai. The 20-minute film, which follows the format of shows like Fight Quest and Human Weapon begins with the film makers visiting the fictional…
There is a tendency to be drawn to the more exotic, spectacular or exciting threats when considering personal risk rather than the more likely but more mundane threats. In many parts of the developing world your greatest risk is a vehicle accident. Poorly maintained vehicles, lack or total absence of professional driver training and licensing,…
At about 9pm on April 11, 2013 a group of 5 men forced their way into an apartment in Meriden, Connecticut in the Northeastern US and overpowered and restrained four people inside. The apartment was reportedly company-rented and used by employees of Lenox Jewelers in Fairfield who frequently transited between that store and another store…
Continuing with the theme of keeping travel security in perspective that we introduced in the last article I’d like to stress again the need to keep a realistic and practical view of your personal security when traveling overseas and to avoid alarmist perceptions that often follow incidents like the Sarai Sierra case and the sexual…
The dramatic disappearance and murder of US solo tourist Sarai Sierra in Istanbul and the recent gang rape of a Swiss female tourist in India have brought attention to the darker side of travel. In the wake of these incidents, in particular the Sarai Sierra case there were numerous ill-informed comments by columnists and bloggers…