Guest OpEd by Doug Haines, Owner, Haines Security Solution
In the Theory of Evolution, Darwin suggests that evolution is about the survival of the fittest. It is generally accepted that he was or is right?
In short, he suggested that a bird in order to survive would over time develop the physical characteristics necessary to adapt and flourish in its local environment.
While he was talking about the natural world, his theory also applies to the physical security business.
In order to survive in today’s world businesses must adapt to their environments.
The threats that were around twenty years ago have changed. They’ve become more sophisticated and must be adapted to in a new way.
(The kidnapping plot targeting Governor Gretchen Whitmer is illustrating the rise of domestic terrorism in the US. Courtesy of WXYZ-TV Detroit | Channel 7 and YouTube. Posted on Oct 9, 2020.)
What worked before won’t necessarily work in today’s world. Not only have threat scenarios evolved but with the increase in technologies so have a new variety of threats come about.
It used to be that a person who wanted to commit a breach of security had to be physically present in the space in order to carry out the attack.
That is no longer the case.
Since just about everything that has a moving part to it is somehow connected to the Internet of Things (IoT), a hacker does not have to be present in the physical sense in order to disable a closed-circuit television (CCTV) camera, for example.
This means, a new way of thinking about threats, vulnerabilities, and risks is necessary.
(Christopher Wray testified that domestic terrorist threats have soared in the United States and made clear that violent extremists were behind Capitol Hill attack. Courtesy of Good Morning America and YouTube. Posted on Mar 3, 2021.)
Additionally, threats used to be pretty much two-dimensional. That no longer is true.
Those involved in the risk management business must think in three-dimensional terms.
In fact, they need to think about asset security as if what they are protecting were a cube or box.
If mitigation strategists think of an asset as being six-dimensional and fix their approach to risk management that way, they’ll be able to cope with just about every threat possible.
This will require, pardon the pun, “outside of the box” thinking.
On the flip side, without the “it’s part of the culture” way of thinking about threat scenarios will continue to be played out with varying degrees of impact – and, some will be catastrophic.
Since we cannot prevent threats from occurring one hundred percent of the time we have to get the results or their effects down to a level that we can accept and handle with available resources.
This requires us to include scenarios that are improbable but in the unlikely event, they do occur the results will overwhelm resources.
I call this “impact-centric planning.”
I know most of us will not encounter an active shooter situation within our lifetime but active shooter threats must be planned for wherever high concentrations of people gather.
(State-of-the-art AMULET Ballistic Barriers were selected for application to a special Safe Room constructed by Concealment Solutions for an episode of The Vanilla Ice Project. Bullet resistant protection that is thin, lightweight, and easy to apply. Courtesy of Ballistic Furniture Systems, Inc. and YouTube.)
The adage, it won’t happen here cannot be the flavor of the day. You’re right it probably won’t happen here, BUT if it does? What will be the impact?
Not only must we deal with threats that are likely but we also must deal with threats that would be catastrophic even though very unlikely.
An excellent example of a highly unlikely event is the Las Vegas shooting incident[1].
That event was so improbable that if I would have brought it up during a planning session those in the room would have thrown their coffee at me.
(On October 1, 2017, a crowd of thousands had gathered in Las Vegas, Nevada, for a music festival. Then, bullets rained down from the sky. Survivors describe the shock and terror of the worst mass shooting in recent American history. Courtesy of the Washington Post and YouTube. Posted on Oct 6, 2017.)
In order to survive, we must ensure we are the fittest. So, Darwin was absolutely right.
[1] A Highly Unlikely Event that is Sure to Happen Again Unless We Change Our Way of Thinking https://view.joomag.com/ast-champions-edition-december-2017-digital-dec
About the Author
Doug Haines, the owner of Haines Security Solutions, LLC (HSS), is a United States Air Force veteran with over 45 years of law enforcement and security-related experience, which includes teaching building design principles to architects, engineers, facility managers, planners, and security professionals.
He has served as a distinguished judge on the Annual ‘ASTORS’ Homeland Security Awards Judges Panel for Six Years, and is a expert contributor to AST, sharing his years of experience and insights with our 75K+ readers.
Doug’s company HSS is recognized as a center of expertise within the security community for risk assessment, providing services for many federal; State, local government agencies and private companies around the globe, and is a founding member of International Centers of Security Training Excellence (ICSTE).
Each ICSTE member company offers courses in one of several security verticals yet provides a location for other members to present their courses upon request.
At its River Park facility in Oxnard, CA architects, engineers, facility managers, planners, and security professionals learn about antiterrorism countermeasures in building design, the integration of security technologies in the built environment, and risk analysis strategies.
The CPK-United BV (also an ICSTE founding member) training facility in Hilversum, The Netherlands gears its curriculum towards fashion retail, hospitality (hotel and nightclubs) and port security guard activities and executive protection.
Tactics for patrolman and SWAT are taught by former police officers at the Greenville, NY training center, where a firing range and urban mock-up are on site.
In 2017, HSS’s Physical Security Engineering Training and Certification (PSET&C) program was recognized as the Best Homeland Security Education Program, by American Security Today and received a coveted Platinum ‘ASTORS’ Award.
Doug is also the author of ‘The Solutions Matrix: A Practical Guide to Soft Security Engineering for Architects, Engineers, Facility Managers, Planners, and Security Professionals’.
To Learn More visit here. To check out the book, please click this link.
More information about PSET&C, ABRA, CAIRA, ICSTE or other services can be found on the company’s website at www.hainessecuritysolutions.com.
Doug Haines Recognized as 2020 ‘ASTORS’ Homeland Security Industry Person of the Year
American Security Today’s Annual ‘ASTORS’ Awards is the preeminent U.S. Homeland Security Awards Program, and now entering it’s Seventh Year, continues to recognize industry leaders of Physical and Border Security, Cybersecurity, Emergency Preparedness – Management and Response, Law Enforcement, First Responders, as well as federal, state and municipal government agencies in the acknowledgment of their outstanding efforts to Keep our Nation Secure.
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AST Honors Thomas Richardson, FDNY Chief of Department; Dr. Kathleen Kiernan, President of NEC National Security Systems; and Richard Blatus, FDNY Assistant Chief of Operations, at the 2021 ‘ASTORS’ Awards Luncheon at ISC East.
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Learn More…
Don’t Surrender to Fear: New Book – ‘The Solutions Matrix’ by Doug Haines
