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At the Point of Crisis. Now What?
Sometimes decades pass by without anything happening. And other times a decade passes in a week. This week seems to be one of those weeks.
As Russia invades Ukraine, a crisis point looms large and the world finds itself facing unparalleled levels of uncertainty since World War II.
Amid this tenuous backdrop, the Circuit Magazine poses a timely question for protectors everywhere to consider: is your mindset that of a guardian or a warrior? Meanwhile, our recent podcast guest, Jonathan Eddery talks about the importance of balancing discretion and security. And for a different type of crisis preparation, read Mark Six James’ engaging article on the 5 Ds of risk mitigation and protection in an active shooter situation.
Despite what’s going on in the world, we hope you find some peace and relaxation in your weekend.
The Circuit Magazine Podcast
You could put wire mesh on the windows of Bond Street or Fifth Avenue Haute Couture stores but would anyone still shop there?
Today we are speaking with Jonathan Eddery who developed a wealth of Loss Prevention (LP) skills and experience before joining MAST as Director of Technical Security Systems. We are learning how to balance risk management with reputational risk and the interplay between covert and overt technology.
On today’s episode we are asking:
What does LP have to teach the wider community about security-by-design in their day to day work?
What does the tech landscape actually look like at the moment in responding to different types of crime?
How can today’s security consultant be expected to be all things to all people?
If you enjoy listening to the Circuit Podcast and can spare a minute, please rate/review us. Your rating will help us to rank higher making it easier for others to find the podcast.
The Need to Know
President Biden has been presented with options for major U.S. cyberattacks designed to disrupt Russia’s ability to sustain its military operations in Ukraine.
The Dominican government on Sunday began building a wall that will cover more than half of the 392-kilometer (244 miles) border with Haiti, its only land neighbor, to stop irregular migration and the smuggling of goods, weapons and drugs.
Jihadist attack at a community near Burkina Faso’s border with Ghana is a sign of how close terrorists are getting to entering the country. This resulted in the death of twelve persons and a few other victims abducted.
Victor Brown took another security guard’s gun and began shooting while lying on the ground, despite the man known as “Renegade” being blocks away by that time.
A Chinese navy ship has used a laser on an Australian defence aircraft in flight, in what has been described as a “serious safety incident” that vindicates concern about the increased military presence close to Australia.
The incident began when the suspect grabbed her by the mouth and held the butter knife to her side, saying he needed her to drive him to Indianapolis.
Victim tortured with needles to force him into transferring the ransom amount
For more timely global updates like this, get the Circuit Daily Briefing delivered to your inbox… daily! Get on the list >
Circuit Magazine
What is your protector mindset? Do you gravitate towards the warrior or the guardian? In this issue, we examine both approaches.
Look inside:
Providing EP - Clients with Disabilities
Penetrating a Close Protection Team
Tactical Medicine - Is this just Advanced First Aid?
Reactive Vs Preemptive Intervention
Tactical Considerations - When Your Life is on the Line
Intelligence Gathering – Human Intelligence P2
Defensive Training Principles - Demystifying Combatives
+ Much more inside
From the Pages of the Circuit Magazine
Many of you will remember the photo of the Dallas shooter outside of the Federal Building. Now ask yourself if this was your Office, School, or House of Worship how prepared would your company or institution be to deny access and ultimately defeat the shooter?
Mark James has written extensively about how we can get in front of a crisis when it occurs. We must learn to recognize the signs of people at risk and intervene before they move to the point of crisis and ultimately violence.
But when we can’t get in front of the crisis and it goes bad, we must, as the Dallas Federal officers did, be prepared to move swiftly in our response.
In this article, Mark outlines the essential steps to be included in any Active Shooter Response Plan. He calls this model - D5, short for Deter, Detect, Deny, Delay and Defeat.
If you enjoyed this article and want more great content from across the industry then sign up for the Circuit Magazine >
Situational Assessment by RANE
Russian officials have made conflicting statements about inking a potential political settlement with Kyiv to end the conflict. But President Vladimir Putin and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov have both continued to assert the current Ukrainian government is illegitimate and insist on Ukraine’s “denazification and demilitarization,” which is a strong signal that Moscow’s ultimate goal in the country remains regime change.
In the coming weeks, there are several potential courses of action that Russia could take in Ukraine, with each having its pros and cons for Moscow:
1) Russia installs a pro-Moscow government in Kyiv while its military occupies large pieces of the country.
In this scenario, Russia would seize Kyiv by force and then put pro-Russian political forces in power, who would then change Ukraine’s constitution to ensure the country’s neutral status or demilitarization.
2) Russia coerces a government in Kyiv to sign a deal and most of its forces leave Ukraine.
In this scenario, Russia would force a government in Kyiv, to sign a deal that would constitutionally fixate Ukraine’s neutral and demilitarized status, and possibly some Russian military bases in Ukraine to help guarantee the deal.
3) Russia partitions Ukraine in some fashion, most likely along the Dnieper River, leaving the current Ukrainian government in control of a rump state in the west while occupying the other half.
In this scenario, Russia would recognize a large piece of eastern Ukraine (which is home to a large ethnic Russian population) as a new independent state, effectively partitioning the country into East and West Ukraine.
4) Russia settles for degrading Ukrainian defense and economic capabilities before withdrawing without a peace settlement.
In this scenario, unexpectedly stiff resistance from the Ukrainian population, including partisans and the remnants of the Ukrainian military, convinces Russia that establishing sufficient control over the country would be too costly in the near- and medium-term, and that reaching a peace agreement with an illegitimate and unpopular Russian-imposed government would not achieve Moscow’s goals.
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From the Community
Quick reaction time from Protectors escorting actress Zendaya to an appearance.
Statistics wise, this is the job of the protector. Ahead of shooting at assassins and jumping out of trees, these are the situations we’re more likely to face. so why are we putting so much emphasis on training for one incident and not the other?
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Meanwhile...
The bodyguard of Simon Leviev from ‘The Tinder Swindler’ is threatening to sue Netflix for his appearance in the hit documentary.
Leviev featured prominently in the documentary as having conned several women out of hundreds of thousands of dollars, while his bodyguard Piotr was often seen alongside him.
The bodyguard’s attorney Joanna Parafianowicz has now reached out to Netflix to demand they pull The Tinder Swindler from the streaming platform altogether, claiming it frames Piotr as complicit in Leviev’s crimes.
Parafianowicz has also asked Netflix to publish an official apology to Piotr, who has asked for roughly £4.1million in financial compensation.
“No one has the right to deprive a person of basic rights, such as the right to image and the right to the protection of personal data,” Parafianowicz insists.
“The movie doesn’t tell my client’s story, and it must be underlined – no charges have been ever brought against him regarding this case. He’s never been involved in Simon’s businesses. However, by many viewers, he’s being associated with Simon Leviev’s behaviour.”
She added: “Netflix’s production neither have asked my client for permission to publish his image nor for his comment on the case. As a result of the unexpected movie publication and its immediate popularity, my client lost anonymity within just one day, the ability to work as a bodyguard, probably forever, as well as his reputation.
“Piotr is in a bad mental state now. We both believe that even such a giant like Netflix cannot violate basic human rights.”
Have you seen the Netflix documentary? Was the bodyguard duped, naive or outright complicit?
Until next week...
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