Chapter 29 - Terrorism

Abstract

The role of a security professional managing the threat of terrorism requires awareness of the nature of the threat; vigilance toward the known threats, the desire to identify new threats early, keep constituents and organizational leaders informed as well as recommend and implement the sound countermeasures to mitigate an attack. This chapter provides an overview of the terrorism, the reasons of terror tactics, the difference between international and domestic terrorism, and explains the selection and the attack planning concepts. Some goals of specific terrorist actions within terrorism campaigns or for entire campaigns include: to publicize a cause on a regional and international level, harassment and intimidation of authorities to force them to make concessions, polarization of society to bring down the regime, and to free political prisoners and secure monetary ransoms to finance their cause. Domestic terrorism can be found in nearly every country, while, international terrorism can go beyond domestic issues. Terrorist groups may be organized in many different ways, much like any organization and understanding the organizational structure of a terrorist organization provides guidance on tactics for disrupting their operations. The CARVER model of target selection offers a useful tool for considering a potential target of terrorist attack. With an understanding of the motivations driving our foe, it is possible to identify potential targets deemed valuable to them. The security professional must consider the threat of the environment that surrounds their organization, the causes that might harm, interrupt the operations, or damage the organization's reputation. Knowing a few of the tools and the methods available for planning an attack can then be helpful to prepare for defenses to protect those valuable targets.