Anti-Terrorism and The ICTOA 2013 Conference

ICTOA CONFERENCE 2013

Las Vegas

 

 

October 10th, 2013 | Author: Dr. Ross Riggs

 

Anti Terrorism

Jim Biesterfeld Sovereign Executive Services

951-301-1971 abiest@verizon.net

GOALS of ANTI-TERRORISM OPERATIONS

• Decrease desirability of the target
• Identify terrorist activity
• Decrease the effectiveness of an attack

The key is to make it not financially, politically worth the cost


Title 5 of the USC defines Terrorism (Note: the Fort Hood killings fit the description for a terrorist act very clearly)


LONE WOLF Operations

• Self-Radicalized
• Extremist +
• Many attempts to join regular cause, i.e. Al Qaeda but rejected
• Acts independent of organized groups but may get assistance from such a group for supplies occasionally.
• More difficult to detect – do not ignore the indicators

The Manchester Document – al Qaeda’s Playbook

Target Selection 

                                                      > Blasting and destroying embassies

                                                      > Attack vital economic centers

                                                      > Destroy bridges leading into and out of cities

                                                      > Removal of key personalities  “Those that block Allah’s path”

                                                      Target Recon

                                                           To Identify Potential Targets

                                                     

                                                      > Key function that LE patrol units may discover

                                                      > Gather information about:

                                                                       The enemy

                                                                       The land

                                                                       The installations

                                                                       The neighborhood

‘Collectors’ will:

> Move in two directions

> Often use a rental vehicle paid for in cash

> Have quality ID documents either real or excellent fakes

> Will have a quick answer for why they are in a certain place at a certain time(s)

> May be carrying blueprints or floor plans of buildings

> Will have notes on the physical layout, often these will be laying in plain sight in the vehicle

> Checking access controls

> Monitoring the physical security people

> Interested in types of construction

                  Both technical and non-technical

 Q: What will stand out about them?

A: Maybe nothing but… they will test to see how close can they get?

PROXIMITY

A: Notice how long they stay.

DURATION

A: How often do they show up?

FREQUENCY

“The key is to make it financially, politically not worth the cost.” 

– J. Biesterfeld of Sovereign Executive Services

THE CHANGING NATURE OF TERROR

The following is excerpted from “Counter Terrorism: Cyber-War in Tomorrow’s Mirrors” by Dr. Ross L. Riggs

Jihadists often create extensive on-line personas that enable them to build a following, almost a set of groupies that inflate the ego of the would-be terrorists. These cyberspace braggarts may take the step from the virtual world of cyber based calls for jihad and acts of terror to putting down the keyboard and picking up a weapon. It is WEBehavior's mission to find them before they do.

There are websites and magazines devoted to providing a forum for these virtual jihadists. They will often utilize some of the very same marketing tools that major entrepreneurial success stories in the Western world use to promote their products. 
 

These tools, based on how social media is used and by whom, allow investigators to read and understand the context of information that is prevalent on the social media sites. They are particularly useful when the information is posted by the virtual jihadists themselves. By understanding the nature of the social media posts and appreciating the context of what is said, how it is said, when and by whom, it is possible to deduce if a virtual jihadist is going to engage a target in the real world; where that potential target might be; and when such an attack could take place. 

WEBehavior’s CEO says that radical sites and publications like Inspire offer rewards for loyalty to a site or for an increase in the number of posts on a site by a given individual. The rewards can be extremely trivial inducements for this extended loyalty, a ploy known as gamification. Both the virtual and real-world jihadist then has a claim to fame and it is that inflated sense of importance that opens the door for the jihadists’ writings to be tracked by investigators in the race to stop the next attack. 

Alix Levine and the folks at WEBehavior will quickly admit to you that they are not clairvoyant. They are, however, committed and that commitment has paid off in being able to see today’s cyber war in tomorrow’s mirrors. The information that they are able to glean from exhaustive research has begun to point to where tomorrow’s attacks may come and who their perpetrators will likely be.