Staying Safe While Traveling

With some of the year’s biggest annual events opening around the world comes a whole new discussion about security concerns. These concerns can exist where there is a crowded venue with international attention. However in many cases the concerns are much more intense given some of the events take place in countries that are known not only for its rugged beauty and landscapes, but also for its street crime and well organized ethnic violence. Combined with the ever-present threat of terrorist action. This year gives many travelers a reason to examine their own personal security measures and emergency preparedness.



The most important and best advice that I can give anyone concerned about any security problem is to remember that security is not something that you buy; rather it is something that you live. Or, as security expert Bruce Schneier puts it, "Security is a process, not a product."



An approach to protection that I have found to be both very effective and applicable is the protective model of Avoidance through Planning, Deterrence through Planning, Detection through Situational Awareness, Active Avoidance, Active Deterrence, Defense and Mitigation. The process is the equivalent of what the military calls a "detect to engage sequence" for security. In layman’s terms, it is an outline of an effective process to keep something safe.



Three Step Protective Model of Avoidance



Phase I - Avoidance



There is no doubt that the most important piece of any security, especially when relating to your personal safety and your family's safety, is avoidance. No matter how effective you might be at fighting , I can personally guarantee that it is much better for all concerned for you to never be attacked in the first place than it is to successfully fight off a attacker. Avoiding attacks in most cases is as simple as paying attention to what is going on around you. Learn to see and evaluate characteristics of people and situations so you can make informed decisions and actively keep both yourself and your family away from any dangers.



Phase II - Deterrence



The next phase of the protective model is deterrence. It is unfortunate that some dangerous people actually go out and look for victims (you). I call these people predators. They make their living feeding off of others and therefore are always looking for their next target. Because many of these people make their living this way, they are very familiar in what to look for in a victim and therefore can sometimes be dissuaded from conducting an attack simply by displaying something different. Predators look for the easy target. They seek out the low hanging fruit of unaware, meek and shy people who show signs of possessing something worth taking. If you show yourself to be aware of your environment and assertive in your demeanor, as well as avoid displaying items that would be extremely valuable for a criminal to take, then your chances of becoming a target will go down significantly.



One of the products of situational awareness necessary to deter the predators is the ability to detect them, particularly if you know what to look for. In the event that avoidance and deterrence fail, early detection is is important to survival because, as self-defense guru Jeff Cooper put it, "If you don’t know you’re in trouble, no amount of ability on your part will save you."



If avoiding and deterring a threat isn’t possible, even after you noticed the threat coming and trying yet again to avoid and deter, then it is finally time to take action for self defense. This action can be as little as putting a hand on your wallet to stop a pick pocket, or as drastic as fighting for your life in an armed confrontation. Regardless, the key to success in any action is to actually take the action. Its all to often that people freeze in their moment of need, ultimately "choosing" to do nothing through a long and confused process of sputtering indecision. I cannot stress it enough. If you know that something is wrong; TAKE ACTION. It may not prove to be the best action, but any action is better than no action at all . Do not hesitate out of denial while thinking "this can’t be happening to me." Instead, act, and act early. The faster you make a decision and take action, the more likely that it will be successful.



Phase III - Mitigation



Finally, in any security situation you should always plan to fail. I call this piece of the process mitigation and it is every bit as important as the others because, let’s face it, things never happen as perfect as planned. If something can go wrong, don’t dwell on the possibility, but consider it and plan for it as a contingency. If all else fails, then there is at least a pre-set series of measures in place to deal with the aftermath of everything from a lost passport to a kidnapping to a plane crash. Nobody wants these things to happen, but sometimes they do; despite your best effort to prevent them. Plan ahead and set yourself and your family up for success in the unlikely event of the worst-case scenario.