Posts by Chameleon Associates
Gun Detection Technology
Security professionals are always looking for ways to prevent crime and attacks from happening, particularly mass shootings. Since 9/11, we have endured terrorist attacks and active shooter attacks (similar insofar as the perpetrator is prepared to sacrifice their life). Regardless of the motivation behind a shooting, be it ideology or mental illness, both pose a…
Read MoreAfghan Identity
We were doomed to fail in Afghanistan from the beginning of our involvement there. Relentless rebellion was inevitable and insurgency will always win the day. A piece of land can be occupied, but a people is another matter entirely. Insurgents, unlike their occupiers, identify with the land. And identity is allegiance. A map of the…
Read MoreWho was Kate Warne?
Did you know that the first female private detective in the U.S. was key to saving the life of President Abraham Lincoln? In the time leading up to his inauguration, Lincoln faced profound political opposition. Southern states had been threatening secession if Republicans gained the White House and by March 1861, seven had done so…
Read MoreCountry Club Security
One of the many great aspects of private golf course or country club life is the feeling of being completely free to enjoy your time, safe from threats, with a sense of security. Indeed, the very definition of security is being free from danger or threat. At the same time, one does not want to…
Read MoreColonial Pipeline Hack
Colonial Pipeline, the largest for refined gasoline and jet fuel in the U.S., carries up to 3 million barrels a day between Texas and New York. Hackers broke in to Colonial’s computer systems conducting a malware cyber attack that shut the company down for almost a week. 12,000 gas stations were directly affected resulting in…
Read MoreTransit Insecurity
Violent crime on city streets and around transit hubs are in the news every day. A little old lady gets punched in the face at a bus stop, someone is pushed down near train tracks in the metro, folks are being robbed and verbally assaulted at what seems like every turn. Covid necessarily resulted in…
Read MoreDuty to Protect
To what extent is a business obligated to provide security for its customers? And to what extent does security influence which businesses a customer choses to frequent? These questions are particularly relevant in light of the recent shooting at a grocery store location in Colorado which left ten people dead. Some would say that businesses…
Read MoreRansomware Risk
It is estimated that every 11 seconds, a ransomware attack occurs (this according to Cybersecurity Ventures). Over the last 4 years, the FBI reports there have been 4,000 attacks – on private businesses, government agencies and individual computer users. Covid and the associated increased reliance on computing is cited as another reason for ever-increasing occurrence…
Read MoreOfficer Joe’s on Post
The security industry has some unique characteristics which influence its management. What works just fine for management in other business sectors does not work well in security. As background, decades ago, when Chameleon was an upstart consultancy, we did not benefit from a network of businesspeople we met on the golf course (although we do…
Read MoreA Changing U.S. Threat Environment
For decades, organizations in the United States have been accustomed to looking outward for threats. Prevention efforts were focused mostly on bad guys coming from outside the organization to attack “us.” Was the attack of the US Capitol a wake-up call to alert us that perhaps our focus should change, and to give more attention…
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