Response Strategies - Assignment Example

Word Count 004 Importance Response Strategies Response strategies are essentially the cardinal factors that determine the ultimate effectiveness of a PPS in any facility. They are the factors that help define success in respect of measuring the performance function of the whole system with strategies, the presence of reliable detection and delay strategies notwithstanding. But designing and implementing a suitable PPS in a facility also demands that the VA team determine in clears terms, the purpose response is meant to serve (Mary Lynn Garcia, 2005).

It needs to be decided, whether the purpose of response is to react after a successful attack or to stop an attack from successful completion. Whichever the case, a good response strategy must be in perfect alignment with the set objectives of the PPS. Response strategies can range from deterrence, to containment, to recovery, delayed response, denial, immediate response, or it could well be a combination of all depending on the set goals of the PPS. What is however, worth noting is the fact that the overall success or effectiveness of a PPS depends on the effectiveness of the response strategies.

Deterrence Deterrence as a response strategy is largely based upon creating a perception of tight security as a way of forestalling aggression or attack from a potential low level adversary. For deterrence to be effective security personnel would need to be visible and they must communicate a sense of capableness, timely and effective response to incidence, diligence and randomness in patrol schedule. It is in many ways the first line of response strategy built in anticipation of attacks from adversaries who are not very motivated.

For example, armed security personnel at a Wall Street bank generally would discourage low level attacks of vandalism from adversaries who are not very motivated. Teenagers would naturally be deterred from violating a no trespass zone if it were perceived that security personnel were around to execute the no trespass order. Denial This strategy comes into play when assets or products in a site possess the potential to cause severe or mass fatality in the area when they are released by way of sabotage into the environment.

The intent is to prevent unauthorized persons or adversaries from gaining access into areas where such hazardous materials are stored. Denial strategy is by every perceptible standard an absolute necessity in sites with nuclear, chemical and biological facilities. The danger being that an adversary need only secure access to the materials or equipments used for releasing the materials and effect release for an attack to be successful. In the face of terrorist threats in the U.S homeland security have had to re-evaluate the security parameters requirements in the nuclear plants in California, Texas and Illinois to deter highly motivated terrorist or adversaries from securing assess into the facilities.

Denial strategy has also been put in place in a place like the Institute of Biological science in Ottawa, Canada where highly infectious or contagious bacterial are cultured for medical research purposes. Containment With this strategy, it is generally assumed that an adversary may well take possession of the asset. The objective of containment is to contain, or confine the adversary to the site thus making the attack unsuccessful. The importance of this strategy is embedded in the fact that should the first line of response fail and the adversary is not successfully deterred from reaching asset, containment strategy springs into operation.

For example, containment could well be in place in a place like the New York Jewelry Center in 47th street New York , and in a place like McAlester Ammunition facility in Oklahoma. Recovery Recovery strategy is built upon the understanding that the temporary lose of asset to an adversary is in alignment with the basic objective of the PPS. It means that the lose will have no degrading effect on the system and the business goal of the site will in no way be compromised. It is employed as an alternative strategy in the event that an adversary beats both the deterrent and containment measure.

But this strategy cannot, in any event, be effective with denial strategy since successful attack would result in the release of hazardous materials (Mary Lynn Garcia, 2005). Recovery strategy is important in the fact that asset may altogether not be lost forever and is used in places like high value art galleries, and high value jewelry collection facilities. To make this strategy very effective, such technologies as microdots, bar codes, RF tags and other such device could be used to make covert marks on product for easy identification and recovery.

Delayed Response The first objective of the delayed response is to identify the person or individual suspected to have committed the act of theft. It considers that an asset can be temporarily or permanently lost and the loss would not necessarily compromise the business goal of the site, and initiates reviews of recorded surveillance tapes, investigations into the crime, recovery and criminal prosecution. Effective delay strategy also involves an alternative protection strategy like insuring assets on site.

Delayed response can be used in places like banks and museums. Immediate Response This response is in reality a progressive blend of different response strategies. It may begin from deterrence but may progress to denial if deterrence fails. Denial may well progress to containment and containment to immediate recovery if it turned out the adversary could not be contained. If recovery fails, the entire response progresses into delayed response strategy. This type of comprehensive immediate response strategy is employed mainly in large industries and government facilities (Mary Lynn Garcia, 2005).

Using Unarmed Security Personnel Neutralization is the set goal when security personnel are dispatched in response to an attack from an adversary. An effective PPS would have clearly defined the threat level before response is initiated. This means there would need to be fast alarm reporting and proper assessment of threat level by use of dependable communication (Mary Lynn Garcia, 2005). If it is determined that an adversary is unarmed, then an organization may dispatch unarmed but well trained responders.

Bibliography Mary Lynn Garcia. “Vulnerability Assessment of Physical Protection System”. Elsevier Butterworth- Heinemann. 2006. Book. 17 June, 2011.