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In: *Connecting the Dots Blog*, First Preventer

The First Preventers Playbook: How to Intervene, Disrupt, and Prevent Tragedy Before It Strikes. Enough is enough! Old playbooks and strategies depend on First Responders (defense), however First Preventers (offense) are needed too. It’s time to use a new prevention playbook to prevent more incidents and tragedies, The First Preventers Playbook is just in time to show you how. LAS VEGAS, NV – “For too long, we have ignored the signs of mass casualty attacks and refused to work together to “connect the dots”. Rick has given us a roadmap to do just that,” Captain Griger, Sarpy County Sheriff’s Office. Leaders in schools, higher education,Read More →

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New and Different Times Require New and Different Playbooks In Schools, Workplaces, and Communities Challenges in 2020 have created a new normal that is different and strange. Strange because when you think about it, pandemics are not new, protests are not new, riots are not new, racial tensions are not new, politics are not new, online learning is not new, remote working is not new, responding to violence is not new…but still 2020 feels different and 2020 is the beginning of a new normal. 2020 is also making it painfully clear to almost everyone that the same old playbooks and strategies are struggling mightily withRead More →

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In: *Connecting the Dots Blog*

The Twitter hack is pretty alarming when you realize what a couple of teenage hackers were able to accomplish using one of the oldest hacking techniques in the hacker playbook. Twitter Attack What happened? Twitter employees were hacked by hackers using social engineering and exposing human vulnerabilities and lack of awareness. The result was several Twitter accounts of some very well known people were taken over by the hackers. Twitter said the hackers “successfully manipulated a small number of employees and used their credentials to access Twitter’s internal systems, including getting through our two-factor protections.”  Twitter released an update later and said the hackers “targeted aRead More →

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In: *Connecting the Dots Blog*

Scary Indicators for School Leaders… Shootings, COVID, Mental Health & More Targeted Violence In a 2019 US Secret Service analysis, between 2008 and 2017 41 schools experienced targeted violence which is scary enough. However, it is also scary because BEFORE the 41 attacks occurred: ALL the individuals (attackers) exhibited concerning behaviors before the attack ALL the attackers experienced social stressors involving their relationships with peers and/or romantic partners Nearly all attackers experienced negative home life factors Sadly, none of the 41 schools were able to take advantage of the indicators (concerning behaviors, social stressors, home life factors, leakage, warning signs, red flags, etc.) to intervene,Read More →

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In: *Connecting the Dots Blog*

16 years ago, on July 22, 2004, the 9-11 Commission Report was released. Do you remember one of the most important revelations in the 9-11 Commission Report? National intelligence is still organized around the collection disciplines of the home agencies, not the joint mission. The importance of integrated, all source analysis cannot be overstated. Without it, it is not possible to “connect the dots”. No one component holds all the relevant information. The biggest impediment to all source analysis – to a greater likelihood of connecting the dots – is the human or systemic resistance to sharing information. The 9-11 Commission Report revealed there wereRead More →

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In: 6 Stages

Stage 6: Ongoing Awareness Do you remember everything from each of the previous emails and the overview of 20+ years of research? Do you remember all the compliance requirements with Pandemic Phases, OSHA, HIPAA, FERPA, ANSI, and other state and industry-specific guidelines? Do you know what is working and not working? Do you know about the most recent trends involving indicators and at-risk individuals in your organization (schools, higher education, health care, financial, retail, etc.) and community? Prevention is not a one-and-done effort, it requires an ongoing effort.  Failures & challenges at this stage When you don’t know what you need to know and whatRead More →

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In: 6 Stages

Stage 5: Preventing Stage If you stay with what you have today, will your people feel safer, will you have improved trust and reduced fear? Will your organization’s and community’s preventing efforts and results be better? Will you be able to keep up with the increasing challenges, more and more at-risk individuals, and escalating consequences associated with incidents and tragedies? Based on the increasing numbers of at-risk individuals, incidents, and tragedies, logically and emotionally, most people would say no they cannot afford to stay with what they have today. More specifically, if you can’t achieve Stages 1-4 with your current “solutions” there’s almost no wayRead More →

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Stage 4: Intervening and Monitoring Stage Most everyone has heard of the “Pathway to Violence” where an individual may have a grievance and then begin to express thoughts and fantasies about violence and then plan, prepare, and execute their plan of attack. Failures & challenges at this stage The Columbine High School massacre is one of numerous tragedies where common gaps prevented the team(s) from intervening and monitoring and ultimately preventing. If the pieces of the puzzle had been collected, assessed, and connected more effectively, the team(s) would have been in a better position to intervene and monitor the at-risk individuals and prevent this horribleRead More →

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In: 6 Stages

Stage 3: Connecting the Dots Stage Do you remember what the 9-11 Commission Report said? National intelligence is still organized around the collection disciplines of the home agencies, not the joint mission. The importance of integrated, all source analysis cannot be overstated. Without it, it is not possible to “connect the dots”. No one component holds all the relevant information.  The biggest impediment to all source analysis – to a greater likelihood of connecting the dots – is the human or systemic resistance to sharing information. The 9-11 terrorist attacks from nearly 20 years ago had more than enough indicators before the attacks, and theRead More →

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In: 6 Stages

Stage 2: Assessing the Dots Stage Do you know what the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said about preventing gun violence? The importance of detecting and addressing concerning behaviors, thoughts, or statements cannot be overstated. In fact, preventing violence by detecting and addressing these red flags is more effective than any physical security measure. Collecting, assessing, and addressing indicators (concerning behaviors, thoughts, statements, suspicious activities, etc.) is more effective than any physical security measure (cameras, alarms, locks, metal detectors, etc.). Let that sink in for a minute. Failures & challenges at this stage The Assessing the Dots Stage requires more than laws requiring schools andRead More →