Dealing with suspect packages
Ten years ago receiving suspect packages in the form of letterbombs and devices intended to injure the recipient was considered a very low risk. It was the sort of thing that you read about in newspapers but was never considered a real threat by the business world in general. The public image of terrorism was considered to be largely the acts of organised, politically driven groups such as the IRA or ETA against high profile individuals. Today's reality tells a different story altogether, with mailbombs coming from a mixture of animal rights, anti-abortion, environmental and ecological extremists targeting pharmaceutical and medical research industries, and an increasing number of malicious or misguided individuals who may be seeking financial gain through extortion, seeking publicity or expressing a grudge through their actions.
The areas at risk are many and varied. These include establishments such as government departments and ministries, embassies, the police, the world of finance including banks, building societies and insurance companies, pharmaceutical and medical research industries, meat and poultry manufacturers, industrial and nuclear research industries, universities and educational facilities, the petrochemical and oil sector, the media, those manufacturing in sensitive areas such as defence or cosmetics, the retail chain or public utilities and hunting groups along with any other organisation with the most tenuous links to the above sectors and those who may have unwittingly upset a vicious individual.
Awareness of the mailbomb threat has certainly increased over the last 2 years due to the world-wide publicity over the notorious UNABOMBER in the USA, the MARDI GRA bomber in the UK and right wing terrorists in Austria. Added to this, European legislation now dictates that all employers have a 'Duty of Care' to their employees to provide adequate protection against potential dangers in the workplace, which would appear to include protective measures against the possible receipt of a postal bomb.
So what is the next step for an organisation who perceives itself to be at risk from attack by malicious packages?
Access control and surveillance cameras at mail delivery points may help prevent hand delivered items whilst the provision of professional mailscreening equipment in the form of electronic and x-ray scanners and adequate training for mailroom staff are sensible and effective measures for even the smallest postroom.
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