Staying Safe: The Complete Guide to Protecting Yourself, Your Family, and Your Business

by Juval Aviv

Overview

In Staying Safe, Juval Aviv, a counterterrorism expert and international security consultant, outlines the essential tools for becoming personally responsible for the security and safety of yourself and your loved ones. You will learn how to safeguard your home and office, protect your identity, and travel without fear. Most important, you'll find that Aviv's recommendations and warnings are practical and easy to follow.

Juval Aviv neither overstates nor minimizes today's threats, whether they are from criminals or terrorists; instead he sets out to inform and provide real advice for minimizing risks.

Staying Safe is clear, comprehensive, and full of instructive and vital tips that cover:

• Flying with confidence
• Traveling to a foreign country
• Identifying a potential terrorist threat
• Basic safety precautions
• Survival and escape strategies
• Securing your business
• Keeping your identity confidential
• Making transactions on the Internet
• And much more

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780060735203
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	07/20/2004
Pages:	304
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.76(d)

About the Author

Juval Aviv is the President and CEO of Interfor, Inc., an international investigative and intelligence firm that works with corporations, both domestically and internationally, on asset and personnel security measures. Mr. Aviv also serves as a special consultant to the U.S. Congress on issues of terrorism and security and is a consultant for Fox News.

Read an Excerpt

Staying Safe
The Complete Guide to Protecting Yourself, Your Family, and Your Business

Chapter One

Becoming Security-Minded

Whether we realize it or not, we're all security-minded and safety-conscious to one degree. Most of us lock our doors, bypass crime-ridden neighborhoods, don't unfurl billfolds in public, and stop mail and newspaper deliveries when we're away on vacation. We also look first before we cross streets, drive defensively, and know how to dial 911.

Terrorism prevention and protection means adding a new set of procedures and routines to the list of precautions we already take. It's easier said than done, however. Think of heart-attack victims. If they're lucky enough to survive their first attack, they almost immediately become health- and fitness-conscious. They start taking care of themselves by going on diets, losing weight, and watching what they eat. Some stop smoking and drinking, and many join health clubs and begin exercising regularly. The intriguing question is, how would these heart-attack victims have fared if they had followed this lifestyle in the first place? Many of them would, most probably, have averted the early onset of heart disease.

Our personal health, safety, and security, in other words, begin in the mind. We want to build concentric rings of defense, which increase your security and safety by making it harder for terrorists to victimize you. Think of the rings as encompassing both the locations at which you spend a good deal of time and the activities you engage in that could bring you in contact with terrorists. Then, it's a matter of instituting security measures and changes in routines that will lessen your chances of falling prey to terror.

Know the five means of staying safe.
In general, there are five ways of staying safe: avoidance, prevention, escape, assistance, and time. All of your preplanning, your thinking, and your strategies should revolve around those five means of survival. Avoidance means not being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Prevention is the erection of barriers that protect you and your possessions. Escape is the recognition that you don't have to take your fate lying down. Assistance requires knowledge of how and when to seek outside help. And time is that precious commodity that keeps you alive long enough for help to arrive.

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If you frequently travel around town alone, particularly at night, invest in a personal attack alarm or, at the very least, a loud-sounding whistle.

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Stay away from crowds.
That's the single best piece of advice that anyone seeking to avoid terrorism can follow. Terrorists most often strike at crowded locations and events, such as shopping malls, large department stores, sporting events, discotheques, historic landmarks, tourist spots, airports, commuter hubs, movie theaters, fashionable restaurants, bars, and trendy resorts. By avoiding these events and locations, you avoid the terrorists.

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Dark, deserted streets are other places to avoid.

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Think of security as a lock that buys you time.
Security, like a lock, can never be 100 percent perfect. It's not meant to be. The purpose of security measures is to buy time to escape, get assistance, or wait for help to arrive. Once you drop the fictitious ideal of perfection, your imagination will be free to conceive of a security plan that's unique to you and your loved ones.

Adapt your planning to your circumstances.
Everyone's circumstances are different, so adapt security measures to your situation. Put each contemplated security step in context. Ask yourself, why am I doing this? The answer should be -- survival. So, again, engineer all of the security measures you take with the goals of avoidance, prevention, escape, getting help, or buying time.

Get informed about potential terrorist targets in your area.
Begin by looking at a map and drawing radii of 10 to 20 miles around your home and workplace. Then, investigate the potential terrorist targets within those zones. Ask your electric utility the location, if any, of the nearest nuclear power plant and repositories of spent nuclear fuel. Ask your local emergency management office, including police and lire departments, if other critical infrastructure sites (e.g., dams, chemical plants, telephone switching centers, etc.), hazardous or radioactive waste dumps, or major industrial complexes handling hazardous materials are in the vicinity. Ask if any local or state emergency plans are available to the public.

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Know how to shut off the gas, water, and electricity in the event utility lines are damaged in a major attack. (or in an earthquake)

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Note that such hazards as radiation pose particular risk to young children, pregnant women, and the elderly.

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Staying Safe
The Complete Guide to Protecting Yourself, Your Family, and Your Business. Copyright © by Juval Aviv. Reprinted by permission of HarperCollins Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved. Available now wherever books are sold.

Table of Contents

	Introduction	1
Part 1	Protecting Yourself and Your Family
Chapter 1	Becoming Security-Minded	13
	How to Assess Your Risk	19
	Basic Safety Precautions	26
	Spotting Suspicious Behavior	35
	Dealing with Stress	45
	Educating Children	48
	Helping Children Cope	52
	Tips for the Elderly and Disabled	54
Chapter 2	Survival and Escape Strategies	58
	Ambushes and Assassinations	58
	Dealing with Violence	63
	Surviving as a Hostage	66
	Gunfire, Grenades, and Bombs	68
	Explosions, Fires, and Collapses	71
	Biohazard Avoidance	75
	Nuclear Reactor Emergencies	81
	Mass Destruction Attacks	85
Chapter 3	Cyberterrorism and Internet Security	91
	PC and Password Protection	91
	Thwarting Internet Invaders	95
	Information Systems Security	97
Chapter 4	Mail Handling Guidelines	102
	The Safest Way to Handle Mail	102
	Detecting Lethal Letters and Parcels	106
Part 2	Travel Safety
Chapter 5	Travel Guidelines and Concerns	113
	Getting Informed/Staying Connected	114
	Avoiding Danger	124
	Streetwise Advice	129
	Everyday Commuting	136
	Selecting a Hotel	139
	Extra Security Precautions	141
	Carjacking Survival	149
	Kidnapping Survival	153
	Tips for Women	158
	If All Goes Wrong	166
	Staying Healthy	169
Chapter 6	Airline Safety	174
	Flying Smart	174
	Air Travel Security Rules	182
	Young or Disabled Travelers	184
	Foreign Airline Safety	186
	Hijacking Survival	188
	Airplane Evacuation	194
Part 3	Safeguarding Your Identity and Protecting Your Business
Chapter 7	Protecting against Fraud and Identity Theft	199
	Fraud and Identity Theft	200
	Proactive Measures	208
	Lost or Stolen Cards	213
	SSN and Check Theft	217
	Restoring Your Credit	219
	Frauds and Scams	223
	Planning Ahead	226
Chapter 8	Protecting Your Business and Buildings	229
	The Threat Matrix	229
	Security Doctrine	231
	Personnel Safety	235
	Physical Security	237
	Reducing Vulnerabilities	241
	Emergency Preparedness	245
	Bomb Threats and Explosions	250
	Contingency and Continuity Planning	255
	Final Thoughts	259
Appendix	Where to Get Help and Information	261
	Index	281