The recent media reports and police information regarding the arrests of several subjects suspected of planning a terrorist attack is illuminating to the public. But for some law enforcement, and certainly the RCMP and CSIS - this is old news! How prepared are we? How sophisticated are the counter-measures? If you were attentive to the news and some of the details released by the police you would have noticed the "type" of targets identified by the terrorists. Of course there is the interest to destroy government facilities, historical political centers and critical infrastructure - but the most prominent structures mentioned were "soft targets". You don't find many military, counter terrorist squads or police in a "soft" building - what you find are the public and corporate industry!

I am amazed of some of the conversations in coffee shops, shopping malls, and even by veteran commercial organizations. Are we as Canadian's that apathetic? Or is it that most of the public are simply naïve? Yes, these are strong words, but I can't help become frustrated by my own Nation's ignorance. As the former RCMP Director of National Security for the Province of Alberta, I was awhere of details that I may never share with those "not needing to know". Yet, a great deal of the activities, plans, and vulnerabilities were made know through public forums, the media, and verbosely through the internet. As Canadians do we bother to monitor global events or do we spend too much time watching hockey?

Fortunately, the key stakeholders in the intelligence industry - and for the most part organizations who have the most to loose - have their acts together. In Alberta we have a professional Provincial agency called Emergency Management Alberta. They create plans and contingencies for any attack and monitor intelligence which may raise the threat level of various critical infrastructures. The question you need to ask yourself, are you as an organization monitoring your vulnerabilities and the risk placed upon you by virtue of the fact you host a significant representation of western culture? Are you aware of the threat?

If you took longer than a second to recognize that your organization or agency is prepared and have implemented proactive counter-terrorism measures - be concerned! Perhaps it is as simple as becoming educated on the realities of extremism. Possibly you need to implement additional physical, IT, and organizational security measures. You may need to develop contingency plans and proactive custom solutions to reduce your risk. Whatever stage you find yourself, draw upon the experts in the field. We are one of hundreds of companies and organizations that can provide the answers. Our Intelligence Support Services know the risk, have researched the vulnerabilities, and have lived through the threat.

Take a closer look at youself and then what Intelligence Support Services can offer to mitigate the risks.