ICT IN CRISIS MANAGEMENT

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ICT AGAINST TERROR
MAN AND TECHNOLOGY BRIDGING THE GAP
Brig (Retd) X.P. Adrianwalla
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INTRODUCTION

• Respond to terrorist attacks and the security
  threat that they pose
• Globalisation an interconnected world, security
  is increasingly indivisible and transcends
  national borders and organisational boundaries
• Crisis emanating from terrorism is a reality and
  here to stay
• International dependence on ICT for all facets of
  life specially commerce and entertainment

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.INTRODUCTION

• The reality
• Security forces always seem to fight the previous
  war
• Disruptive elements of society always do it
  differently the each time, no two attacks are the
  same
• information overflow resulting in an intelligence
  white out
• Different organisations work wastefully, on the
  same problems, plan and take decisions without
  consulting with one another or without access to
  up-to-date or adequate knowledge
• Lack of coherence of crisis management at the
  civilian/ military/security forces interface

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The Role of ICT

• Modern ICT is a key enabler in holistic and
  seamless integration of multiple agencies in
  crisis management
• ICT is a small part of a complex organisation
  consisting primarily of humans
• Decisive support to the organisations
  information management and communication strategy

A truly effective ICT architecture seamlessly
blends man and machine into a networked whole
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PREVIEW

• The Nature of Crisis
• The man behind the gun - the user
• Use of ICT by public and private organisations in
  the war on terror
• Denying the use of ICT to disruptive non-state
  actors

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ICT the Corporate Sector

• ICT is the fundamental of all corporate
  activities
• disruption would affect business and profit
• Importance of BRAND vital to any business
  process
• Visible crisis to a corporate destroys brand
  image case in point being the 26/11 attacks in
  Mumbai
• Use of ICT by corporates for security and crisis
  management modern building management systems
  (BMS) and advisories

Modern society/commerce is totally dependant on
ICT
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The Nature of Crisis

• Todays world main threat to states and
  organisations from non-state actors
• Terrorism experts concur that this phenomenon
  will persist, if not get worse
• The war on terrorism is not a war in a
  traditional sense, but a mixture of kinetic
  warfare and a war about ideas and ideals - ICT
• Changes in organisation, doctrine, strategy and
  technology that, taken together, point to the
  emergence of a new terrorism attuned to the
  information age

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The Man behind the Gun

• A major flaw - to leave ICT issues to IT
  departments without user (leaders and the
  victims) guidance
• IT specialists need to facilitate information and
  knowledge flow - not act as gatekeepers
• Senior management - more involved in ICT and
  information-related issues
• low value attached to information it is seen as
  a cost, rather than an investment
• Technology in itself has limited use unless used
  by trained operators
• Can an average practitioner use it and what is
  the level, duration and type of training required

use ICT instinctively during crisis
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The Man behind the Gun
Use of ICT by operational practitioners

• Compatible with cultural/education levels of
  users
• Training to users must enable instinctive usage
• Practise must be based in local contexts and in
  realistic foreseeable situations
• develop an ICT architecture that has inherent
  flexibility to handle diverse situations
• Teams must learn how to work together in a smooth
  inter-agency collaboration
• Inter-agency ICT vital for seamless operations by
  civilians, police, PMF, Armed Forces

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Use of ICT by Public and PrivateAgencies in the
War against Terror

• Principles of employment
• Accessibility of various stakeholders, agencies
  and organisations which are involved in
  operations
• Inclusiveness - implies two way communication,
  partnership and sharing by multiple stakeholders
• Inter-operability - ensure that all data and
  information can be used by various agencies
  involved
• Information providers should be accountable for
  the accuracy of the contents they publish and
  disseminate
• Verifiability - the information provided is
  accurate, consistent and validated by external
  sources.
• Information collected and put on such a network
  should be relevant
• It is important to provide information in a
  timely manner

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The use of ICT by Terrorists

• Organisational
• Hierarchical organisations have moved towards
  information age networks within groups.
• Great man relationship will make way to a
  flatter decentralized organisation
• There will be arrays of transnational internetted
  groups rather than stand alone groups
• Doctrine and strategy
• Instead of acts of physical violence, terrorists
  are more like to move towards information
  operation for achieving their goals
• Systemic disruption may become as much an
  objective as target destruction
• Technology terrorists are likely to increasingly
  use advanced information technologies for
  offensive and defensive purposes as also to
  support their organisational structures

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If new terrorism directs its energies towards
information warfare, its destructive power will
be exponentially greater than any it wielded in
the past greater even than it would be with
biological and chemical weapons
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Conclusion

• ICT is vital in business processes
• It is important to understand that the user is an
  important part of ICT, hence do not focus purely
  on technology
• ICT is not an end in itself but must be seen as
  a means to support strong and capable crisis
  management organisation
• Deny the use of ICT to terrorists by technical
  and regulatory means

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Thank You