HOW WOULD YOU RESPOND DURING A TERROR ATTACK?

“Governments, the military, the police and other authorities tightened all kinds of security measures following the attacks in Paris. But what can you, as a citizen actually do for your own safety? To what extent can you protect yourself in a violent situation? And how do you increase the odds that you survive something like that?”

In the aftermath of the recent Paris attacks, people have become increasingly anxious about the possibility for future attacks in their cities and neighborhoods. If situations like the one in Paris occur in other areas, how would we react? And how can we improve our gut responses to stressful situations?

Research has shown that people react (roughly) in three particular ways to stressful and violent situations. “Three quarters become so confused that they are barely able to act. Ten percent panic and respond so that they themselves and their surroundings are even more at risk. The remaining fifteen percent is actually able to respond in a manner that increases their chances of survival.” Although there are initial responses to stressors which vary with each individual, it is important to underscore that we can change the way we react and we can learn to weigh our options before responding to events.

IMPROVING THE STATE OF THE ART AND OUR ACTIONS

SDR® and WeAware+™

SDR® Academy’s training and methodology is available to all individuals and can be tailored to every environment. The training stresses the importance of heightened awareness of one’s surroundings as the key to prevention of illicit activities. The philosophy focuses on effective prevention rather than reaction to events.

SDR® improves the state of the art of current security and safety training and education. It aims to fill in the voids between security officers and the communities they serve, by improving the ability of these groups to communicate effectively with one another.

SDR®’s new mobile application, WeAware+™ intends to harness the power of the people, while simultaneously improving the safety and security training available to every individual. The application gives every citizen the ability to have SDR® trainings at their fingertips, while also being part of the WeAware+™ mobile community.

The Cloud-based system allows users, through crowdsourced information, to update safety and security information in real-time for their local communities. In crises, such as the one seen in Paris, the WeAware+™ application would enable users on the system to update security alerts on the system, notifying other members of the community about no-go zones, suspicious behaviors they have seen, or incidents in their areas. Not only does WeAware+™ harness the power of the people, but it simultaneously send reports to local law enforcement officials, allowing police and local security officers to have the most current and pertinent information for the areas in which they serve, thereby closing the time gap which is necessary in effective preventive actions.

There is no foolproof way to ensure one’s survival in any given terrorist incident however, with tools and training as provided with SDR® and the WeAware+™ application, we can significantly improve the state of the art and the overall safety environment.