By Thomas L., CPP
In today’s evolving landscape of executive protection (EP) and corporate security, understanding how adversaries exploit vulnerabilities is not just important… It’s paramount. At S³AFE SKILLS, we’ve seen a growing need to expand the tactical capabilities of EP teams beyond traditional hard skills. One of the most impactful advancements we’ve been advocating and teaching across the country is the integration of covert entry tools into the core skill set of executive protection professionals. Why? Because existing vulnerabilities via the very same tools a threat actor might use to clandestinely access a client’s hotel room, residence, office, or secure vehicle can, and should, be vehemently understood by the EP teams tasked with protecting them.
Covert entry tools are typically utilized by physical red team personnel and are designed to assess weaknesses in physical infrastructure, travel protocols, and personnel situational awareness, as well as the effectiveness of existing security measures (access control, video surveillance, intrusion detection alarms, etc.). However, having security team members learn how to penetrate these existing security systems and their inherent vulnerabilities susceptible to covert entry tools and tactics should amplify the team’s situational awareness while providing the team with knowledge to be more proactive and make quicker decisions.
These tools are often discreet, highly specialized, and designed for non-destructive access, particularly aligned with how a determined nefarious actor might operate to gain access to the client and/or confidential information. Additionally, this hands-on approach exposes how vulnerable current security measures are. It empowers security teams to strategically design and implement multiple layers of concentric security rings around those vulnerabilities, ultimately transforming soft targets into hardened ones, thus minimizing potential threats.
From Theory to Practice
Executive protection teams with covert entry tools offer far more than theoretical knowledge. It directly informs real-world decision-making in areas such as facility and residential risk assessments, countering corporate espionage, enhancing travel security protocols, and mitigating vulnerabilities related to kidnapping, stalking, and potential assassination attempts. Furthermore, it’s also increasingly relevant in managing celebrity-specific threats, including paparazzi and obsessive fan breaches. S³AFE SKILLS regularly conducts and highly recommends current executive protection and/or physical security teams to implement red team penetration tool tests in order to validate existing security measures in place to mitigate nefarious characters and the effectiveness of these tools, since human and standard operating procedural elements are often the weakest link in any security plan.
Here are just a few of the tools we utilize in our training, risk assessments, and red team operations:
- RFID EMULATORS – used to clone access cards and bypass electronic access control systems without detection.
- RISK EXAMPLE – A malicious actor can capture the RFID signal when an employee utilizes their badge at an access control card reader. The RFID emulator can then be employed to enter the secure area, or the access control signal can be transferred to “card stock” (blank badge) purchased online, thus creating the optics of an employee with a physical badge, allowing access into the facility. Perception can be further distorted when this technique is coupled with “badge bragging.” Badge Bragging is when an employee of a company publishes a photo of their badge online (e.g., three years ago, I was ABC’s Company junior analyst, now I have been promoted to senior analyst) – subsequently granting nefarious characters the opportunity to download the image, replace the employee photo with their own, and then enhance the fraudulent badge with the downloaded stolen access control RFID signal. They will now have a legitimate employee badge coupled with the ability to bypass the company’s access control.
- Online Key-Cutting Platforms – leveraging apps and/or web-based services: allow common keys to be duplicated with a simple photograph, highlighting the vulnerabilities of traditional key systems.
- RISK EXAMPLE – leaving your client’s vehicle at a valet. The valet attendant takes a photo of the home address (located on the registration placard) and then takes a photo of the vehicle and/or residential key. These photos are uploaded to an online key app or website that will make an exact duplicate of the key photo. The online key-cutting platform will mail it or direct you to a local key kiosk, where you can pick it up the same day.
- Firefighting Less-Destructive Entry Tools – initially developed for emergency responders, these tools can quickly defeat common entry barriers with minimal damage, making them ideal for simulating fast and discreet access scenarios.
- RISK EXAMPLE – two tools we frequently use: (1) the firefighter swipe tool is composed of bendable mylar, weighs less than an ounce, and can be used on inward and outward swinging doors. It also works on security latches and chains found in hotels and motels. (2) The “Firepik” is a stainless-steel tool weighing 1.44 ounces and is designed for outward swinging doors (including commercial doors with a latch plate cover). These two tools can bypass almost any door within a few seconds, as long as it does not have a deadbolt engaged. Either of these tools can quickly access most hotel rooms, commercial/office buildings, and suites, allowing a nefarious character quick and quiet access to your client (without an RFID emulator).
Other notable red team tools include:
- Wi-Fi Pineapples – can spoof legitimate access points (especially if the EP team uses Wi-Fi-based alerts).
- Social Engineering Props – e.g., clipboards, high-visibility vests, and/or company-branded polos used to impersonate cleaners, inspectors, IT staff, etc.
- Thermal Cameras – can identify recently touched keypad buttons or locate hidden compartments.
These tools are not just the domain of bad actors. In the right hands, they are force multipliers. They reveal the blind spots others miss and elevate the security posture from reactive to proactive resiliency. Ultimately, equipping EP teams with covert entry training is about anticipating how an adversary thinks and acts while staying multiple steps ahead. S³AFE SKILLS has seen the growing gap in executive protection team training steadily exacerbate across the country over the past four years and continues to plague most executive protection and/or corporate security teams today. Simple training and self-assessment penetration tests could be the definitive component in keeping your client and team’s reputation safe.
Thomas L., CPP (President, S³AFE SKILLS)
Website: www.safeskills.pro
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thomaslcpp/
LinkedIn Page: https://www.linkedin.com/company/safeskills-pro/?viewAsMember=true