Midterm System of Security - Essay Example

Pol 375: Midterm Exam CSU-P/Center for the Study of Homeland Security: Spring Instructions: For these mini-projects, you may utilize any relevant info from notes + lecture, course readings, independent web research, or any other source that applies. The scenarios provide baseline information, but you must research and think independently to address the topic in your own way. Guidelines: *You must do all three 3 options below. Each one will be worth 50% of the exam grade. Revised Rules for Take-Home Exam: You must complete all 3 of the options below, each one will be worth 1/3 of the exam grade. It is due via email by midnight Wednesday March 25, to the instructor’s email address (below). I strongly recommend that you submit your exam earlier than this, and no late submissions can be accepted. Send your exam to both of these addresses please: *No collaboration between students. *You can use your notes, books, and internet- basically any of the tools you might need. *You can come and go as you please during the exam, please dont distract others. *Adding diagrams, illustrations, maps, pictures, graphs, or other visual tools is encouraged as appropriate, but dont just load up your essay with diagrams alone. *Try to answer the questions by combining your knowledge of the course material with your own personal judgment and problem-solving skills. *Length is not as important as quality, but you should write enough to address the issues well. If its short, it needs to be good. 11 pt font, double spaced and normal margins, please. *Obviously you are all smart, or you wouldnt choose to be in my class, so Im sure I dont have to say this, but: Absolutely no plagiarism from readings or cut & paste jobs from the internet, the writing has to be your own language with important points cited to the source (citation style doesnt matter, it just needs to include specific-enough information to verify where you got important facts, numbers, and ideas). If you use any direct quotes, images, charts, or data from internet sources, that is great, but you must provide a citation + link to where you got it. *You can take as much time as you need until 9pm. Whenever youre happy with your product, you can submit it and leave anytime. *Dont forget to put your name on it! DO NOT LEAVE UNTIL YOU VERIFY THAT INSTRUCTOR HAS RECEIVED YOUR EXAM VIA EMAIL! Tips: Before starting, spend some time planning + outlining what you want to do. Plan out your thinking, outlining, research, writing, editing, and reviewing, then keep an eye on the clock, so you dont get surprised. You must demonstrate that you understand important concepts from the readings, lectures, videos, and activities, but dont just repeat everything straight from your sources. Focus instead on forming your own ideas and conclusions, and answering the question from your own unique perspective, using the class concepts and your resources as a basic framework. Be as creative as you like, but keep it relevant to the question topics. Option 1) Security as a System Directions: Write a 2-5 page essay examining the concept of "security as a system." Try to provide good answers, examples, + commentary for at least 5 of these questions, and as many extra answers as you want to handle: Difference between tools, machines, and systems. On this matter, I am of the opinion that a tool is any device that can help in shaping any material and it can work on its own without a machine. For example, a screw driver, a file, a saw among others. It is the device that is sometimes mounted on a machine in order to achieve a certain outcome and so it must be in contact with the material that is being shaped. A machine, on the other hand, is device used to shape a given material and normally it does not work on its own, it requires a tool. A system is made up of a group of processes or rather machines, in this case, that work together towards achievement of a common goal. The different parts of the system may work independently but in the end they must achieve one common goal. Therefore, a tool may be part of a machine whereas a machine is part of a system the three are interdependent. How security works as a complex system. Security sector is a complex system in that it is made of independent institutions that work interdependently. Just as machine is made of different sub-systems so does security. For instance, there is the local police department, the intelligence service unit, the military, the navy, special crimes unit, criminal investigations departments among others. They are all independent institutions but must share information for the overall purpose of protecting lives and property of the citizens. However, it is a complex system given that all these departments have different roles, functions and protocols and so when dealing with them it requires someone who has an overall knowledge on how to integrate and coordinate these institutions to achieve a common objective. How security systems interact with and protect other systems. The security system does not work in isolation instead, it interacts with other systems. Although the security departments may be independent institutions they require support from other institutions in terms of provision of the necessary information and at times logistical support. For instance, in order to accurately combat crimes the police department requires information from the community and as such it has to work with other established community systems to get this information. By thwarting the evil plans of criminals and terrorists who aim to disrupt social functioning of the society, the security system protects other systems from harm. Without good security businesses and provision of social services such as education and healthcare is interrupted. What it means to say a system is “emergent” and why it is important in understanding modern security systems. Anything emergent is something that is in the process of coming up. In the past security was being managed as independent units with less integration. Management of security sector as a system is now an emerging trend in the world where there is integration of all concerned agencies. The idea is important in understanding modern security systems in that today all the states are moving always from the traditional approach of managing security to modern systems approach in which different systems interact and work together towards attainment of good security. It helps to know that security management is no longer the responsibility of the security agencies alone instead it is a shared responsibility and every citizen must contribute towards realization of the same. Option 2) Critical Infrastructure Interdependency Directions: Choose at least 2 of the following critical infrastructure sub-sectors listed below, and prepare a 2-5 page report addressing the following tasks to the best of your ability: 1. Explain the most important or crucial interdependencies between these sub-sectors 2. Describe risks and threats that can disrupt these sub-sectors, and examples of vulnerabilities to critical assets and functions 3. Describe the implications of failure or disruption, and the potential for failure in one sub-sector to cause cascading impacts in other sectors. 4. Provide real-life examples, or possible scenarios that experts have warned about, that illustrate the threats, risks, and vulnerabilities to the sectors youve selected 5. Describe and provide commentary on some possible countermeasures or strategies you would recommend to reduce the vulnerabilities and make these sectors more resilient against disruption. Agriculture and Food Water Supplies and Systems Public Health Emergency Services Energy Telecommunications Banking and Finance Transportation National Security/Defense On this section, I will choose Water Supplies Systems and Public Health to prepare a comparative and analytical report. One of the most important interdependencies between the two sub-sectors is the risk of communicable diseases and how breakdown in the water supplies system can contribute to the spread of these diseases. In addition, there are many risks and threats which can disrupt these sub-sectors and there are so many examples of the vulnerabilities to the critical assets and functions. Safe, clean water for domestic use is very important and it determines peoples health because any disruption of the water supply system can lead to water shortage or contamination of drinking water that may cause outbreak of infectious diseases such as cholera, typhoid, and diarrhea. Examples of risks and threats that can disrupt water supplies systems and public health includes natural calamities such as earthquakes, volcanoes, hurricanes, tornadoes or even anthropogenic or human-made disasters such as excessive use of pesticides and chemical fertilizers in farming. Water is usually supplied to different homes using pipes and when a disaster like an earthquake occurs water storage tanks and pipes are destroyed. In areas where there is no proper waste management water for domestic use can also be contaminated. Disasters may also disrupt normal functioning of the health facilities. For instance, a volcanic eruption may destroy a hospitals infrastructure denying the community an opportunity to enjoy healthcare services. Disruption of water supply system has far reaching effects as far as health is concerned. First, water shortages which may be caused by climate change or disruption of water supply system can force people to use unsafe because without waters people cannot survive and this exposes them to many health risks. Contamination of water supply system for example with raw sewage may result to outbreak of waterborne diseases such as cholera, typhoid, and diarrhea. If Public Health system is disrupted for instance, destruction of a hospital infrastructure by an earthquake or volcanic eruption has negative implications on the health of the people. In a scenario where the two occurs at the same time whereby the water supply and public health systems are both disrupted a major disaster is likely to occur because in such a situation there could be an outbreak of infectious diseases and there is no place to go for help. As a result of the 2010 earthquake there was a cholera outbreak that U.S Center of Disease and Control has described as one of the worst epidemic in the world. In a span of two years that is by August 2013 about 8,231 Haitians were reported dead as a result of the outbreak with hundreds of thousands admitted in hospitals and the infection was still spreading to the neighboring countries such as Cuba and Dominic Republic. Although Haiti had not experienced incidences of Cholera outbreaks before health experts had already warned that, there might be occurrence of such cases because of the earthquake that preceded the outbreak. The possible reasons could be lack of disaster preparedness given that the incident was not common in the country. One thing that everyone must understand is that one disaster attracts other disasters and so there is need for disaster preparedness and response plan. Those concerned with water supply and provision of healthcare services must work with the members of the public to set up a disaster preparedness team who will be charged with the responsibility of assessing current situations to give early warning on the possible occurrence of health disasters linked to water supplies and put up measures to counter the outbreak in case it occurs. I would also recommend putting up of effective surveillance and early warning systems so that incidences of disease outbreak are detected and controlled as early as possible. Finally, there is need to invest more on Centre of Disease Control because the institution plays a critical role in giving early warnings and how to avoid such disease outbreaks. Option 3) Risk Analysis, Threat Assessment, and Continuity of Business Planning Directions: Choose from one of the organizations listed below, and imagine you are a business continuity specialist that has been hired to provide a risk and threat assessment as part of a larger continuity of business (COB) plan for the organization. Organization (choose 1): FedEx, Mayo Clinic, New York Stock Exchange, Firearm Retailer, Licensed Cannabis Production Facility, County Court System, WalMart/Big Box Store Step 1) Using a simple version of the ATRiM threat assessment model (Define Assets, Define Threats + Risks, Identify Vulnerabilities, and Recommend Countermeasures), define the major assets, then list and/or provide short descriptions on a range of at least 6 significant risks, threats, and vulnerabilities to the organization. Step 2) Then, using the simple threat assessment matrix below, prioritize the risks + threats to the organization in terms of their probability and consequences. Show how the different risks + threats compare based on their point values. You are encouraged to look up statistics, articles, or any other reliable outside source to get background information on the threats + risks you are evaluating, so you can compare them accurately. Step 3) Now that you have identified and prioritized the risks and threats to your clients organization, recommend the best and most cost-effective countermeasures to reduce the organizations vulnerabilities to the risks and threats youve identified. Provide arguments in support of your recommendations, and explain why your solution is a good one. Wal-Mart Store 1. Assets- property, people, places and information 2. Threats +Risks- A threat is a possible source of a loss whereas risk is the probability of occurrence of a harmful event or loss. 3. Vulnerability-Decision as to whether a risk is real or it is just a perception 4. Recommended countermeasures-A qualitative and quantitative auditing to determine the level of risk, available assets and propose measures to counter the possible risks. 5. Major assets- these are the most critical properties, people, places and information that the organization cannot do without. Six Risks, Threats and Vulnerabilities to Walmart: 1. Competition- Extreme 25 2. Resistance from local communities- Extreme 20 3. Rising prices of goods- Very high 16 4. Labor Lawsuits-Medium 9 5. Negative Publicity- Medium 6 6. High employee turnover- Medium 5 Order of greatest risk and recommendations 1. Competition- In business competition is always there and Walmart Incl. is not an exception. Some of the companies major competitors include Costo, Telco and Amazon which are putting efforts to eliminate price differences. To counter this the company needs to use other means of gaining competitive advantage such as product differentiation instead of depending on price alone. 2. Resistance from local communities- The Walmart’s superstores have negative impacts on the local retail stores due to lower prices of goods. As such the local businesses normally close when these superstores are opened. In order to solve the company seek dialogue with local retail owners to find better ways to work together and compete fairly without pushing each other out of the market. 3. Rising prices of goods- The price of commodities has always been on the rise and this in decreasing the profit margin for the company. The company should device means of reducing operation cost and find suppliers who can supply goods at a fair price that has good profit margin. 4. Labor related Lawsuits- every year the company faces a lawsuit with allegations on female discrimination, overtime working, low wages and poor working conditions. As a result, the company incurs millions of dollars and the image is also damaged. To counter this the company should review the company laws and policies and find a way of dealing with employees issues and grievances before being taken to court so that a lawsuit becomes the last result. 5. Negative Publicity- The Company suffers from negative publicity with allegations of bribery and poor working conditions. The company should use advertising and public forums and improve working conditions to improve on this negative reputation. 6. High employee turnover- The rate at which employees leaves the company has always raised a concern with many claiming that the company offers less skilled low paid jobs. High turnover is costing the company in terms of training and low productivity because at times it takes time to replace. The company should allow employees rise even to managerial positions and harmonize their salaries. Works Cited Nakaya, Andrea C. Homeland Security. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2005. Print. Read More