Lone Wolf Terrorist Characteristics

Clay Dillow’s October 2015 article in Popular Science “To Catch a Bombmaker” explores how FBI forensic skills have been developed since 2003 to benefit United States forces fighting bomb making foreign insurgents. Dillow tells the story of how a small lab at the Marine Corps Base at Quantico has used FBI analytical data to link more than 2,700 suspects to possible terrorist activities, adding more than 350 people to the terrorist watch list. Dillow’s purpose was to reveal how detective skills have evolved to address a growing number of homemade bombs threats to the United States. While the article examines many one case in which insurgents are nabbed, information is not shared on how forensic data alone may not be enough to tell a more balanced story about bomb makers. Dillow writes an article of how one bomber is stopped, but the narrative falls short of offering a deeper account of how effective our efforts have been to stop terrorists in their tracks.

Terrorism has become a main threat to the peace and development in the U.S and the world as a whole. Past experiences of terrorism such as the September 11th attack in the United States has a created the need to have a functioning counters intelligence which will effectively deal with terrorism. However, for the counter intelligence to be effective, other basic functions have to be played out. The basic functions are collection and analysis. The other function is the execution of covert actions and the major role is the counterintelligence. The Intelligence agents combine all roles and place them under the umbrella of intelligence.

Homeland Security is characterized by crime control being the primary police function. It is best achieved through a collective effort by all law enforcement agencies. One of the strategies being used is Intelligence Led Policing. This strategy is not new, it can be traced back to the British is the 1990’s (Bailey, 2011). Intelligence Led Policing is an approach to crime that deals with all crimes and threats including terrorism. This approach is unique because it is threat driven instead of incident driven. It also is a long term approach and focuses on causes and conditions that add to crime through a collection of data.

According to national security specialists, lone wolf terrorists are the hardest to track down (Hilleary 2013). They are very unpredictable and their plans are typically not very difficult to conduct, with everything they need on the internet (Hilleary 2013). However, they do have many common traits. They typically have a political and/or personal grievance, feeling that they or their society have been harmed in some way (Hilleary 2013). They often will have disconnected from work, daily routines, and even loved ones (Hilleary 2013). Like other types of terrorists, they do sometimes suffer from mental disorders such as depression (Hilleary 2013). Sometimes they view violence as the way of gaining respect or love, or to prove themselves (Hilleary 2013). Looking at profiles alone, it is very difficult to notice a clear difference between someone who preaches hate and someone who wants to carry out a terrorist attack (Stewart

Yes it difficult to detect thsee individuals who carry out these lone wolf attacks but I believe that if law enforcement agencies get the involvement of citizen just like how dhs have passenger as a layer of security this model use be replicated in the society as a whole.Let citizenso know the importance they place for preventing such lone wolf attacks from happenings.Remember a terrorists never open his plans on targeted places when they want to cause disaster.The police are not every but citizens are.If it raised a concerns don't relax say something to law

We will never forget that 17 of our Sailor 's died during a routine refueling stop conducted by the USS Cole. The bombing of the USS Cole (DDG 67) and the subsequent implementation of Anti-Terrorism Force Protection measures are important to our Navy heritage because it is a reminder that vigilance can avert future attacks. Whether in the maritime domain, or in support of operations ashore, Senior Navy Leaders are a key player in ensuring that Anti-Terrorism measures are followed to protect yourself, Sailors ' under your command, and all Navy personnel. This paper will cover the history of the bombing of the USS Cole (DDG 67), the evolution of Anti-Terrorism Force Protection and the effects upon current U.S. Navy operations.

Crimes are the result of individuals that do not follow established laws of the land. Criminals can either be individuals or they can be organized groups. The best way for law enforcement to handle the challenges of criminal element is to understand their strategies and then counter them. The purpose of this paper is to review domestic terrorism-related intelligence and how it is related to criminal intelligence. Using criminal intelligence is the first step in dealing with criminal elements. The data is compiled, analyzed, and then sent out in an

Regarding the behavioral explaination, Post (1998) “stated that if terrorism was strategic and rational, such groups should be more likely to disband after they achieve victories.” (…)  Instead, they want to remain in the group for them the sense of belonging to a group is very important (…) it helps them to fulfil their need to belong as well as their need to engage in risky endeavours.” (Post (1998) in Moss, 2016)

The attack on 9/11 was one of the most deadly attacks the United States has ever faced. After the wake of the attack the government used every resource they could to keep this country safe. International intelligence was one of them. This solution worked for a while and the FBI was able to see how terrorists were communicating and any plans they had. However, as time has past international intelligence has gotten wrong information and terrorists are finding new ways to communicate. The effectiveness of this program is now being questioned as to whether it will help the fight against terrorism.

Living the United State when one thinks of a terrorist attacks often their mind will first go to a larger scale attack such as the events of September 11th 2001. “September 11, 2001 changed the United States forever, the terrorist attack that day marked a dramatic escalation in a trend toward more destructive terrorist attacks which began in the 1980s. It also reflected a trend toward more indiscriminate targeting among international terrorists. The vast majority of the more than 3,000 victims of the attack were civilians. In addition, the attack represented the first known case of suicide attacks carried out by international terrorists in the United States.” (Waston, 2002) However as the years have gone by we have come to learn that terrorist attacks are not always on a large scale and that even one person who is inspired by the ideologies of a terrorist group without being directly connected to them can carry out attacks. Those that engage in this type of terrorism are referred to as lone wolf terrorist. A recent example of such an even was the mass shooting at the San Bernardino Inland Regional Center in December of 2015.

Terrorism is a difficult issue to understand and grasp for many people. What is even more difficult to understand is what drives an individual to become radicalized to the point of joining a terrorist organization and committing terrorist acts. While there is not specific criteria or a “cookie cutter” approach to understanding what motivates and radicalizes an individual to participate in such atrocities, there are however, several psychological and behavioral factors that have been common among these individuals. The following paper will outline some of the psychological and behavioral factors that attribute to an individual’s radicalization and eventual willingness and even perhaps

The ever evolving subject of terrorism and terrorists is the subject of significant study worldwide. The psychological and behavioral factors involved in terrorism are one of the most studied issues. It has implications across the board for both the detection and deterrence of terrorism. How terrorists communicate and the influence that it plays in growing terroristic ideology, mission, and goals are also of significant importance, as well.

When the September 11, 2001 attacks occurred the United States responded in a manner which was seen as a traditional reaction to such an attack; it used its overwhelming superior military to invade the nation of Afghanistan. As Afghanistan was the operating base of the terrorist group responsible for the attacks, Al Qaeda, the invasion all but destroyed the group's operating capacity. But in response to the United States' apparent victory the terrorists have re-organized themselves into a looser confederation and turned to alternative methods of finance and operation. One could say that the success of the American military's answer to the September 11th attacks have created a new environment in which terrorists currently operate. This includes the use of the internet, unconventional alliances with international criminal organizations, as well the inception of the "lone wolf" terrorist. Faced with these new type of threats, the United States and its allies must find a way to identify and deal with them.

There has also been long time assumption among professionals and average citizens that terrorists are ‘mentally ill’ individuals. However, there is yet again no evidence that supports that theory. As a matter of fact, there is countless examples in history that counters that said theory of being ‘mentally ill’ and this article provides those examples; as well as, providing the avenue in which an individual can and has been radicalized. Moreover, this article articulates and lays out a method in which could be used to counter the radicalization

As a direct consequence of September 11, a number of substantial challenges lie ahead in the area of counter-terrorism..   The most prominent of these is the changing nature of the terrorism phenomenon.  In past years, when terrorism was largely the product of direct state sponsorship, policymakers were able to diminish prospects for the United States becoming a target using a combination of diplomatic and military instruments to deter potential state sponsors.  Today, however, many terrorist organizations and individuals act independently from former and present state sponsors, shifting to other sources of support, including the development of transnational networks.