Feral Jundi

Thursday, June 10, 2010

Maritime Security: Max Hardberger– High Seas Repo Man

Filed under: Letter Of Marque,Maritime Security,Somalia — Tags: , , , , , , , — Matt @ 10:10 AM

     “My company has a new division called Shiprotek. I’m taking a team of ex-military guys to ride onboard ships going up the coast of Somalia and kill pirates.  Well, I shouldn’t say that — our aim is to scare them off, but our job is to protect the ship, whatever it takes. We’ll have one sniper with a Bushmaster .50 -caliber rifle, and the rest of us will have AK-47’s. There’s a chance that if we’re unable to repel the pirates, they’ll kill us.” -From Men’s Journal, High-Seas Repo Man, June 2010

***** 

     Max is certainly an interesting guy.  His background and life experiences are very colorful and I could understand why Hollywood would want to do a film about him. Be sure to check out his book Seized if you would like to learn more about what he has done.

     But this is what I was interested in.  In the latest Men’s Journal magazine, Max stated that he is taking a team to the coast of Somalia.  This is the first I have heard of Shiprotek, and I have not heard of any recruitment for this company recently. That’s great if he is hiring some guys, and hopefully we will learn more about what this company is all about.

     His other services are well known, and this is an interesting direction that he is taking.  If you are interested in working for Max or want to learn more about what he is doing, by all means contact him. (He is extremely networked online-Facebook, Twitter, website, Youtube, etc.)

   One final thing I wanted to mention.  Max is also an admiralty lawyer, and he would be uniquely qualified to discuss how a Letter of Marque might be applied to today’s modern piracy issues. I have no idea if he supports the concept or not, but it would be interesting to hear what he has to say. Also, this post is not an endorsement of Max or his company, and I am just getting the info out there for consumption. –Matt

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Max Hardberger.

US firm markets commando solution to piracy threat

Edward Attwood

April 23rd, 2009

US-based Vessel Extractions LLC (VessEx) has just launched a bullish new solution to the maritime threat off Somalia: the presence of protection teams on board ships travelling on high-risk routes.”The defense of a ship under armed attack cannot be left to an untrained, unarmed civilian crew,” said Capt. Max Hardberger, VessEx’s operations director.“Our highly skilled and well-equipped teams offer effective and cost-efficient protection for ships going in harm’s way,” Hardberger added.The solution, named Shiprotek, involves placing a team of ex-Special Forces personnel on board a vessel anywhere in the world, which will then escort through troubled areas. During the voyage, the team assesses the ship’s security situation, trains the crew in anti-piracy techniques and implements procedures to minimise risk.

Story here.

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June 2010 — High-Seas Repo Man — Men’s Journal

Need to sneak a 10,000-ton ship out of a third-world port without a security clearance?  We’ve got your man.

Max Hardberger has worked variously as a pilot, a high school teacher, a maritime lawyer, and a marine surveyor. But it’s his 20 years recovering and repossessing ships and aircraft—the last eight of them as head of his New Orleans-based company, Vessel Extractions—that we were curious about. Here’s his story in his own words … Click here to read the full article.

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April 6, 2010 — The Broadway Books Imprint of Random House Releases Max Hardberger’s Memoirs

With the title of “SEIZED: A Sea Captains Adventures Battling Scoundrels and Pirates While Recovering Stolen Ships in the World’s Most Troubled Waters,” Max Hardberger’s latest book takes readers on a journey through the hellhole ports of the world.

Based on his adventures repossessing ships and sneaking them out of outlaw ports, often under the guns of the navy or coast guard, the book starts with his extraction of the M/V Naruda from an illegitimate seizure in Honduras and ends with his well-known repossession of the M/V Maya Express from Haiti during the worst days of the 2004 revolution. The hardback edition of SEIZED was released on April 6, 2010. To learn more about the Maya Express extraction, please read the Los Angeles Times article below entitled “He’s His Own Port Authority”.  And click here to read the press release from Random House announcing the release of SEIZED.

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SHIPROTEK ANTI-PIRACY SERVICES (VessEx/Shiprotek)

Ship piracy incidents are increasing across the world, particularly off the coast of Africa.  Pirates have become more and more brazen in their attacks, targeting larger ships at greater distances from shore than ever before.  Ships and their crews typically transit pirate-infested waters with little, if any, protection against an increasingly sophisticated enemy.

The Piracy Problem

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Tuesday, June 8, 2010

Jobs: Close Protection Officers/Team Leaders, OCONUS

Filed under: Jobs — Tags: , , , , , , — Matt @ 9:59 PM

     Another job that requires the SIA license, which indicates to me that they are probably just looking for UK guys.  But hey, if you have the SIA license and you meet the requirements below, by all means apply no matter where you are from.  I am not the POC or recruiter for this job and follow the link below if you would like to apply.  Good luck and let me know how it goes. –Matt

Edit: 06/10/2010- The positions are now closed.

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Position: Frontline Operators – Close Protection OfficersTeam Leaders

Work Location: Afganistan, Iraq – Worldwide

Date Posted: Sunday, June 06, 2010

Responsibilities

Frontline Operators protect individuals, groups & physical assets from risk of violence or any situation which could be harmful.

Specific Responsibilities:

• Take responsibility for leading security teams

• Protecting clients from threats

• Checking out premises before clients arrive

• Planning and research to identify and prevent potential threat or disruption

• Keeping constantly alert to react to threatening situations

• Accompanying clients on business and social visits

• Driving clients to and from venues

Requirements

Recruitment Policy – OG Operators: From the 1st January 2010 Olive Group updated its recruitment criteria to be met by all frontline operators.

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Industry Talk: Erik Prince Plans Sale Of Xe Services LLC

Filed under: Industry Talk — Tags: , , , , , , — Matt @ 3:01 PM

     This will be interesting to watch.  I would be very curious as to who would be interested in purchasing the whole nut, or the various companies within Xe? Undoubtedly, the training and aviation stuff would be profitable.  It’s just the name and history that comes with all of it.  So who will bite? Who is this ‘mystery buyer’ that Mr. Prince is talking about?

     Also, check out Danger Room’s poll of who should buy Xe.  It is actually pretty funny, and Blackfive as well as Steve Jobs are top contenders. –Matt

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Blackwater Founder Erik Prince Plans Sale of Security Company

June 07, 2010

By Gopal Ratnam and Timothy R. Homan

Blackwater Worldwide founder Erik Prince is pursuing the sale of the private security company whose guards once faced charges in the fatal shootings of 14 Iraqis.

Xe Services LLC, as the closely held company is now known, said in a statement it has undergone “significant” changes in the past 15 months that will make it more valuable to a buyer. It didn’t specify the changes.

The company, whose customers include the U.S. government, is in talks with possible buyers, said a person familiar with the matter. Prince briefed employees on his plan today at Xe’s headquarters in Moyock, North Carolina, said the person, who declined to be identified because the details are private.

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Publications: Contracting In Conflicts–The Path To Reform, By John Nagl And Richard Fontaine

Filed under: Afghanistan,Iraq,Letter Of Marque,Publications,Strategy — Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , — Matt @ 2:12 PM

     Now this is a better product and I can tell they actually listened to their contributors.  So bravo to CNAS for putting together a great report.  If you look at the cast of contributors, you will also see that they took advice from guys like Doug Brooks, David Isenberg and a whole bunch of private military companies and military professionals. For the record, I was not a direct contributor, but I know some of the ideas of FJ made it out there in one way or another.

     For one, they actually brought in Article 1, Section 8 of the US Constitution as a counter to Max Weber’s definition of the state. (the Second Amendment could also be looked at as a counter as well) I was beside myself when I read this in their ‘inherently governmental’ section, and I had to read it a couple of times to make sure they actually went there.  They did and bravo to them for having the courage to challenge this sacred cow of thought.

     This kind of sets the pace for the entire publication, because CNAS and all of it’s contributors were actually making the argument for the use of contractors in war time.  It is an acknowledgement of that ‘elephant in the room’ called contractors, and it is an excellent first step towards combining private industry and government for the good of the nation and the wars it fights. To me, it has always been about unity of effort and command, and ensure private industry only helps government, not hurt it.  If we can figure out how to achieve that unity of effort and command, I think the next step is what will really be radical.

     I have argued on this blog that today’s war planners, leaders and strategists should make an effort to at least acknowledge that elephant in the room called contractors or private industry.  We are getting there and I am enthused about the process.  But to me, the next level of discourse about private industry is how do you turn that animal into a war elephant?

     To me, it is not enough to just acknowledge our existence and say ‘oh well, private industry is that big dumb animal that we all have to get used to’. That is like using a pistol to hammer nails.  I would make the argument that instead, private industry should be looked at from a strategic point of view and the question should be asked is ‘how do we use private industry to help win our wars and maintain a position of strength in the world today’?  That is the next level of discourse about this subject, and that is the kind of thinking that could possibly lead to victory in our current wars. I say this, because there is a tremendous effort taking place to actually figure out how to regulate and utilize private industry during times of war, and this paper and current legislative action is proof of that process. So once we figure out how to shoot the pistol, as opposed to using it to hammer nails, we can then start discussing how to use that pistol in warfare.

     Now on to the paper.  Below I have listed some of the issues that popped up as I was reading it. Just little things that came to mind, that could help refine the product.  Ideas are cheap, and I throw them around freely here. I have also listed some interesting portions of the paper to give the reader a taste. Be sure to check out all of the contributors, to include Allison Stanger (she provided the forward). Enjoy and let me know what you think.-Matt

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Contracting In Conflicts: The Path To Reform

By John Nagl and Richard Fontaine

06/07/2010

CNAS

In both Iraq and Afghanistan today there are more private contractors than U.S. troops on the ground. This exploding reliance on contractors costs U.S. taxpayers tens of billions of dollars and has grown with inadequate government oversight.   This report – authored by Richard Fontaine and John Nagl – details the urgent need for comprehensive reform. The United States must embark on a path of ambitious reform that will require: new laws and regulations; an expansion of the government’s contracting workforce; a coordination mechanism within the executive branch; greater scrutiny, more transparency and clearer standards for private contractors; a strategic view of the roles contractors play in American operations; and a change in culture within the government.

Download the paper here.

Link to website here.

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PMC 2.0: Biometric Security For Mobile Devices

Filed under: Mobile Apps,PMC 2.0,Technology — Tags: , , , , , , , — Matt @ 12:44 PM

     I am digging this, because if government or private industry wants to fully integrate mobile devices into their operations, security is paramount. Any means of either shutting down a device remotely or automatically if it is breached, stolen or lost, is a good idea.  I could also see a bio-button having application for other tools of this industry.

     For one, a bio-button could be used to control the fire control mechanism of a sidearm? Meaning if someone takes your weapon or god forbid you lost it, then it would not be capable of firing because it is outside of the range of the bio-button.  Just don’t lose the bio-button! lol You could also apply the bio-button concept to vehicles, safes, entry points, you name it. Although I would put a manual over ride on the button, just incase there is a problem or an attacker uses some kind of electronics frying weapon. Cyber warfare comes to mind with these kinds of devices as well, hence why it is so important to have a strategy within the organization to deal with these threats.

     One cool thing with losing the bio-button according to these guys, is that you can shut down everything remotely using a computer. The other handy feature is the button can be set up to vibrate if for chance, whatever you are tracking has gotten out of your range.  You could also use such a device for close protection, and have a specialist carrying the button and the principal having the mobile device.  Lot’s of uses for something like this. I could also see bio-buttons being integrated into every day items that we keep on us anyways.  A watch, a necklace, a ring, sunglasses, etc.  I look at a device like this as adding redundancy to your sensitive/valuable equipment management system. I don’t look at it as way to shirk personal responsibility towards managing your stuff, but it could definitely help.

    It can also help companies to ensure their stuff is being taken care of by their employees or contractors.  If the device can be shut down remotely, well then it can be monitored remotely as well.  A company can tell if an employee or contractor has that equipment within their reach or not, and this is just one more way of insuring accountability of that equipment.  Stuff to think about and this is definitely PMC 2.0 material. –Matt

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Microlatch ID me Solution

The new Bluetooth ‘bio-button’ mobile security system

Microlatch and a Sydney based development group has created a system that will conveniently and effectively shut down internet fraud, at the same time create a convenient all in one, secure mobile phone (or mobile device) solution to access control, mobile banking, online shopping, home automation, alarm systems, computer and network logins and any number of customised access or login scenarios.

This innovative, patented, three factor securi ty approach using biometrics to provide positive ID in conjunction with mobile phones using a bluetooth interface will allow users to harness the processing power of the modern mobile device in a convenient yet secure form.

User controlled and ‘user friendly’, this method of ensuring positive ID via a biometric ‘Bio-button’ wirelessly ‘paired and tethered’ to a mobile device resolves the security risks inherent with keeping the ‘registered users’ biometric data and digital keys stored on such devices.

For example, a convenient ‘one time’ biometric authentication via the separate ‘Bio-button’ to a ‘smart phone’ allows the user to make full use of the enormous computing and processing power now available in this type of mobile platform.

By utilising the processing power and wireless connectivity available to users via such devices, the ‘id-me’application will allow users to configure various levels of security thereby providing the user customised, secure physical access but also allowing expansion into ‘positive ID’ security for financial institutions, online payment systems, online shopping, contact-less payment systems etc.

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