We are at the end of this difficult year...

Looking back at 2020, we want to provide you with a short recap of some of the cases considered during the year in our Singapore office.

Here is a brief overview of our activity...

Cases relate to our background check activities, web-monitoring and social media intelligence exploitation (SOCMINT).

~ Social posting analysis and SOCMINT in support to a security team and a national law enforcement agency, permitted to provide information about an extremist group linked to an attempted IED attack against the CEO of a major Latin American conglomerate.

~ An individual was flagged and identified, and information urgently reported to a local police force in US, after his social posting activity suggested mass shooting intentions in a specific luxury retail store of a renowned Italian fashion brand.

~ Four individuals, outsourced in order to deliver technical services during major entertainment event, were flagged and reported as posting propaganda photos and content of two active terrorist groups. Their online behaviour deemed to bring a possible security risk to the event.

~ One individual outsourced for cleaning services at a major Asian organisation HQ was found to be implicated in a 2015 major heroin trafficking investigation linked to the Taliban. The person provided a partially modified name that bypassed an initial superficial verification. Our SOCMINT analysis permitted to fully identify the person. The individual deemed to bring a possible security and reputational risk to the organisation.

~ Two individuals engaged in maintenance activities within a major multinational company were reported as found to be actively linked to religious centers flagged by EU law enforcement agencies for violent radical extremism, and to have both expressed preference for violent extremist views deemed to bring a possible security risk to the company.

~ A sensitive international meeting prompted verifications that consented to flag an external service provider endorsing and posting strong racist and derogatory remarks directed to one of the country's representatives taking part in the said international event.

~ An antagonist social network providing false and derogatory statements on a beverage produced by a renown European firm was mapped and an immediate social network analysis accomplished. Posting activities were deemed to bring an important reputational risk to the brand.

~ More than 30 individuals engaged in different services at a major organisation were flagged as endorsing violent behaviours and extreme antagonist groups, and/or making evident use of narcotics;

~ One individual hired for administrative services within a major NGO was reported as posting on social media extreme racist and anti-semitic derogatory remarks against a religious group.

~ Lastly, Protective Intelligence Network team's analysis of public chatters and postings having a security impact for a major US organisation and its CEO, (more than 10.000 messages deemed severely antagonist in the last six months of 2020) prompted the Organisation’s security team to enhance the level of security in place at the HQ and the CEO residential premises.

We consider each and every engagement as a prolongation of our previous work with governments and international agencies, and the enduring devotion to enhance global security.

Wishing to all of you a safe, healthy and prosperous year 2021!

Protective Intelligence Network Team