malls developed to serve these populations. Recent development in the mall business has resulted in huge malls housing office blocks, cinema halls, department stores, and individual boutiques. The size of the malls and the large volume of the people visiting the mall daily, make it an easy target for criminals, including hackers and terrorist. Malls are also vulnerable to natural and petty crime threats depending on the location and design of the mall. Employment of prevention strategies from the design phase of a mall to the everyday operation can reduce the vulnerability to the natural, manmade, and technological threats. Some of the measures that help reduce the vulnerability of the mall include the use of CCTV cameras, security patrol, placement of restrooms, air conditioner intakes and controls, and way finding signs.
Mall infrastructure characteristics and practices vary; thus, no universal list of vulnerabilities applying to all malls exists. Therefore, only a list of common vulnerabilities is available based on experience and observation. The possible vulnerabilities enable mall managers improve the security within and without the mall, especially during heightened threat conditions. During heightened threat conditions, the possible vulnerabilities enable the malls security personnel to formulate appropriate protocols to mitigate these vulnerabilities. Vulnerabilities are in two categories including vulnerabilities present within the physical perimeter of the mall and vulnerabilities present inside the mall. Vulnerability within the mall may be prevented through incorporating security sensitive elements in the design process and maintaining access control to certain sensitive areas within the mall, such as the ventilating and air-conditioning system areas.
Vulnerability Assessment
Reducing the vulnerability of a mall requires an understanding of the common vulnerabilities of malls, identifying site-specific vulnerabilities, identifying the type of activities that would be successful in exploiting those vulnerabilities, and taking preemptive actions to reduce the vulnerabilities. Because of the nature and use of malls, they lack a security perimeter to control access thus remain soft targets. Malls are especially attractive to terrorist because they are virtually impossible to restrict access without compromising on the intention of the mall. Malls are also attractive to terrorism because they serve a large population thus; there is a possibility of inflicting heavy casualties. Malls are also an important part of the local economy in the areas located. Attacking a mall enables terrorists to inflict economic damage and instill fear (Bonvicini et al., 2012). Destruction of a mall can cause heavy casualties on site, impact on the economic wellbeing of a large area, and have wide psychological effect that may have a cascading effect on the national economy.
Effectively defending the mall from manmade threats requires an understanding of where the criminal targeting objectives stand. This can enable security teams to develop countermeasures that address specific targets. For terrorist groups and other extreme organizations, the objective of an attack is to inflict casualties and destroy the facility. Common criminals are also likely to target the mall with the objective of stealing material goods, equipment, or information (Burnett, 2002). Understanding how criminal elements intend on achieving their objective is the most important aspect. This is because what terrorists or common criminals intend on achieving remains an object. How the criminal element intends on achieving this object is an action and an action is stoppable. Terrorists are likely to target malls using explosive, firebombs, and automatic weapons. Alternatively, common criminal are likely to use guns to rob a mall, buy some time, try to escape, or collude with employee to gain access to vital systems or access routes (Corte, 2005).
Typical malls are usually one to two floors high. They have three-dimensional space framing, with a flat built-up roof membrane. Malls also have heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning systems. Other systems within the mall include electrical and telecommunication systems, water, plumbing, and sewage systems. Malls also have a common walkway connecting shops to each other. The outside perimeter of the building often serves as a parking lot. These form the general configuration of a mall. However, malls may vary in their configuration depending on their location and size (Button, 2008). The major challenge facing a mall security team is that the characteristics of a mall that makes it effective as a business are the same that increases its vulnerability to potential adversaries. These characteristics include open access, low overhead, large number of people at site, and manageable operation cost. The measures required to counter these vulnerabilities are difficult to implement because of operational and financial constrains (Bonvicini et al., 2012).
For a mall to remain economically viable, it must attract a large number of potential customers to purchase goods and services from the many shops within its premises. To achieve this, the mall must provide easy access and an inviting atmosphere. The interior must be spacious to encourage people to congregate and linger. Malls parking spaces vary depending on the size and location. Most one-story malls have outdoor parking around the perimeter of the building. Large mall and those located in urban areas have attached and semi attached parking areas. Without barriers separating the parking and the main entrance, occasionally, vehicles stop in front of a mall entrance. This is mostly to accommodate the handicapped and create a welcoming environment to encourage customers to visit the stores. Delivery areas also differ depending on the malls location and size, as often the delivery area is located in the basement of the mall or adjacent to the main building. To encourage the customers to visit stores, only security grates separate the interior of the store to the walkway. Entrances into a shopping center within the mall are many. They include entrances from the parking area, street, anchor stores, and mass exits. Stores also have delivery entrance at the back (Button, 2008).
The design of the mall offers mixed benefits. For example, the open airy design of the mall may help dissipate the concussion from an explosive. The open design is a disadvantage in the case of a gaseous release because it aids its dispersal. Auxiliary facilities connected to the main building create additional opportunities for potential adversaries to exploit. The auxiliary facilities increase the number of entrances and exits in the mall. The mall employs a number of security guards who are oriented towards preventing property-related crimes and crimes against individuals. The security personnel are not equipped or trained to respond to high-risk situations, such as a terrorist attack. Recent developments have seen an increase in the number of police officers on duty positioned at a mall (Button, 2008).
Malls are also vulnerable to a number of natural events. The designs of the mall consider the set building codes and construction standards to cover this threat. Threats caused by wind-driven events are especially a challenge to the durability of building. Studies are on going to increase building ability to withstand wind-driven events, such as tornados, hurricanes, and microburst. The studies may also help improve the building ability to withstand explosions. Malls across the world have experience significant impact from natural threats including floods, storms, and earthquakes. Other threats to the mall include technological hazards, such as power failure or spill of toxic substances. Cyber terrorism and civil disobedience are also risks for consideration by the mall personnel to ensure losses are minimized. The dependence on computer and information technology to drive critical components of the mall increases its vulnerability to cyber attacks. The success of the mall is dependent on the integrity of its information and communication technologies. Effective cyber security is a critical for the continued success of the mall (Bonvicini et al 2012).
The mall faces among other vulnerabilities, economic and institutional vulnerabilities. Economic and institutional vulnerabilities are those vulnerabilities that have a national and industry impact. Some of the effects include affecting the consumer behavior of mall customers in other parts of the country. The local people may also be unwilling to consider employment within the mall because of incidents of insecurity. The mall because of its use and design has site related vulnerabilities that increase its vulnerability, especially to terrorist groups. The mall design and outlook is intended to attract people by creating and open and friendly space for all to interact freely. Because of the nature of the mall, people are usually carrying packages of all shapes and sizes in and out of the mall all day long. This increases the possibility of a hostile to carry explosive devices into the mall. The mall also has many entrances and exits with deliveries being made by many companies. The mall is also developed close to a major road to enable easy access (Button, 2008).
Conclusion
Malls encourage people to visit the stalls thus have minimal barrier to the movement of people and large open spaces. Malls have numerous entrances and exits, with movement of people and vehicles monitored primarily using Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) cameras. Because malls are a point of sale, many people enter and live the premises carrying packages. Because of the large size of the mall, contractors may serve important systems within the mall, such as the heating, ventilating, and air conditioning system. Although there are many CCTV within a mall, they do not cover all areas. Because of its size and the large number of people within the facility, a major event within the mall may strain the emergency response resources. Emergency planning within a mall is also difficult because of the large number of different people who visit the mall, and the design and intention of the mall, which seeks to minimize the disruption of a customers experience.
References
Button, K. (2008). The economics of shopping mall security. Journal of Transportation Security, 1(2), 127-139.
Bonvicini, S., Ganapini, S., Spadoni, G., & Cozzani, V. (2012). The Description of Population Vulnerability in Quantitative Risk Analysis. Risk Analysis: An International Journal, 32(9), 1576-1594.
Burnett, R. (2002, Apr 27). Malls Put Emphasis On Security; This Week's FBI Alert Put The Spotlighton Malls' Vulnerabilities And How They Have Improved Security. Orlando Sentinel.
Corte, R. L. (2005, Nov 22). Are americans safe at mall? ; holiday shopping highlights the vulnerability of shopping centers. Orlando Sentinel
Appendix
Figure 1 shows the floor plan of an average shopping mall in a suburb area. Some of the counter measures employed to counter possible threats include CCTV cameras and security officers. Other counter measures are in the design of the structure to improve it resistance to explosions
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