Don’t Become the Next Erin Andrews: Tips for a Safe Hotel Stay

A Few Simple Steps Can Make Your Next Hotel Stay a lot Safer

By SCOTT MAYEROWITZ

October 6, 2009

Hotels often offer a sense of security and comfort when on the road, but when ESPN reporter Erin Andrews checked into the Nashville Marriott at Vanderbilt University last September, that was the last thing she got.

Insurance salesman Michael David Barrett allegedly traveled from his home outside Chicago to Nashville and specifically requested — and got — a room next to the sportscaster at the Nashville Marriott, according to court documents. He then allegedly used a cell phone to record video of Andrews changing while in her room.

It apparently wasn’t the first time Barrett learned the specific hotel Andrews was staying in and recorded her. According to a 35-page criminal complaint filed in a California federal court, in July 2008 he called 14 Milwaukee area hotels until he learned that Andrews would be at the Radisson Airport Hotel. He allegedly got a room there, altered a peephole in Andrews’ room and then proceeded to record her.

Other Celebs Victimized

Andrews is hardly the first well-known person to have a guest stalk her or try to steal items from a hotel room.

In March, a homeless man tried to force his way into actor Jamie Foxx’s room at the AKA Rittenhouse Square hotel in Philadelphia. He allegedly first attempted to get into the hotel by claiming that he was singer Beyonce Knowles’ producer.

In 2003, rapper Nelly had more than $1 million in jewelry stolen from his room at the then Aladdin hotel-casino on the Las Vegas strip. Singer Michelle Branch, who also was staying at the Aladdin for an awards show, reported that computer equipment was stolen from her room.

And while the ease Barrett apparently had in pinpointing Andrews’ hotel and actually getting a room next to Andrews might seem shocking, several security experts said it came as no surprise to them.

Erin Andrews Video Incident Avoidable?

Christopher Falkenberg, a former special agent with the U.S. Secret Service and now president of Insite Security, said getting such information is easy.

“What I suspect happened: He called around and found out where she was staying and said, ‘Oh what room is she in, can I have the room next to her?’ Or said something like: ‘I’m with her party therefore I want to be next to her,’” Falkenberg said.

Computer records of Barrett’s reservation state at the Nashville Marriott, according to the court documents include a line: “INFO GST RQST RM NEXT TO [Andrews.]“

Stephen P. Davis, a former New York City Police Department captain and now head of Davis Investigative Group, said that when an unaffiliated party requests an adjacent room, “That should have set off a question as to why are you asking.”

Davis said the hotel industry is now likely to revisit its security procedures in the reservation process.

The Nashville Marriott — which is not owned or managed by Marriott international — refused comment, instead referring questions to Marriott’s corporate headquarters.

“Our company takes the security and privacy of its guests seriously and we have been cooperating with authorities during the investigation,” John Wolf, Marriott International’s senior director of public relations said in an e-mail to ABC News.

Radisson said in a statement that: “Guess privacy and security are top priorities for Radisson Hotels and Resorts. The property involved in this alleged incident was a franchised hotel which left the Radisson system in September, 2008. As this issue is currently part of a criminal trial, we are unable to provide additional comment at this time.”

The general manager at the hotel, now the Ramada Conference Center Hotel at the Milwaukee Airport, did not return calls seeking comment.

Simple Safety Steps

Most hotel guests probably aren’t going to have people following them on vacation. But even non-celebrities can take a few simple steps to protect themselves and their belongings on a trip.

Joseph A. McInerney, president and CEO of the American Hotel & Lodging Association, said that the industry probably isn’t going to be able to stop people from calling around to hotels to see if somebody has checked in. Most times, you are going to want such calls to go through to your room.

But he said hotels should not be honoring requests to stay next to certain guests unless they know of a connection.

“There’s no reason to do that,” McInerney said.

Hotel Safety Tips for Celebrities Work for Everyone

Guests should always use a chain lock, in addition to the deadbolt, to lock the door and protect the hotel room from people who might have master keys. Security experts advise using that extra lock at all times in the room, even when sleeping.

McInerney also said that if you ever question the identity of somebody knocking on your door, call down to the front desk.

But overall, he said, hotels are safe places to stay.

“In light of this incident, people should feel very comfortable in hotels. The guests and the employee safety is the number one priority of hotels and hotel companies,” McInerney said. “We don’t know all the allegations on this and what might have broken down, but we have roughly a million-and-a-half people every night staying at hotels. The incident level might be very, very, very minuscule.”

Camera Recording Equipment Easy to Find

Safety starts in the lobby. When checking in, make sure that the front-desk clerk doesn’t announce your room number.

“The lobby itself is a great place to commit a crime but is also a place where it’s difficult to have your normal antenna up to be sensitive to crime,” Falkenberg said. “Be really aware of people who are around you. You don’t want other people in the lobby finding out what room you are in.”

Just with that little bit of information, somebody could use a lobby phone, call your room and say the management is about to bring up a welcome gift, then knock on your door minutes later and have a gun in your face.

Today, stalkers can easily buy all sorts of tiny cameras and listening devices Falkenberg said.

For his corporate clients or celebrities worried about spying he suggests switching hotels or at least switching rooms frequently. For high-target clients, his staff will often book the adjacent room for added security. Never stay in rooms with connecting doors unless you know the person in that room, he suggested.

“The Erin Andrews case is an example of how easy it is to pull off crimes that previously had been in the era of James Bond,” Falkenberg said. “It’s not as though Barrett had access to NSA level equipment. He didn’t. You can buy a large variety of items on the Internet. They’re very, very small.”

Stay on Higher Floors, and Carry a Flashlight

Davis, of Davis Investigative Group, said guests should also take precautions against hotel staff. Many hotel employees have pass keys that give them access to any room. The use of those keys can be traced, but that is often too late.

Consider the recent case of a housekeeping manager at the upscale Jumeirah Essex House hotel in New York who allegedly tried to rape an investment executive as she slept, and then stabbed and strangled her when she apparently fought back.

Davis said that somebody trying to break down a hotel door in a hallway is probably going to be noticed. But if it is an adjoining room, they have all the time and the privacy in the world.

When traveling overseas, Falkenberg said guests should worry about something else: hotel design.

International building codes and fire standards are not the same as in the United States. Try to pick a modern hotel with sprinklers. He said it’s better to be high enough off the ground that people can’t easily break in but not so high that fire truck ladders can’t reach you.

Finally, he said, always carry a flashlight.

Always Mindful of Finding the Nearest Exit

FREQUENT FLIER

September 07, 2009

By CHRISTOPHER FALKENBERG AS TOLD TO JOAN RAYMOND

When I travel, I am always planning for disaster. I’m not some guy who hates to fly. I actually love to fly. But I can’t turn off the “what ifs” in my brain. I’m a former Secret Service agent and the training is ingrained. And now I own a security company.

Part of being an effective Secret Service agent was having what we liked to call “situational awareness.” It’s basically nothing more than looking around your location, sizing up the people around you, and then thinking of the many things that could go wrong, and what you would do if one of those things happened.

Now I do that on airplanes. I just can’t help myself. I’m actually the guy who always pays attention to the preflight safety briefing. And I actually review the safety card, if only to look at the diagram of exits.

The single most important thing in this process is planning how I am going to get out if things go south during my flight. This is particularly true if I am traveling with my family. I actually visualize how we’re going to get out of an emergency.

There are a few other things I do for safety. I never take off my shoes until we’ve reached cruising altitude, and I make sure they’re on before descent. I encourage my wife to wear flats because it’s hard to move quickly in heels, and being barefoot is worse.

And I always carry a few tools. One of my favorite items is a lithium cell flashlight. When I was a Secret Service agent, I found that a good flashlight is the single most useful tool on the planet. Aircraft evacuations happen so quickly that I don’t know if I ever will need to use it – at least I hope I won’t. But I always bring one with me.

Also in the category of things that I may not have time to use, but still carry anyway, is a smoke mask. The one I have is filled with aloe, which filters toxic chemicals out of smoke.

I’ve never had a problem with the Transportation Security Administration. Flashlights like those I carry aren’t on the list of prohibited items. And the smoke mask is in an airtight foil pouch. The density scanners don’t pick it up because it isn’t dense like explosives, and the X-ray machine can’t see through it.

Because of my training, I also pay attention to other passengers. I am looking for two things. First, obviously, is to look for the maniac who is going to take over the plane. Hopefully, the T.S.A. already took care of him or her. But if not, there may be a few clues.

Second, I look for an inappropriate affect as people board the plane. By that I mean those nonverbal clues that you can sense, like someone being inappropriately anxious or stressed. And I don’t mean the nervous flier. Although I sometimes give them a once over.

I also try to find those people who look like they are in the military or law enforcement. The haircuts are usually a dead giveaway. But so is the carry-on luggage. There are special duffels and other items that military and rescue personnel use, and I can always spot it. If something goes wrong, I can count on those folks to help out.

For all I know, maybe there’s some man or woman on the plane who is checking me out. Maybe they’re thinking, “Why is this guy looking at everybody so carefully?” Like I said, I can’t help myself.

Q. HOW OFTEN DO YOU FLY?

A. At least twice a month, a mix of domestic and international travel.

Q. WHAT’S YOUR LEAST FAVORITE AIRPORT?

A. Miami International. There’s a drudgery about it. Sure, it’s big and expansive, but it’s really unpleasant.

Q. OF ALL THE PLACES YOU’VE BEEN, WHAT’S THE BEST?

A. Jamaica. I’ve been there many times for work and for pleasure, and it’s a wonderful combination of colonial-type manners, with a real island vibe.

Q. WHAT’S YOUR SECRET AIRPORT VICE?

A. I don’t know if it’s a vice, but I’m the guy who won’t move if I get a chance to stare at the planes taking off and landing. I’ll hog the window view in a terminal, just because I’m like a little kid and still think it’s incredibly cool.

Countering Threats: Insite Security shields its clients against kidnappers and other criminals who prey on the wealthy.

BUSINESS MANAGEMENT – PRACTICE DEVELOPMENT

SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2009

By CAREN CHESLER

It remains one of the most horrific kidnappings in history. In April 1992, Exxon executive Sidney Reso was kidnapped in his own driveway in wealthy Morris Township, N.J. Bound and gagged, he was put in a six-by-three-and-a-half foot wooden box, which was left in a metal storage room without ventilation or electricity. The 57-year-old father of five was left there for four days, lying in his own waste and given little more than water and vitamins. On the fifth day, his kidnappers returned to find him dead. Yet they continued to demand $18.5 million in ransom for eight weeks before finally being apprehended.

Reso wasn’t the first wealthy executive to be abducted and he certainly won’t be the last, which is why some of the country’s wealthiest families have hired New York City-based Insite Security Inc.

The firm’s CEO, Chris Falkenberg, a former Secret Service agent and litigator, counts celebrities, such as Martha Stewart and Ralph Lauren, as well as movie stars and hedge fund managers among his clients. The firm has so many clients in hedge-fund heavy Connecticut, it opened a four-person office in Greenwich. Falkenberg founded the firm in 2002.

“I think the most important thing we do is prevent kidnappings and respond to them,” Falkenberg says. “It is the number one threat because it is exactly the type of crime focused against our client base. Our clients have an enormous amount of money and, therefore, they are attractive to kidnappers.”

His firm, which employs law enforcement veterans who formerly worked for the Secret Service, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Marshals Service, as well as several police departments, has about a dozen clients for which it provides security services on a retainer basis.Monthly fees range from $8,000 to $12,000. The firm also performs discreet services, such as installing home security systems, which could cost $40,000 to $60,000.

The range of services Insite provides varies, depending on the client’s level of risk. An executive with a company that does animal testing or sells fur, for instance, faces a higher risk, as do executives who have received a lot of publicity because of their wealth or been involved in a high-profile termination of an employee, according to Falkenberg.

Kidnapping, however, is a threat to anyone with a lot of wealth. Kidnappings are on the rise internationally, experts say, partly due to organized crime activity in countries such as Brazil and Russia, and the drug trade run out of countries such as Mexico, where kidnapping has become a lucrative criminal activity. That’s made border states like Arizona, Texas and California greater security risks, says Falkenberg.

Apparently, Connecticut has its risks as well. In 2003, billionaire hedge fund manager Eddie Lampert was kidnapped at gunpoint while leaving work. Several ex-convicts found Lampert, who at the time owned the $9 billion private investment fund ESL Investments Inc., by going into the prison law library in jail and typing in “richest guy in Connecticut,” Falkenberg says. They nabbed him at work after seeing that he went in every Saturday and parked in the same spot that had his name on it. He was held for ransom for two days before talking his way out of it.

Falkenberg feels one of the benefits his firm brings to clients is the ability to respond to such situations on a moment’s notice. Law enforcement agencies, in contrast, may not act with urgency until they’ve established whether a kidnapping has occurred, he says.

To help prepare for kidnapping situations, Falkenberg recently hired the FBI’s former lead hostage negotiator, Christopher Voss. Experts say the first 24 hours of a kidnapping are considered the most crucial, in terms of keeping the victim alive, Falkenberg notes. The presence of Voss will assist the firm when it needs to act quickly, he adds.

“Given that so many of our clients are U.S.-based, and so many [domestic] kidnappings result in homicides, we just can’t not have that capability in house,” Falkenberg says.

Voss says kidnappings are like Russian roulette. Most of the time, victims are unharmed. But when something does go wrong, the results can be disastrous. In the U.S., he feels victims face heightened risk because kidnappers are more concerned about covering up their tracks.

“In the U.S., we have an extremely robust law enforcement community, and kidnappers are afraid they’re going to get caught. And they’re not only going to get caught they’re going to do an extremely long time in jail,” Voss says. “Outside the U.S., they’re pretty sure they won’t get caught.”

The firm hasn’t yet had to deal with a kidnapping, but Falkenberg believes it may have prevented one. He had a client in New York whose child may have been a potential target. According to school officials, a man was asking questions about the client’s child. But once Falkenberg’s firm put the man under surveillance, he disappeared.

“There can always be an innocuous excuse for behavior, but we didn’t think that was the case here. So we increased security, and the surveillance ended,” Falkenberg says. “One of the frustrating things about selling these services is that, unlike an investment advisor, we can’t prove a negative.”

Aside from kidnapping, the biggest issues clients face are home invasions and confidence games perpetrated by the people around them, Falkenberg says. For example, the firm had two ultra-wealthy clients whose college-aged sons were preyed upon by women who wanted their money. The parents had grown suspicious of the women, but their sons, who were so flattered by the women’s interest, refused to end the relationships.

Falkenberg’s firm discovered that both women had created a web of lies, about their identities, their college majors, and various other basic facts. The men ultimately terminated the relationships.

The women likely found the men in one of the college yearbooks created for entering freshmen, Falkenberg says. In general, he says, the less information that’s available about his clients, the safer they are.

“These days, there’s so much information out there about people, specifically the wealthy, that it creates security issues for them,” Falkenberg says. “Even if they make huge efforts not to draw attention to themselves, like those who vociferously guard their privacy and don’t talk to the media or take credit for their charitable foundations, they still end up in media reports on the very, very wealthy, like the Forbes list.” Some of the biggest breaches in security occur when people voluntarily give up information, he notes.

Falkenberg, who served on the security detail for the first President George Bush and then for President Bill Clinton during his 1992 presidential campaign, recommends that the wealthy keep public information about themselves vague, business-oriented and impersonal. The wealthy should be guarded about where they live, whom they know and what they do for hobbies, he says. The firm also does thorough background checks on anyone working for his clients, from nannies to landscapers.

Many of his clients, particularly hedge fund managers who have acquired enormous amounts of wealth early in life, find they and their children are living in a bubble. One of the firm’s challenges is allowing clients to live somewhat normal lives while looking out for their security.

“They’ll have a security infrastructure, but they don’t want to see or have to worry about it,” Falkenberg says. “It’s not so easy to do that.”

What makes it even harder is when clients are resistant to his security efforts. He once had an interior designer balk at the prospect of putting smoke detectors on the ceilings of each room, suggesting instead that they be put in closets. The wife of one of his clients asked that the unsightly surveillance cameras in the backyard be tucked away so far into the bushes that it rendered them useless.

The most resistant family members, he says, are children, who are warned not to put intimate details on social networks such as Facebook and MySpace. Many simply refuse to comply.

Risks don’t just occur at home, he notes. The ultra-wealthy have to be careful, perhaps even more careful, when they travel.

“When you show up and get off a Global Explorer – a $15 million private jet – people look at you differently,” he says. What predators see, he says, is opportunity.

Falkenberg had a client whose five-member family was traveling through one of the former Soviet republics 18 months ago and was detained at an airport by border officials who were apparently looking for a payoff. After six hours of detention, Falkenberg says the family was freed after his firm “negotiated” with the officials.

“We used contacts we developed in advance of the trip,” Falkenberg says, adding, “And maybe there was some payment of compensation to someone. And maybe not.”

Falkenberg says he’s seen an increase in requests for security services related to overseas tourism and business travel. It’s not surprising. Security experts say Americans traveling internationally face increased risks today to not just their safety but also their health. For that reason, Falkenberg’s firm recently partnered with a company called WorldClinic to provide emergency medical care to its clients. With a network of 4,000 doctors outside the U.S., WorldClinic provides around-the-clock medical care to clients who suffer serious illness or injury while traveling abroad.

Falkenberg believes people should hope for the best and prepare for the worst. Anne G. Donohoe, who works for Falkenberg’s public relations firm, KCSA Strategic Communications, can vouch for that. She was recently preparing for a trip to the Tuscany region of Italy when she received a call from Falkenberg, who told her to become acquainted with the plane’s exit routes and to wear sneakers on the flight, in case she has to run. He told her not to take the sneakers off until the plane is at cruising altitude, and because she was staying in a 200-year-old villa, he warned her to locate all of the exits in the building in case there was a fire.

“I told him, ‘You’re scaring me.’ And he said, ‘Great. Have a nice trip,’” Donohoe says. “Now when I travel, I keep a flashlight on me, in case there’s a power outage.”

Former Special Agent of the U.S. Secret Service and Emergency Medical Doctor Offer Expert Advice on Keeping Your Family and Employees Safe While Traveling

What: With the winter travel season in high gear, what dangers does travel pose for you and your family? For your employees? How would you escape a burning hotel? What would you do if an earthquake hit your vacation spot? Which medical supplies should always be with you while traveling? Security expert Christopher Falkenberg and Dr. Daniel Carlin will answer all of that and more in their latest webinar on travel security.

When: Wednesday December 9, 2009, 11:30 a.m. ET

Who: Christopher Falkenberg, Founder and President, Insite Security

Daniel Carlin, MD, CEO, WorldClinic

Where: ADVANCE REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED!

Webcast registration: To register for “Where is the Exit? Avoiding the Trouble that Awaits When Traveling” please visit https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/244943338

Details: The Travel Security Webinar is part of a free ongoing series of security-focused educational events hosted by Insite Security. Founded by former Secret Service agent and litigator Christopher Falkenberg, Insite Security is a full-service security and risk management agency for corporations and high net worth individuals. WorldClinic, founded by Dr. Carlin, provides 24/7 personal telemedical care and consultation, detailed destination medical research, portable prescription medical kits, a 24/7 electronic medical record archive and rapid physician-to-physician second-opinion referrals for any serious or complex illness.

For more than 4 years I was one of the most highly trained personal body guards in the world. Serving as a United States Secret Service Special Agent. It was our job to ensure that the President of the United States (POTUS) was protected from any and all physical threats.

When I was guarding President Clinton it would have been crazy for him to carry a weapon on his person, or to have an untrained member of his inner circle carry a gun. The President of the United States is arguably the most valuable individual in the entire world, and his employer, the Government of the United States, is mandated to protect this highly-valued, very public, employee and not leave it up to him to protect himself.

Reading the stories about Gilbert Arenas carrying multiple firearms into his workplace or remembering back to the Plaxico Burress incident where he accidentally shot himself at a night club, it struck me as insane that the owners of NFL, MLB or NBA teams do not, as a matter or course, provide highly professional protection services to their players when off the court/field. Owners spend tens if not hundreds of millions on their players each year and do a fabulous job of protecting their athletes (investments) and fans at sports stadiums and fields, but once their players leave “the office” the teams cease to provide protection.

Sure most teams have training seminars for athletes on how to protect themselves, their loved ones and property. But, for the most part, teams leave it up to the athletes to protect themselves. How many do this is either through hiring personal “body guards” from their close knit group of untrained friends or by buying and carrying a weapon (usually legally). These posse-based security solutions rarely solve the problem. A security professional is trained to help avoid dangerous situations, to diffuse conflicts and to keep their protectees away from danger. Having your best friend from home carry a Glock is a recipe for trouble.

Exxon/Mobile provides 24-hour security for its CEO, Rex Tillerson, why wouldn’t the New York Giants provide the same type of security for Plaxico, or the Washington Wizards for Arenas?

Newark Airport Security Breach Video Shows Man Giving Goodbye Kiss to Girlfriend

AVIATION, ESSEX COUNTY, TRANSPORTATION

January 7, 2010

By MIKE FRASSINELLI & JOSEPH R. PERONE

The video of the Newark Liberty International Airport security breach that was finally released to the public on Thursday showed what people who had seen it earlier already described — and more.

The security officer leaving his post. The female passenger helping the man under the security ribbon. The goodbye kiss.

The footage was grainy and the faces hard to make out, but security experts and others who looked at said the problems at the airport were clear.

“It’s a total screw-up in every sense,” said Fred Cate, a professor and security expert at Indiana University.

Cate was one of many security experts who viewed the video for the first time Thursday; many of them found problems that had not yet been pointed out.

“You have people right up against the exit lane,” Cate said, referring to secure and non-secure areas shown in the video being separated only by a rope. “In most airports, you have a corridor. But Newark doesn’t have room. They need some low walls to create an exit, so you don’t have people behind a taped barrier.”

The video was made public after U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.) demanded it from the Transportation Security Administration and Port Authority in an effort to get help from the public in identifying the mystery man who caused Sunday night’s breach inside Terminal C.

Among the additional revelations, the video begs the question of how one TSA security officer could possibly keep track of so many people in the exit lane.

Nonetheless, it does show the officer was away from his post — a small desk near the area where people wait for arriving passengers — for 85 seconds.

While the officer is away from his post at the Terminal C-1 exit lane, a female passenger who had already been screened leans over the same desk to help a man get inside the secure area. The two embrace and walk away hand-in-hand, 30 seconds before the unsuspecting security officer returns to his post.

“I was enraged” by the video, Lautenberg said during a news conference at the airport last night. “To think, here’s a guard post and a narrow corridor — and this guy literally walked through. How could that happen?”

The TSA has said the man, who was not a passenger, later left the airport after seeing off the woman on her flight. Authorities are still trying to locate him.

“It really looked like there was some kind of pre-arranged planning — that he was going to go with her into the controlled area,” said Richard Bloom, director of terrorism, intelligence and security studies at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, who said his students pointed out problems revealed by the video all day.

The breach, reported by another passenger, shut down the major terminal at one of America’s busiest airports for nearly six hours, stranding thousands of passengers and tying up flights around the world.

When TSA officers went to review the security breach on a video surveillance recorder focused on the exit lane, they realized the camera system hadn’t been working for six days. That prompted them to try to access the video by Continental Airlines, the main tenant in Terminal C. But there was a delay because TSA called a number different from Continental’s operations center.

TSA was advised by Continental to call the operations center from now on, and TSA has volunteered to check the camera system regularly and work with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which operates the airport, to make sure their cameras are working properly.

MONETARY DAMAGE

Airport security areas should be standardized around the country, said George Hobica, founder of airfarewatchdog.com, a travel web site.

“And obviously, this guy should be fired immediately,” Hobica said of the security officer. “He caused a huge amount of monetary damage — probably in the hundreds of thousands when everything is tallied up in missed vacation days, wasted jet fuel and police overtime.”

The TSA officer has been placed on administrative leave, an agency spokesperson said.

TSA has also added an extra officer in the exit corridor and stationed the officers farther back in the corridor to give them a better view of people walking the wrong way.

TSA spokeswoman Ann Davis said the agency is conducting a comprehensive review of the incident.

“The surveillance video from Newark Liberty Airport clearly shows that a TSA officer’s actions led to the Sunday incident,” the TSA said in a statement yesterday after the video was released by Lautenberg’s office. “We will use this hard lesson to reinforce the sharp focus and tight discipline at all our stations across the country and ensure we maintain the public trust.”

U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) last night pushed for additional measures. He called for video surveillance that continuously functions and is continuously monitored, as well as additional security layers to compensate for human error, such as electronic sensor equipment or one-way gates.

Menendez called the breach “completely unacceptable” and cited horror stories from Sunday night, including a member of the Armed Forces who was caught up in the delay and feared he would be classified as AWOL.

Christopher Falkenberg, a former U.S. Secret Service agent and chief executive of Insite Security, a New York security consulting firm, said the TSA should consider installing turnstiles or revolving doors to restrict access to secure areas.

“It’s simple technology that exists in every New York City subway,” he said.

Sunday night’s breach unnerved people for the security holes it exposed at Newark Liberty, more than eight years terrorists passed through the airport’s screening, undetected, on Sept. 11, 2001, and took over a plane that eventually crashed into a field in western Pennsylvania.

The TSA should use Sunday’s incident as an opportunity to improve, said Michael Wildes, an immigration attorney, anti-terror expert and former mayor of Englewood.

“A security system reduced to rote procedures and routine cannot suffice,” he said. “We should use Israel’s system as a model. The airport should be a sterile experience, and security intelligence should begin when travelers book their tickets.”

Douglas Laird, an aviation security consultant who formerly was director of security for Northwest Airlines, said finding the man who caused the breach might not be easy.

“In all my days at Northwest Airlines, we probably had 15 of these a year worldwide,” he said. “In no place did they ever find the person who caused the breach.”

Staff writers Brian Murray and Ted Sherman contributed to this report.

The earthquake in Haiti gives rise to questions about emergency preparedness in general for those traveling to third world countries. Although there is little tourism in Haiti, there is a great deal in the Dominican Republic, which shares the island of Hispaniola. The Caribbean in general is an active seismic area, and travelers to Caribbean islands put themselves at risk from earthquake, tsunami, flooding and severe tropical storms.

The results of the earthquake in Haiti are predictable. There is no communication and the transportation infrastructure is compromised. No one can get calls in or out of Haiti, and even calls to the Dominican Republic are exceedingly slow. Both cell and landline phone services are either out of service or severely compromised. I expect it will soon become hard to find potable water in Port Au Prince. The environment is dusty, hot and humid, with little safe shelter due to the risk of aftershocks and fire.

What should travelers do to prepare for these risks? The first step is to contemplate them: how many people go on a trip with no thought to the safety and security issues that they commonly consider at home? There is a broad range of issues one should consider prior to travel, including medical care, road safety and crime, to name a few. Specific to natural disaster, we advise clients to prepare for a few contingencies:

Loss of communication: people traveling in the third world should travel with satellite phones. They are the only reliable form of communication following a real emergency. Even cities will have overloaded cell and local circuits, but satellite telephone is a means of keeping in touch on the go.

Clean water: water safety in urban areas is a rare but hugely dangerous issue. When supplies of bottled water either dry up or lose their integrity, travelers risk diseases such as widespread dysentery, particularly cholera. It is therefore useful to pack a water treatment kit to insure that you can convert water from whatever source into drinking water and avoid dangerous dehydration. Use a filter rather than IR purification to minimize risks from inorganic substances that may be in the water.

Lighting: in my earlier career as a Secret Service agent, I found no tool as useful as a good flashlight. Its uses are limitless, but include signaling, evacuation and crime prevention. Travelers should get a good LED flashlight with a clip and carry it on their person or in their handbag.

Air safety: N95 masks protect against a wide variety of problems, but in this case can permit the user to breathe more easily in the midst of dust and other contaminants soiling the air. A smoke mask is also a good idea, and both masks can fit easily into a small luggage compartment or pocket.

This equipment takes up little space and may never be used, but when needed these items can prove essential.

Travel Safety Tips Provided

by Jack O’Dwyer

With political unrest widespread throughout the globe, former Secret Service Agent Christopher Falkenberg is advising clients who are traveling to avoid hotels that are “identifiably American or part of an American chain.”

Falkenberg, who now heads Insite Security, said travelers should not take fancy luggage and should dress “plainly” since the wealthy are a popular target.

Travel from the foreign airport to a destination is something that should be arranged in advance, he says.

“You should know who your driver will be in advance and have a picture of him or her,” he advises.

Driving at night is to be avoided and use a local driver if that is possible, says Falkenberg. He recently gave a webinar on traveling abroad with Dr. Daniel Carlin of WorldClinic.

Among tips from the webinar is that travelers should pick rooms on the second through seventh floors that do not face the street.

Other advice is to take a room that is far from the lobby and not to linger in the lobby.

Check if the hotel has sprinklers and fire alarms before booking a room.

Information should be obtained on how to contact the local authorities in case of an emergency.

Should there be a “medical emergency,” Falkenberg and Carlin warned that the “first hour is critical.”

Scope out the best local hospitals in advance, they said.

“Seemingly innocuous things” such water, mosquito bites and mopeds can cause big problems, said the pair.

Contaminated water can be avoided by buying sealed bottles of water and travelers should be aware that mosquitoes carry serious disease.

Travelers should get the proper inoculations beforehand and pack copies of medical and legal records in case of an emergency.

Take a small LED lithium-powered flashlight, a smoke mask, cable ties for luggage, and a satellite phone if visiting a Third World country.

Use of a moped can be dangerous unless the traveler is accustomed to driving one, they said.

Political demonstrations are to be avoided because they have a tendency to “get out of control.”