Ready when you are, C.B….
There are a lot of people who have cars pick them up and carry them from place to place. Some of these people are folks who, either because of their wealth or their job, are at risk.
While it is nice to have the safety and convenience of a car and driver, it is not nice when these expose you to unnecessary risk. The basic risks are, of course, the risks you face in any car, which can easily be summed up as don’t drive if you or your driver are drunk or on drugs, and wear your seatbelt. Lest you think that these basic safety tips don’t apply to you, keep in mind that if they applied to Princess Di, they probably apply to you…
Another issue which we have discussed in the past is letting common sense be overcome by pride, and insisting on having parking spaces which say either “Kidnap Me,” “Kill Me,” or, roughly equivalent, have your name or your position.
But an issue that we have not discussed is the fact that the mere presence of your car can be, in OPSEC terms, an indicator of your presence. If you car is recognizable – and you can rest assured that it will be if someone is interested in you – you don’t want it being used to give adversaries a long lead time to come for you.
The car should be at hand, but not waiting at the curb so that anyone who knows it will know you will soon be there. This way, when you are ready for the car it can arrive at roughly the same time you do, thus eliminating this particular indicator. And if you are delayed you can send it away again.
In the past this kind of co-ordination was more difficult. But now, between cell phones and small encrypted radios, you can safely communicate between car and passenger, and eliminate, at the very least, the risk that you might otherwise face by the mere presence of your vehicle.
