The document discusses the threat and vulnerability assessment process at the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), highlighting the risks posed by natural disasters, human-made threats, and technological vulnerabilities. It emphasizes the importance of evaluating vulnerabilities to these threats, conducting assessments to determine potential impacts, and implementing risk management strategies. Additionally, it addresses the influence of socioeconomic factors and human behavior on vulnerability, advocating for comprehensive policies to mitigate risks.

1. 1
THREAT AND VULNERABILITY ASSESSMENT
3
Threat and Vulnerability
Introduction
Every organization is vulnerable to various risks that are
associated with threats. These threats come about because of the
natural occurrence, technological or human influences.
Irrespective of the risk, the organization has a responsibility of
managing the risks. The Transportation and Security
Administration (TSA) seeks to implement a risk management
plan for these threats. As such, the security officials of TSA,
therefore, must determine the vulnerabilities to the possible
threats that could impact significantly on the organization.
How the Security Officials Identify Vulnerabilities to Threats
The first stage in determining the vulnerabilities to threats is
the evaluation of the possible risks that could impact on TSA.
The assessment of the threats looks through the complete
spectrum of the threats including terrorism, accidents, natural
and criminal (Reniers, 2013). The policies of TSA only address
the human-made threats. However, the evaluation should look at
the supporting information to assess the likelihood of all the
threats.
For the natural threats, historical records regarding the
happenings of the disasters such as hurricanes, fires, flood, or
earthquakes can be utilized to figure out the vulnerability of the
threats. For the risks related to crime, criminal records of the
nearby area can be assessed to determine the kind of criminal
activity that could threaten the organization. For terrorism, the
appeal of the group is a primary indicator of the possibility of

2. terrorists raiding the company. A terrorist aiming to strike TSA
is likely to attack the head office where there are many people
than the branches of the organization.
Vulnerability Assessment
After the identification of the possible threats, the security
officials at TSA can conduct a vulnerability assessment.
According to Reniers (2013), a vulnerability assessment looks
at the possible effects of the given threat to the organization
and the susceptibility of the company to the given threat. The
influence of loss is the extent to which a possible attack
compromises TSA's mission. The evaluation of the vulnerability
correctly defines the scores of the effects of the threats and the
loss in the organization.
The Ranking for Vulnerability
Devastating: This means the company can be damaged beyond
recognition. If a threat is overwhelming, it says the body is
highly vulnerable to the threat and that it can cause great losses
to the organization. For instance, properties, assets, and other
resources can be damaged beyond repair. This can cause great
impacts to the organization and can reduce the number of
clients to 75 percent. Severe: For a threat to be serious, that
means it can partially cause harmful impacts to the
organization. Examples of serious threats include fires, weather,
smoke and water that can cause a partial breach to some areas in
the body (Yang, 2013). Some of the resources can be destroyed,
but the team remains intact. The body may be closed down for a
short time to recover the funds and renovate the areas that were
damaged. However, after a short period, the operations return to
normal. 5O percent of the clients might stop not use the
services, but that's only before the organization opens after the
repair.

3. Noticeable: A threat is considered remarkable when it impacts
on the organization for a day. This means the facility is not
highly susceptible to this kind of threat. A few resources could
be destroyed but the team not affected at all. The capacity of the
clients will reduce for quite a short time.
Minor: A minor threat does not affect the organization or the
assets in it. There could be a downtime for a few hours, but
operations go back to usual after mitigation.
Vulnerabilities Associated with Informational, Technological,
Natural, and Human-Made Threats
The emerging technologies seem to come with vulnerabilities to
the users. The automobiles used in TSA are vulnerable to
accidents, social disruption, and environmental degradation.
The electronic appliances used at the offices are also
susceptible to electromagnetic fields which can disrupt the
organization. Information is also vulnerable to the threat of
cyber criminals. There is an increasing prevalence of cyber-
criminal cases. The terrorist can breach into TSA's database and
get the necessary information that they can use to manipulate
their ways into stealing or causing injury to the organization.
Risks can also occur as a result of technological breakdown.
Similarly, human-made and true threats continue to impend the
operations at Transportation Security Administration. The
company is striving to improve the scientific approaches to
mitigating these risks. The security officials not only
characterize the possible risks but also evaluates the
vulnerability of these threats to the organization. TSA works
with the members of different states to identify and minimize
the technological hazards. These accidents are likely to increase
due to the continuing change in climate.
Vulnerabilities Associated With Personnel and Work Behaviors
Vulnerability to threats can also occur as a result of the

4. practices of staff. There is a human component that can either
cause internal or external threats to the organization. According
to Rivera (2015), behaviors such as careless handling of the
electrical appliances in the group can lead to great losses. TSA
can reduce the vulnerability of these threats due to human
behavior by minimizing the insider risks. This can be achieved
by undertaking great personnel security follows including
evaluation of the risks, screening the employees before
employment and continuously screening the employees and
other visitors for the safety check.
TSA can also evaluate the vulnerabilities by optimizing the
security officials. Most of the untapped security resources come
from the employees and visitors. This approach will enable TSA
to develop a healthy culture of safety and encourage the
employees who could be malicious to change. Finally, TSA can
interrupt the hostile investigation. This approach is useful in
identifying the obvious people who may cause threats to the
organization and develops mitigation strategies. The security
system can detect the malicious people that are visiting the team
that could have evil plans
The evaluation of the vulnerabilities takes a proactive approach
to recognizing the threats are their weaknesses as well as the
gaps in the organization and the strategies to reduce or mitigate
these risks. The research done at TSA is evident that the threat
brought about by the employees is complicated. As such, the
organization needs to develop policies and practices that protect
the resources that can be threatened. It can also emphasize on
the detection, prevention, and the response strategies.
Socio-Economic and Criminal Activity Factors
The socioeconomic factors that can cause vulnerability to TSA
include blemishes on the construction of roads. The wrong
design of roads can be a significant threat to the business as it
increases the chances of accidents (Voss, 2015). The people

5. responsible for this deficiencies are the construction contractors
who do not install the road safety signs and traffic lights
correctly. Another factor is the improper coning off of the zones
of the building. Roads are necessary to facilitate infrastructure
and transportation of goods. However, poorly constructed roads
can lead to fatal accidents which are a threat to the
organization. Similarly, cargo thieves can take advantage of the
nature of roads and plan on committing a fraud when the
vehicles reach the evil side of the road. Other criminals can
target the offices and breach into the information system,
causing potential risks to the proper running of the
organization.
Organization Name and Address
TRANSPORTATION AND SECURITY ADMINISTRATION
(TSA)
Week 1: Threat and Risk Assessment Paper
Week 2: Vulnerability Paper
Week 3: Managing Vulnerabilities and Applying
Countermeasures Paper
Threat
Risk
PriorityRank
Vulnerabilities
Countermeasures & Cost
Probability
Criticality
Total
Cyber Attack
6/10
7/10
13/20

6. 1
Severe
Robbery
3/10
2/10
5/20
3
Noticeable
Fire
3/10
3/10
6/20
2
Severe
References
Rivera, F. I., & Kapucu, N. (2015). Disaster Vulnerability,
Hazards and Resilience: Perspectives from Florida. Springer.
Reniers, G. L. L., & Dullaert, W. (2013). A method to assess
multi-modal Hazmat transport security vulnerabilities: Hazmat
transport SVA. Transport policy.
Voss, M., & Lorenz, D. F. (2016). Sociological Foundations of
Crisis Communication. The Handbook of International Crisis
Communication Research.
Yang, Z., Ng, A. K., & Wang, J. (2013). Prioritising security
vulnerabilities in ports. International Journal of Shipping and
Transport Logistics.