Covert Protection (CovPro) is the most misunderstood style of protection used today. This is due to false notions and, by some, a lack of desire to change from the protection styles of the past. Covert means that nobody is supposed to know that there's a protective operative around. It's not a question of hiding or camouflaging but of blending in and making it appear like the operator is not engaged in a protection or intelligence operation.
In the government sector, some make the distinction between the terms covert and clandestine. According to the U.S. Department of Defense, a clandestine operation differs from a covert operation in that emphasis is placed on concealment of the operation rather than on concealment of the identity of the sponsor. In the private sector, this is typically viewed as a distinction without much of a difference. In a nutshell, CovPro is the art of protecting the principle without anyone else knowing the principal is actively being protected.
One key distinction that separates CovPro from other styles of EP is that the principal should never meet the CovPro operators. CovPro operators operate in the principal's bubble (the area secured by CovPro around the principal) but do not drive, walk with, or engage with the principal unless an emergency occurs. Should an emergency occur, the principal and CovPro operators communicate in a predetermined manner (not described in detail here for operational security purposes), so the principal has 100% confirmation that risk is being mitigated by the CovPro team.
CovPro often includes multiple bubbles of protection and requires experienced EP practitioners with extensive training in this specific style of protection. CovPro Bubbles differ from traditional rings of security because the bubble can expand and contract as needed and requires constant calibration by CovPro practitioners.
The size of the CovPro Bubble is less important than maintaining the ability to secure the bubble around the principal. This continuous changing of the distance from the principal requires constant assessment and can be a challenging concept for experienced security practitioners who are accustomed to the more traditional concentric circles of security that have traditionally been used in the protection industry.
Many mistakenly describe CovPro as LowPro or plain-clothed EP. Others describe CovPro as SD, CS, or just surveillance. This further illustrates that CovPro is the most misunderstood style of EP since each of these is equally inaccurate and quite often used by experienced protectors, propelling a false narrative due to ignorance.
CovPro operators use a combination of hard and soft skills such as EP, Emergency Medical Technician, Protective Driving, Firearms Skills, Hostile Vulnerability Assessments, Behavioral Detection, Technology Integration, Surveillance Detection, Counter Surveillance, and Emergency Response Capabilities. Each of these skills must be developed, honed, and deployed in the appropriate doses for a CovPro team to be a viable option for risk mitigation. Since 2012, six different CovPro teams have started and failed due to various reasons, but each was plagued with predictable obstacles that experienced CovPro managers and directors understand to be incompatible with sustainable CovPro operations.
This is a fairly new style of EP since the first publicly disclosed, full-time private-sector CovPro team was established in 2012. This team continues to be in operation at the time of this writing and currently sets the standard for excellence in CovPro operations.
This groundbreaking team of professionals consists of two teams: Covert Protection and Surveillance Detection Teams. These teams operate in coordinated independence and provide augmentation for the EP team. This specific team is comprised of former SEALS, GRS, SWAT, and highly talented EP practitioners who have demonstrated their ability to change their protection mindset and have met the rigors of the CovPro selection process. Each member of this team was selected for their contributions but also for their ability to protect the principal without looking like, acting like, or behaving like traditional security.
The teams that have been developed since the creation of this team deploy similar variations of the original CovPro style of protection, but each has unique variations to accommodate the specific needs of their principals. This is far more challenging than is obvious to the casual observer since most EP practitioners spend many years becoming an overt deterrence that is intentionally obvious to anyone with nefarious intent.
Due to the extensive training, demanding operational environment, and team size requirements, CovPro is (in many cases) a more expensive protective option than traditional EP. However, this unique style of protection facilitates the protection of at-risk individuals without impeding their lifestyle. This distinction is important to someone who cares little about spending and is extremely careful who they let into their inner circle. This is one reason this style of protection is attractive to many principals, once they realize CovPro can protect them from the risks they face while allowing them to live their lives unencumbered by fear and unrestricted by the more traditional but obvious presence of overt protectors.
CovPro was created to augment the work of traditional EP practitioners but, since its increased use by private sector security teams, has also served as a means of protection without overt EP. CovPro without overt EP should only be deployed in situations when the principal is not facing a high level of risk and he or she understands that CovPro offers a protective bubble but, in some cases, the response time to mitigate a physical attack can be different than traditional EP since CovPro operators may be farther away. These are key principles of CovPro that should not be overlooked. CovPro operators understand these principles and countermeasures have been perfected to mitigate both by the use of the many CovPro skills described above, as well as the use of the coordinated bubbles of CovPro and SD.
Low-profile operators are usually plain-clothed individuals (dressed like the people around them) who try not to draw any attention or make it too obvious that they are providing protection. Most untrained people will not notice who they are or what they are doing, but trained, experienced, or observant individuals might.
Strictly speaking, low-profile isn't an attempt to hide security. It is just to make it less conspicuous and attention-grabbing. This is an often-used variation of traditional EP that provides the principal protection but isn't as obtrusive or obvious to those around them. It is used by many high net worth families, especially when protecting children. It sometimes includes the use of male/female teams that look like another couple in the crowd.
SD is a series of covert procedures and tactics designed and implemented to confirm or deny whether there is hostile surveillance of a principal, place, or event. SD takes place over a given period and, where relevant, over distance.
One definition that I like of SD is “The secret, continuous, periodic watching of persons, vehicles, places or objects to obtain information concerning the activities and identities of individuals.” It's all about information gathering on individuals or groups and using this to detect possible correlation.
SD aims to prevent a hostile act before it happens by identifying surveillants and, thus, enabling disruption of the attack in the planning phase. Most attacks require pre-attack information to succeed. For that reason, hostiles need to be in the field to collect and/or verify the information. The presence of hostiles in the field is an opportunity for the Surveillance Detection Agent (SDAs) or Surveillance Detection Enabled Agent (SDEAs) to detect them before the actual attack, disrupting it proactively.
Counter Surveillance (CS) is best described as the act of following or countering surveillance. It can also be defined by physical security enhancements to prevent or deter surveillance.
The key difference between SD and CS is that CS is conducted once hostile surveillance is suspected or identified. This can be accomplished via various methods such as using vehicles, CS teams or individuals on foot, or by the use of more sophisticated methods such as electronic tracking methods and state-of-the-art technology that makes it harder for surveillants to know CS is being conducted.
The tactics and tools used will vary depending on the situation. It can be as basic as an individual walking behind the surveillants or as complicated as an entire CS team using both physical and technical surveillance.