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Taught by industry veteran Elijah Shaw, who in addition to his corporate clients, has traveled the world as the personal bodyguard of international public figures such as musical giant Usher, supermodel Naomi Campbell, and rap megastar 50 Cent, the course will offer real world problems, scenarios, and solutions from instructors that are currently active in the industry.

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By Bruce Alexander

You never know when the next personal protection specialist you run into might show you their teeth. Just hope its not a personal protection dog. This Miami Herald article on personal protection dogs brings an interesting perspective to Executive Protection. You can, and should, read the article yourself. I’m not adding any value by repeating the contents. However I will offer a few observations.

There’s no doubt a dog can serve as a means of personal protection but there’s a limit to what you can expect from a dog. A dog would certainly deter an attacker who was looking for a target of opportunity or keep paparazzi at arm’s length, but for a committed attacker, particularly one who has prepared a pre-attack plan, and performed even rudimentary surveillance on the target, a dog is nothing more than a minor nuisance who will be quickly dispatched at the start of the attack.

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By Eliljah Shaw

Source: Circuit –The Magazine for Bodyguards

Let’s face it, in our industry the celebrity bodyguard doesn’t always get a lot of respect. Corporate Protective Agents lump them just above club bouncers on the evolutionary ladder, while our peers that handle personal security details in war zones, such as Iraq or Afghanistan look at us as glorified babysitters. Of course both of these stereotypes are just that, a collection of generalizations that may apply to some, but definitely not to all.

However, the Ten Thousand dollar question is, if you’re in the celebrity protection industry, does it describe you? If your sole qualifications for servicing your clients are, you weigh 300 pounds and you used to play football in college, chances are they might be right. As I look at it, the difference between being a bodyguard or a buddyguard comes down to training.

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Test your Knowledge:

Who is responsible for the ceremonial Close Protection of the British Royal Family.

a.) The Household Cavalry.

b.) The Royal Military Police- Close Protection Wing.

c.) The Queens Guard.

d.) Secret Intelligence Service MI6

What is your answer?

By Dan Sommer
Offers of up to $7000 pr month plus accommodation, in a society with a rich cultural heritage, excellent nightlife and a high threat level from kidnap and assassination attempts. These are factors that explain why CPO’s are now increasingly seeking their fortune in Mexico.

The close protection industry in Mexico is expected to grown significantly during the next few years, this is due not just from the increased threat from kidnappings, which are among the highest in the world with an estimated 3000+ kidnappings a year. But today; Mexico’s elite is also at threat from the much more rapidly growing number of assassinations.

Accordingly there were an estimated 1300 assassinations carried out in Mexico in 2004, an estimated 1800 assassinations in 2005 and so far the first nine months of 2006 have already passed the 1700 mark!

Who and Why. The usual victims have been found among drug dealers and police officers involved one way or another in the drug trade, but today businessmen who have been unwilling to “assist” the drug cartels are increasingly finding themselves targeted as well.

Drug Cartels are now increasingly seeking the cooperation of major Mexican corporations in the import, storing, packing and transport of drugs to the US markets; simply because many of the corporations already have extensive and efficient transport and export systems in place. (more…)