While 2021 saw a
A mail threat could come in the form of a white powder letter, chemical agent, biological hazard or explosive device. Granted, while these threats typically do more PR harm than physical harm, security expert Will Plummer says companies should not gamble with their reputation or worse, their employees' lives.
Plummer is the chief security officer at mailroom security company RaySecur, and an Army veteran who earned a Bronze Star with Valor as a master explosive ordnance disposal technician. He’s trained to spot potential threats, and says COVID has been a catalyst that’s put employers on guard.
“People have been remote for the last 18 to 24 months, which means they have been working with company laptops and cell phones in their homes,” says Plummer. “Layoffs happen and equipment goes back — this means companies are bringing all those potential threats inside their facility intentionally.”
Read more:
Plummer notes that most threats will be from internal sources, like current or former employees, and are rooted in someone’s outrage or frustration with the company. He names the vaccine mandates as an example that may drive people to an extreme reaction, regardless of what side they are on.
“Whether you're mandating or you're not mandating, somebody is going to be upset by it,” Plummer says. “Then, corporate headquarters and senior leadership becomes a target.”
Plummer recalls a case that occurred at the Subway headquarters just last year after the company laid off 200 employees. A letter was received at 4:00 in the afternoon on a Thursday, and after someone opened it, employees were exposed to white powder. The hazmat team came in and four hours later, the powder was deemed non-hazardous. Subway took a temporary hit to their stocks and incurred national media attention.
“Companies are first worried about taking care of their people,” says Plummer. “But the second thing they are worried about is getting caught by local media in the parking lot and their security threat story goes national.”
Read more:
And while non-hazardous powder at least poses no health threat to workers, Plummer is seeing more and more cases where substances turn out to be corrosive, meaning it can cause damage to someone from either internal or external exposure. For example, people may send bleach or fuels as well as powders like caustic soda, which can burn the skin. Plummer has even seen wasabi sent to mailrooms, causing a temporary burning sensation in the sinuses and requiring medical attention.
Just last year, Dr. Anthony Fauci received what turned out to be a benign white powder threat. However, he told the New York Times he initially feared it was ricin, which is a highly potent toxin that can lead to death if enough of it is ingested, inhaled or even injected. Since there is no cure for ricin and it can be found in seeds of castor oil plants, it’s an appealing option for those who wish to do considerable harm, explains Plummer.
“This year saw the highest rates in caustic materials that were mailed back, compared to two previous years we have tracked,” says Plummer. “So where it might've been flour in 2019, now it's caustic soda, powder bleach or worse. We have companies that are worried about everything from bloodborne pathogens to fecal matter.”
Read more:
RaySecur provides a millimeter-wave scanning device, which identifies threats before they even enter a facility, alongside 24/7 reach-back, where an expert will guide a company through the next steps once a threat is detected. The company has worked with a Supreme Court nominee and Pete Buttigieg’s campaign team, among other high-profile clients to ensure mail security. Above all else, Plummer advises companies to have a mail screening program and train workers on how to confront a potential threat once it’s identified by the scanner.
“If you train people, then you empower them to make decisions and protect themselves,” he says. “The problem is a lot of these companies just don't allocate the time for it.”
However, mail security may become more commonplace as workplaces undergo changes that incite discord and even animosity among workers.
“It’s an escalation process, where someone may complain in a tweet to the world and then in an email — and still nobody listens,” Plummer says. “So it escalates to a physical level. Companies just need to make sure everybody’s taken care of as well as humanly possible.”
