The following advice comes from the UK’s Centre for the Protection of National Infrastructure.
Delivered items, which include letters, parcels, packages and anything delivered by post or courier, have been a commonly used terrorist device. A properly conducted risk assessment should give you a good idea of the likely threat to your organisation and indicate precautions you need to take.
Delivered items may be explosive or incendiary (the two most likely kinds), or conceivably chemical, biological or radiological. Anyone receiving a suspicious delivery is unlikely to know which type it is, so procedures should cater for every eventuality. A delivered item will probably have received fairly rough handling in the post and so is unlikely to detonate through being moved, but any attempt at opening it may set it off. Unless delivered by courier, it is unlikely to contain a timing device. Delivered items come in a variety of shapes and sizes; a well-made one will look innocuous but there may be tell-tale signs.
Indicators of a suspicious delivered item include:
- it is unexpected or of unusual origin or from an unfamiliar sender
- there is no return address or the address cannot be verified
- it is poorly or inaccurately addressed, e.g. incorrect title, spelt wrongly, title but no name or addressed to an individual no longer with the company the address has been printed unevenly or in an unusual way the writing is in an unfamiliar or unusual style
- there are unusual postmarks or postage paid marks
- a Jiffy bag, or similar padded envelope, has been used
- it seems unusually heavy for its size. Most letters weigh up to about 30g, whereas most effective letter bombs weigh 50–100g and are 5mm or more thick
- it has more than the appropriate value of stamps for its size and weight
- it is marked ‘personal’ or ‘confidential’
- it is oddly shaped or lopsided
- the envelope flap is stuck down completely (a normal letter usually has an ungummed gap of 35mm at the corners)
- there is a pin-sized hole in the envelope or package wrapping
- there is any unusual smell, including but not restricted to almonds, ammonia or marzipan
- it has greasy or oily stains on the envelope
- there is an additional inner envelope and it is tightly taped or tied (however, in some organisations sensitive material is sent in double envelopes as standard procedure).
For advice about how to protect yourself, visit the CPNI. For more information about protecting your business against online threats, visit Get Safe Online.
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