The Decision Advantage

In the news over the past few weeks were reports of major cybercrime. From a massive supply chain hack disrupting businesses and ransomware attacks to Israel's military reaction to a reported cyber attack. On today's episode of Stratfor Talks, Chief Security Officer Fred Burton and VP of Tactical Analysis, Scott Stewart, discuss the connection between major hacks, and state-and-non-state-sponsored hackers, and how businesses can do due diligence before a hack occurs.

Kimberly Haley-Coleman is founder and Executive Director of Globe Aware, a nonprofit company that develops short-term volunteer programs in international environments. The idea is to provide an immersive volunteer experience for busy professionals who want to make a difference in a short amount of time on projects that are actually requested by the communities they serve. Prior to this adventure, Haley-Coleman had a varied professional, private sector career with one recurring theme: international business. Success in working internationally can hinge on some basic applied geopolitics: of the implications of the history, social and cultural mores, business practices, geography, politics and infrastructure of the countries where you choose to business. Because Haley-Coleman knows Global Awareness first-hand as both a for-profit and non-profit leader, Stratfor decided to interview her. Two main themes emerged in the following conversation: Being aware of and mitigating risk, and the need to understand at a deeper level where and with whom you are working. Both of which are core to Stratfor's forecasting. 

It happened unexpectedly. The whole city was afraid. No one could see. Many could not breathe. And amid the terror of London's Great Smog of 1952, a different, equally sinister drama was underway. The London Smog killed an estimated 12,000 people. But those were not the only people who died in those dark days. Kate Winkler Dawson’s book, Death in the Air, tells two parallel stories of the Great Smog, both of which left victims choking.

You're fed up. You're considered the world's most dangerous assassin. A lot of people want to take you down. And you still have to get your job done. Mission Critical is the latest in Mark Greaney's Gray Man series. This one involves state actors, espionage, a secret prisoner and a race against time. Mark Greaney sits down to discuss his career, his Gray Man series and espionage with Stratfor's Fred Burton.

Author Michael Pullara spent years trying to solve the question of why CIA agent, Freddie Woodruff, was murdered in 1993. Amid transformative world events, Pullara manages to discover enough to set a wrongfully accused free and to connect the dots of espionage and counter-espionage during the end of the Cold War.  

There are people in this world who need protecting; among them presidents, royals, diplomats, the rich and the famous. And then there are the people who do the protecting; the secret service, the bodyguards, the security officers. But who are these people and how are they trained? And why do they undertake such a profession? Stratfor Chief Security Officer Fred Burton sits down with international security and intelligence professional and now author, Michael W. Trott to discuss his book, The Protected, which offers a peek inside the practice of Executive Protection.

How did Cold War governments plan to preserve the continuity of power in the face of devastating nuclear war? Lots of planning and a fair amount of creative problem solving. In this episode of the Stratfor Podcast, Chief Security Officer Fred Burton sits down with author Garrett Graff to discuss his book, Raven Rock: The Story of the U.S. Government’s Secret Plan to Save Itself–While the Rest of Us Die.

North Korea has indicated its interested in holding a second summit between Kim Jong-Un and U.S. President Donald Trump. The White House has indicated its interest in a summit as well, but when would it take place... if it happens at all? Stratfor Senior Vice President of Strategic Analysis Rodger Baker explains the geopolitical constraints and opportunities surrounding any second U.S.-North Korea summit.

On April 18, 1983, a vehicle packed with explosives detonated in front of the United States Embassy in Beirut. Those killed in the suicide attack included the entire U.S. intelligence presence in Lebanon at that time. The man sent by the CIA to pick up the pieces was William Buckley. Buckley’s story is the focus of the latest book from New York Times best selling authors Fred Burton and Samuel Katz. In this episode of the podcast, host Ben Sheen sits down with Stratfor Chief Security Officer Fred Burton to discuss Beirut Rules: The Murder of a CIA Station Chief and Hezbollah’s War Against America.  

As Great Britain prepared its military to battle Nazi Germany in World War II, a select few were deployed behind enemy lines as part of a new program to lead a resistance, carry out intelligence operations and harass German forces, slowing their ability to solidify control of the continent. In this episode of the podcast, we hear the true story of two brothers tasked with just such a mission. Stratfor Chief Security Officer Fred Burton sits down with author, journalist and Stratfor Worldview Contributor Charles Glass to discuss his latest book, They Fought Alone: The True Story of the Starr Brothers, British Secret Agents in Nazi-occupied France.