Border security is among the areas of security that the US government stands accused of inordinately focusing on since 2001. For clarification, border security includes securing every international point of entry. These points include the physical land boundaries in contiguous USA, land ports, airports, and other points of entry. The US government has invested in technology, human talent and even trained animals to limit and control entry into the USA (CBP, 2019). In recent years under the Trump Presidency, the government has adjusted its policy to tighten security at the border. New measures include reinforcing and expanding barriers at the physical border and increasing personnel staffing border points. The new policy also increased regulation of the process of allowing asylum seekers in the country (CBP, 2019). However, the above efforts have not been enough to protect the borders of the nation. In spite of the expensive and in some cases excessive efforts to protect the borders, there is still evidence that the borders remain porous. For example, large amounts of contraband goods and illegal immigrants still find their way into the USA. Perhaps the government needs a change of strategy in border security, as opposed to adding resources to a flawed process.
Based on available expert opinion, it is no longer necessary to have a large cell with sophisticated weapons in order to carry out an act of terrorism. A single radicalized individual with an implement as simple as a truck can cause monumental damage to create terror. For example, in 2017, a single radicalized individual drove a truck off the road lower Manhattan and intentionally rammed into pedestrians and cyclists (Miller & Hayward, 2018). The attack resulted in 8 fatalities and 12 injuries. Conversely, there are reported incidents of American citizens traveling out of the USA to fight alongside ISIS in the Middle East. Based on the above, terror organizations can use American citizens to carry out a terror attack on American soil. Secondly, terrorists can always find a seemingly benign way to enter into the USA. These ways include masquerading as students, business people or expatriates. Using such strategies to enter the country will overcome even the best possible border security mechanisms. The most effective way to curb terrorism is through intelligence gathering and analysis to identify and neutralize potential terror threats (Miller & Hayward, 2018).
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The two shortfalls that exist in border security that terrorists can exploit is porous water ports and ineffective or outdated technology at airports. First, America has an exponentially large collection of ports and waterways, including along both coasts. Most of the ports and waterways are open to international waters, the fact that increases vulnerability to unlawful entry (Brill, 2018). For example, a terrorist who masquerades a worker in a cargo ship may have a high chance of entering the USA undetected. The second critical vulnerability involves the quality and effectiveness of the gadgets used by airport security. Due to high volumes of travelers in American airports, most security checks rely on automated systems. An innovative terrorist may be able to get dangerous materials such as biological weapons past such systems without detection (Brill, 2018).
Finally, border security involves a careful balancing act between efficiency in travel and transmission of goods and securing border points to prevent the entry of terrorists or dangerous materials. For the Department of Homeland Security to balance between protecting the nation and ensuring ease of movement, it should invest more in advanced technology. Players in the private sector have developed advanced technology that has been effective in areas such as marketing research with a high level of success. DHS can utilize such technology to minimize the need to stop and frisk travelers. Using algorithm-based software to vet traveler will eliminate the need for long waits in queues. The algorithm-based software systems may not be foolproof, but the human-based systems are also not infallible.
References
Brill, S. (2018, January 18). 15 Years After 9/11, Is America Any Safer? Retrieved from https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2016/09/are-we-any-safer/492761/ .
CBP (2019). CBP border security. U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) report https://www.cbp.gov/document/report/border-security-report-fy2018
Miller, V., & Hayward, K. J. (2018). ‘I did my bit’: Terrorism, Tarde and the Vehicle Ramming Attack as an Imitative Event. The British Journal of Criminology , 59 (1), 1-23.
