(Continued from Part 3. This concludes the article.)
TACTICS FOR DELIVERING A DROP
To place a drop without someone noticing that is what you are doing takes practice. You will need to practice like mentioned prior, as sleight of hand skill goes a long way to placing a drop. Gently setting a rolled-up newspaper into a trash can where another person picks it up just walking by might work when everyone’s head is buried in their phones, but certainly will get you found out if someone is observing you. Here are some cardinal rules for prioritizing drop tactics, if you cannot perform the former, adhere to the latter:
1.) No witnesses, large area.
a. Easy to conceal the drop, with a wide area to avoid a “brute force discovery”.
b. Allows a custom selection of drop locations, with minimal risk of being discovered (both parties).
2.) No witnesses, smaller area.
a. Easy to conceal the drop, but a higher risk of “brute force discovery” (think tearing apart a bedroom).
b. Smaller spaces only have so many places to hide something.
c. Camouflage must be heavily adhered to.
d. Being an are where witnesses are not usually present, using tactics like prying the edge of a duct vent or piece of wood molding can be used effectively. Think of a public bathroom, ever see things pried or ripped apart? This is often because criminals use this tactic too to hide drugs, so use discretion on the location that you choose.
3.) Witnesses, large area.
a. Drop must be tactfully placed, and reasonably camouflaged
b. Timing is important when depositing. If you place something when everyone is “busy” doing something (like during rush hour traffic or when a light changes on the crosswalk), they are much less likely to notice the placement action.
c. The more people, the more eyes…and hence the more tactfully the drop must be placed.
d. Larger area allows more space between you and others, use foliage and structure to your advantage to momentarily break the line of sight when making a drop.
e. Make your pause to deposit seem intentional. 15 minutes cloud gazing will calm the soul (and allow you to carefully place that USB drive under the lip of the bench you are sitting on).
4.) Witnesses, smaller area.
a. Drop must be very tactfully placed, and well camouflaged
b. Timing is important when depositing, but it is likely that you cannot hide something efficiently.
c. This scenario is where acting and “dressing the part” come into play. Hiding in plain sight is a must in this scenario, and both the drop and retrieve must be seamless.
d. Some tactful depositing roles could be:
d.i. A bricklayer filling in some broken mortar as a “building restoration volunteer” (and depositing a drop while doing the job.
d.ii. Tending to a semi-public space landscape (you can volunteer for these things anyway!) and placing drops in bushes during your pruning or under rocks when weeding.
d.iii. A window washer or graffiti cleaner that “accidentally” leaves a marked rag or brush behind. Sometime a good person will notice and return it immediately. Gauge your timing.
d.iv. Trash collectors, garbage attendants, trash pickers…all great opportunities to handle things nobody wants to touch and plan for your easy collection of drops.
e. In most cases, volunteering for things will open doors for you to deposit drops with practically zero suspicion. Depending on the viewability of the drop and retrieve, you will have to gauge your involvement with these type of activities as a requirement.
Continue reading“Silent, Secure Communication – Part 3, by P.J.”
