As meetings, conventions, and trade shows return to the business landscape, “we’ve been focused on Covid and that needs to remain a priority. But we cannot take our focus off of physical security” for event venues and participants, says William Flynn, a former official in the Department of Homeland Security’s Infrastructure Protection department. “The threats might be greater now than before the pandemic.”

During a late April webinar titled “Exhibition & Venue Security: Protecting Mass Gatherings,” Flynn and other experts detailed the shifting event threats that come from economic and social unrest. Hosted by the Exhibit Service Contractors Association and the International Association for Venue Management, the online session outlined the new motivations and methods of potentially violent actors along with the ways planners can work with venue management and local authorities to protect lives and property. 

Flynn said that with so much happening across society in the 14 months since the pandemic began in the United States, organizers cannot simply refer back to the security manuals from their past in-person events. First, the possibility of a lone individual committing a violent or disruptive act has risen because of economic upheaval and layoffs—conventions and trade shows are a convenient target for retaliation, he noted, while the recent spate of mass shootings across the country could further motivate a potential actor.

“Unfortunately, lone actors pose tough detection and disruption challenges,” Flynn said. “Event staff and venue staff must be trained in identifying people who exhibit unusual behavior and in using de-escalation techniques with a potentially violent person. Also, everyone on the team must know the protocol for alerting others and responding to alerts if anyone sees something suspicious.”

Mark Herrera, director of education and life safety for IAVM, added that the possibilities for disruptive political and social protests in a host destination require preemptive action. Swarms of protestors moving quickly into a space pose the most obvious challenge, but “vehicle-access management [pictured here] and worker-access protocols are more critical now,” Herrera noted. “With so many vendors working an event, the potential is there for unauthorized people to try to slip in.” Pre-event intelligence related to possible coordinated threats should be shared between the event host, venue management, and local police.

Lastly, event planners should ensure that the entry lines into an event space are kept to a minimum so that outsiders do not have access to large numbers of participants, Herrera advised. Also recommended: having vehicle barriers placed outside of any venue doors that open to the street.

To understand how meeting and event venues approach safety and security, check out IAVM’s Public Assembly Facilities Recovery Guide.

And for a comprehensive overview of security-risk management for events, check out this MeetingsNet guide.