SIA Guard Terrorism Awareness & Counter-Terrorism 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What does the 'Run, Hide, Tell' guidance advise in the event of a terrorist firearms or weapons attack?
- Run towards the threat to protect others, hide the public, tell the attacker to stop
- Run away if safe to do so, hide if running is not possible, tell the police when safe (Correct answer)
- Run evacuation procedures, hide classified information, tell the emergency coordinator
- Run perimeter checks, hide in the control room, tell all staff to shelter
Correct answer: Run away if safe to do so, hide if running is not possible, tell the police when safe
Run, Hide, Tell is the UK's official guidance advising people to run to safety if possible, hide if running is not an option, and call 999 when it is safe to do so.
Question 2: What does the acronym HOT stand for when assessing a suspicious package?
- Heavy, Obvious, Threatening
- Hazardous, Odorous, Ticking
- Hidden, Owner absent, Threatening in appearance (Correct answer)
- Harmful, Overheated, Timed
Correct answer: Hidden, Owner absent, Threatening in appearance
HOT stands for Hidden (concealed or left unattended), Owner absent, and Threatening in appearance — the three key NaCTSO indicators when assessing a suspect package.
Question 3: What is the recommended minimum safe evacuation distance from a suspected car bomb?
- 50 metres
- 100 metres
- 200 metres (Correct answer)
- 500 metres
Correct answer: 200 metres
Counter Terrorism Policing recommends a minimum evacuation distance of 200 metres from a suspected car-sized vehicle bomb.
Question 4: What is Project Griffin in the context of UK counter-terrorism?
- A classified MI5 surveillance operation targeting known extremists
- A police-led initiative that briefs and trains security personnel to respond to terrorist incidents (Correct answer)
- A government database of suspected terrorists shared with private security companies
- A scheme to harden physical security measures at government buildings
Correct answer: A police-led initiative that briefs and trains security personnel to respond to terrorist incidents
Project Griffin is a police-led counter-terrorism initiative that briefs and trains business and security staff on how to respond to and report suspicious activity and major incidents.
Question 5: What should a security officer do FIRST upon discovering a suspicious package?
- Carefully open the package to determine its contents
- Move the package to an outside area away from people
- Do not touch it, keep people away and immediately alert the police (Correct answer)
- Wrap the package in a jacket to contain any explosion
Correct answer: Do not touch it, keep people away and immediately alert the police
The correct response is never to touch, open, or move a suspicious package — the priority is to keep people away and notify the police immediately.
Question 6: Which of the following behaviours is MOST likely to indicate hostile reconnaissance?
- Taking photographs of tourist landmarks during the day
- Repeatedly visiting a location to sketch or photograph entrances, security measures and staff patterns (Correct answer)
- Asking a security officer for directions to the nearest exit
- Arriving at a venue with a large group of friends
Correct answer: Repeatedly visiting a location to sketch or photograph entrances, security measures and staff patterns
Hostile reconnaissance involves systematically gathering information about a potential target, including entry/exit points, security layouts, and staff routines, to plan an attack.
Question 7: Under which government campaign are members of the public and security staff encouraged to report suspicious behaviour to the police?
- Stop and Search
- See It, Say It, Sorted (Correct answer)
- Operation Kratos
- Alert Response
Correct answer: See It, Say It, Sorted
'See It, Say It, Sorted' is the UK government's public awareness campaign urging people to report suspicious behaviour, particularly on transport networks.
SIA Guard Terrorism Awareness & Counter-Terrorism 1
What does the 'Run, Hide, Tell' guidance advise in the event of a terrorist firearms or weapons attack?