OSAC Belgium Brussels Country Council

Executive Working Group

An Executive Working Group is staffed by the Council Co-Chairs, the Executive Director, and three representatives selected from among the Council representatives. The Executive Working Group (EWG) provides the leadership and strategic direction of the Council and committee initiatives. The EWG reviews and assists with the successful completion and implementation of all committee objectives.

Committee for Security Awareness and Innovation

Committee for Country Councils and Outreach

Committee on Threats and Information Sharing

Along with the thirty-four members Council, OSAC utilizes technical advisors from the U.S. Government and subject-matter experts from the private sector to assist the committees with special projects. The technical advisors include representatives from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Genzyme, Michigan State University, National Security Agency, Office of the Director of National Intelligence, Prudential PLC, Transportation Security Administration, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Secret Service, U.S. Coast Guard, and the U.S. Department of State.

Current OSAC Member Organizations (June 2010)

OSAC Executive Office

The Executive Office is currently comprised of two senior Special Agents from the State Department's Bureau of Diplomatic Security (DS) who act as the Executive Director and Deputy Executive Director, a Chief of the Research and Information Support Center plus seventeen International Security Specialists, an OSAC Program Specialist, and two Executive Assistants.

Research and Information Support Center (RISC)

With the assistance of the U.S. Department of Commerce, OSAC established the Research and Information Support Center (RISC) in 1997. RISC is currently comprised of a division chief and seventeen International Security Specialists divided into regional and functional areas. The RISC staff interfaces and liaises with the private sector, the Bureau of Diplomatic Security and other federal agencies, and U.S. diplomatic missions around the world on matters of security involving U.S. firms and their employees. RISC gauges threats to U.S. private sector investment, personnel, facilities, and intellectual property abroad. With access to a broad range of classified and unclassified reporting from American embassies abroad, as well as open source information, RISC can track social, political, and economic issues that impact the security of the private sector operating overseas. The RISC staff conducts open source research to provide time-sensitive unclassified analytical products and updates. RISC is now able to provide “any enterprise incorporated in the United States doing business abroad” with timely security-related information of an unclassified nature by means of the website. The staff of RISC is dedicated full time to the American private sector to respond to inquiries and research security-related issues. The group averages 400 telephone consultations per month with constituents where information is passed regarding the overseas security environment.

Website

The OSAC website is operated and maintained by the State Department’s Bureau of Diplomatic Security information technology support team. Established in January 2005, the current website was significantly enhanced to incorporate state of the art technology and constituent feedback. It is the focal point for the exchange of unclassified information between the U.S. Department of State and the private sector on security-related incidents and threats overseas. Some of the information accessible from the website include Department of State Travel Warnings and Public Announcements; daily security-related news articles; overseas reports on security and crime incidents; terrorist group profiles; timely presentations on current terrorist attacks and other incidents; general crime information for cities and countries; locations and contacts at U.S. posts overseas; and updates on new or unusual situations. The OSAC website recently expanded to include cyber threat information, critical incident reporting, and specific traveler information. The critical incident reporting section has been enhanced to become more interactive for constituents to post incidents and query the database. OSAC website access is now available to Federal, State, and local law enforcement and public safety agencies as Associates. Country Councils (discussed later) now have individual country-specific websites. The OSAC website is an encrypted site, which requires a password.

Country Councils

OSAC initiated an outreach program to assist the U.S. private sector with the establishment of “country councils” in selected foreign cities to provide a forum for implementing the in-country overseas portion of this security information-sharing concept. The country councils are aimed at building on what already exists, since many U.S. Embassies have already established contact with American private sector representatives in their areas. There are currently 143 OSAC country councils operating in the Middle East, Africa, Europe, Asia, and the Western Hemisphere. Additional ƒcities are in various stages of developing and establishing their own country council. By establishing country councils in major cities abroad, OSAC facilitates and encourages security managers of U.S. private sector enterprises to organize themselves to better cope with security problems and threats. Key representatives of these councils and U.S. embassy security officers, as well as other key embassy officials, are developing working relationships to create an exchange of information through which pertinent, unclassified security information is exchanged in a timely fashion. In addition, the councils provide a forum to promote cooperation regarding other security issues and global threats of mutual concern. Go to the Country Council section for a current list and the country council websites.