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There’s a new playbook for threats, and most organizations haven’t read it. Actually, most organizations today aren’t planning for threats at all. A few are, but they’re planning for last year’s threats, using last year’s playbook. Meanwhile, adversaries are evolving. They’re even rewriting the rules.

Asymmetric, unconventional, threats don’t operate on your schedule or within your expectations. They don’t show up on your security survey checklists. They don’t follow protocol. These are the kinds of threats that hit you where you’re not looking. Drones flying above your perimeter. A fire alarm pulled not to clear the building, but to create just enough chaos to allow someone to walk right in.

For us, this is less about adding more cameras or locks to your systems than it is about thinking like an adversary, and building resilience before you become a headline. Most businesses today fall into one of three categories when it comes to physical and digital security. They are:

1. Not planning for threats at all
2. Planning for the wrong ones
3. Or preparing for the threats of yesterday

Adversaries aren’t bound by your protocols, and your defenses shouldn’t be bound by outdated assumptions either. If your physical security strategy doesn’t account for irregular, tech-enabled, or psychologically manipulative tactics, it’s not a matter of if you’ll be compromised, but when.

What Are Asymmetric Threats?

Asymmetric threats are irregular, unconventional tactics used by adversaries to exploit blind spots in traditional security systems. They’re called “asymmetric” because they don’t match your defenses pound for pound. They use creative and often low-cost methods to bypass the expensive, structured systems organizations rely on. These threats are:

• Unpredictable and frequently tech-enabled
• Designed to bypass protocol instead of confront it
• Built on deception, automation, or psychological manipulation
• Not easily caught by standard checklists or audits

In short, they’re not playing your game and you can’t win by sticking to old rules.

Asymmetric Security Threats

Let’s take a look at just a few of these increasingly common asymmetric threats and what makes them so dangerous, along with what you can do about them.

1. Dual Pronged Attacks

Threat: A cyberattack takes control of a physical system. Think of someone hacking into your access control system, disabling your cameras remotely, or manipulating HVAC systems to trigger a false alarm.

Security Risk: These hybrid attacks create crossover vulnerabilities. A breach in your network can open physical doors, shut down surveillance, and erase logs all without setting off a single alarm.

Why It’s Asymmetric: It’s not just digital. It’s not just physical. It’s both, and defenses need to operate across both domains to keep up. Read more from CISA on cybersecurity and physical convergence.

In 2013, a Dual Pronged Attack hit retail giant, Target.

What Happened: Attackers gained access to Target’s corporate network through a third-party HVAC contractor. The HVAC vendor’s credentials were stolen via phishing, but the attackers were able to use those credentials because Target’s internal systems were physically and digitally interconnected. Once inside, the attackers moved laterally and eventually installed malware on point-of-sale (POS) systems in stores across the U.S.

Cyber Impact: Personal and credit card data of over 40 million customers was stolen. Another 70 million records with email addresses, phone numbers, and addresses were exposed.

Physical Component: POS systems (physical devices) were the endpoint targets. Malware was installed on these devices by exploiting internal access.

Estimated cost to Target: Over $200 million.

Senior executives, including the CIO and eventually the CEO, resigned. Read a case study on the 203 Target breach here.

2. Weaponized Drones

Threat: Drones carrying small arms, surveillance devices, or explosive payloads into otherwise secure areas. They can be flown from a distance, remain airborne for extended periods, and operate with near-complete anonymity.

Security Risk: Drones can be difficult to detect and intercept due to their small size, maneuverability, and the difficulty tracking them in an urban environment. Traditional perimeter defenses like fences or patrols don’t account for the vertical dimension, leaving facilities wide open from above.

Why It’s Asymmetric: This isn’t someone with bolt cutters trying to sneak in. This is remote, aerial, and low-signature.

3. Autonomous Vehicles For Intrusions

Threat: Self-driving cars, delivery bots, or robotic systems are used to deliver dangerous devices or conduct surveillance under the guise of normalcy. A package rolls up to your dock for instance, but it’s not what it seems.

Security Risk: These systems blend in. They follow traffic laws. They look like every other vehicle on the road. Traditional vehicle screening and physical barriers may not detect a payloaded vehicle designed to blend into everyday traffic.

Why It’s Asymmetric: It weaponizes routine and familiarity. It uses automation, camouflage, and convenience as a cover.

So, What Do You Do?

Asymmetric threats aren’t new, but they’re evolving fast. You also won’t defeat asymmetric tactics with more policies. You defeat them with asymmetric thinking. That means:

• Think like an attacker
• Build relationships with frontline staff—they are your first line of defense
• Make security awareness a company culture

To understand how an adversary might breach your facility, it’s critical to test the assumptions made about your current defenses. This includes within your perimeter security, testing your team’s response to unusual scenarios, and conducting a layered review of your physical and cyber systems.

Keep Your Organization Safe

At Safe Haven Risk Management, we specialize in identifying where conventional security falls short. Our team uses Security Testing as a methodical approach to probing your systems and policies using controlled, adversary-like methods. We simulate what real threats look like and help you reinforce what matters most.

Security Vulnerability Assessments are also built to uncover overlooked threats in physical and digital security. These assessments help your organization build real-world resilience against the kinds of tactics adversaries are already using today, because if you're not thinking like them, you risk being exploited by them.
Ready to talk security? Reach out to us for your Security Vulnerability Assessment today.