Publications

The JRC has recently published a set of video tutorials for beginners in numerical simulations with the Europlexus program.

This report contains recommendations for prevention of crime and dangerous polarisation processes at the local level. Both phenomena threaten social cohesion and, conversely, can be alleviated by strengthening it.

The European Investment Advisory Hub has published a report, which identifies and defines key financial metrics and default values for security-related investments. The report aims to serve as a tool for people dealing with security related project, presenting them with financial metrics to assess costs and benefits of projects and security solutions.

This study aims to improve the evidence base on vehicular terrorist attacks that have occurred since 2013 in the EU, Israel, United States and United Kingdom and understand what measures could be employed to prevent or mitigate such attacks in the future.

This guide aims at helping smaller and medium-sized places of worship to enhance awareness and security preparedness, by listing basic vulnerability assessment steps, without altering the nature and purpose of the space.

The report provides a relatively new method in the European context - the collective impact model, which local security managers can implement to find new innovative solutions for complex and persistent urban security challenges

The Urban Agenda partnership has published a manual on the use of the Prevention Pyramid, a concept developed by Johan Deklerck, as a scientific instrument for integral and positive prevention, which aims to avoid a one-sided approach of insecurity. The main idea is to integrate crime-related social problem dimensions into prevention policy. The pyramid is a reference framework for developing prevention policies and practices aiming at a combination of general and specific measures within an integrated approach.

The Urban Agenda partnership has published a report which discusses the use of facial recognition technologies for the protection of public spaces. It provides an overview of the use of such technologies in the EU, provides concrete case-studies and discusses the technological vulnerabilities and practical challenges with implementation. The report looks in detail into the legal issues surrounding the use of facial recognition technologies and concludes with recommendations.

This guide provides a list of the available information sources focusing on the protection of public spaces against terrorist and other types of malicious extremist attacks

This scientific publication by scientists from the European Commission's Joint Research Centre uses the 2020 explosion in the Port of Beirut in Lebanon as a case study to assess the performance of a 3D large-scale urbanistic finite element model used to estimate the effects of explosion events in urban environments in terms of both structural damage and human casualties. This computational tool provides urban planners and decision makers with valuable information for vulnerability assessment and aid developing prevention or mitigation solutions.

The Guidance is a collection of best practices. It identifies the key guiding principles that any explosive detection dog team should observe during operational deployments. The aim of the document is to offer Member States public authorities and private operators with advice on how to most effectively use explosive detection dogs during different search missions in different work environments.

Schutz vor Anschlägen mit Fahrzeugen

The Joint Research Centre of the European Commission has published a guideline document with practical advice on the selection and installation of elements that are able to stop and/or deter potential terrorist attacks.

The harmonisation of vehicle barrier testing standards across the EU will ensure common performance and security levels and will enhance the single market for security products. Harmonization can be assisted through the use of numerical methods. Numerical simulations are cost-efficient and can be used to assess different impact scenarios (changing the vehicle’s velocity, its type or its angle of impact). Numerical testing methods will also open the way to creativity and the development of innovative protective structures which are integrated to the urban aesthetics and cultural character of the surrounding area. Guidelines for the use of numerical tools can be placed at the disposal of urban authorities and security operators for the assessment of ad-hoc security solutions.

The guideline "Selecting proper security barrier solutions for public space protection" presents how protection against vehicle-ramming attacks can be designed. The guideline is available in English and now also in French and can be requested via JRC-PUBLIC-SPACES@ec.europa.eu.

This technical guide provides an overview of a design procedure for structures under blast loading. It is addressed to design engineers offering ways to estimate blast loading on structures and on their response under such types of actions.

Researchers look into the design of meandering access control zones inside or in close proximity to buildings in view of the risk of internal explosive events. The numerical models demonstrate that properly installed meandering walls limit the consequences of an internal blast and guarantee that the produced blast wave does not propagate into vulnerable areas.

Under the coordination of DG HOME and working together with public authorities and private operators of different sectors as public transport, mass events, hospitality and commerce, the Commission has identified good practices for operators and public authorities to improve the protection of public spaces.

Recent terrorist attacks have targeted public spaces, which are vulnerable due to their open nature and public character. The European Commission has published 2017 an Action Plan to support the protection of public spaces. It aims at supporting EU Member States through dedicated funding, fostering the exchange of best practice by establishing and facilitating networks and providing guidance material. The work, which is led by DG HOME, commits the European Commission to increase cooperation at EU level to support the protection of public spaces. This newsletter is one of the fora for exchange of related expertise and best practice in this context. It will contain information on scientific and technical findings, targeted guidance material, in-depth analysis of practical issues related to the protection of public spaces, stories of best practices and lessons learnt from urban administrations, information about upcoming events and opportunities for funding of projects.