CIS Outlines Five Emerging Security Risks to Large-Scale Events
Summary
CIS reviews five emerging risks to major events: drones, synthetic media, extremist attacks, digital ticketing vulnerabilities, and transportation sabotage, and describes planning measures for organizers and public safety officials.
Key points
- Commercial drones, including FPV models, may evade conventional venue security; CIS recommends defining detection and mitigation roles and coordinating with federal partners.
- Deepfakes and manipulated media could fuel influence operations and disrupt event communications; mitigation includes verification workflows and coordinated crisis-response procedures.
- Lone actors and small groups may target venues or less-secured areas with explosives, firearms, or vehicle ramming; recommended measures include information sharing and crisis-communications planning.
- Digital ticketing platforms face risks including DDoS, ransomware, supply-chain compromise, credential stuffing, insider misuse, and bot-driven fraud.
- CIS and MIAC recommend assessing ticketing vendors before events, monitoring platform performance and bot activity during events, and conducting post-event analysis.
- Rail and other transportation infrastructure may be sabotaged to disrupt high-profile events; warning signs include suspicious activity near equipment and messaging encouraging disruption.
Article Details
- Topic
- Emerging security risks to large-scale events, including unmanned aircraft systems, synthetic media, lone-actor and small-group violence, digital ticketing vulnerabilities, and transportation infrastructure sabotage.
Threat Actors
Countries
CanadaRecent sabotage incidents targeting transportation infrastructure during major international sporting events highlight a credible threat pattern relevant to FWC26 in the United States, Canada, and Mexico.FranceMexicoRecent sabotage incidents targeting transportation infrastructure during major international sporting events highlight a credible threat pattern relevant to FWC26 in the United States, Canada, and Mexico.RussiaFor example, a North Caucasus-based insurgent group affiliated with the broader jihadist movement in Russia conducted a series of bombings in Volgograd, Russia, in the months preceding the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics.United Statesto upcoming and ongoing events, including FIFA World Cup 2026 (FWC26), the 250th anniversary of the United States, and the 2028 Summer Olympic Games in Los Angeles.
Industries
Public transportationDisrupting public transportation can delay fans, staff, teams, and media as well as undermine public confidence in mass transit systems and event security.sports and entertainmentIndustry data indicates ransomware incidents in the sports and entertainment sector average $4-5 million in potential losses per event, including downtime, remediation, and extortion payments, with supply chain