North American Security Threats Evolve Amid Changing Risk Landscape

The global security landscape is undergoing significant shifts, with North America facing an increasingly complex array of threats, according to WTW.

At Least 10 Killed In New Orleans After Truck Plows Into Crowd On Bourbon St

North American security threats are evolving rapidly in 2025, with notable shifts in mass shooting incidents, political violence, and terrorism patterns, while corporate leaders face heightened risks following the assassination of UnitedHealthcare’s CEO, according to a WTW report on global crisis management.

Globally, the most regular incident type was threats, comprising 26% of the total number of incidents in 2024 managed by Alert:24, which is WTW’s security and crisis management advisory practice. As with 2023, threats were reported by clients from all regions of the world. U.S. clients continued to witness the greatest number of threats, with the U.K., Mexico, and South Africa also seeing a notable number of this peril, according to the report.

Worldwide kidnapping incidents responded to by the team grew to approximately 21% last year from from 16% in 2023, WTW reported. This was driven by a surge of express kidnappings, which predominantly occurred in Latin America, with notifications to WTW’s Crisis Support Team from Brazil, Colombia, and Mexico. Cases of the kidnap peril in 2024 were also notified from the UAE in the Middle East.

Medical emergencies were the third most common incident type globally, accounting for 14% of 2024 incident alerts to Alert:24.

Source: Alert:24 Operations Centre 2024

North American Review

The U.S. witnessed a significant decrease in mass shootings in 2024, with the number of incidents falling by 27% compared with the previous year, according to the report. According to data from the Gun Violence Archive, there were 503 mass shootings in 2024, down from 689 in 2023. Similarly, mass murders, as defined by the FBI, saw a 25% reduction, dropping to 30 incidents in 2024 from 40 incidents in 2023.

Despite this encouraging trend, the numbers remain alarmingly high when compared to pre-COVID averages. Between 2015 and 2019, the U.S. averaged 362.2 mass shootings annually, indicating that current levels are still substantially elevated, WTW reported.

“Higher rates of mass shootings and mass murder may be partially attributed to the lasting effects of the pandemic era, which led to significant social upheaval and disruptions to daily life – including in work, school, and relationships. It could also be attributed to the growing levels of polarization influencing individuals receptive to extreme ideals to commit violence,” the WTW report stated.

In response to the ongoing threat of violence, several states have implemented new legislation aimed at enhancing workplace safety. California’s Senate Bill 553, which went into effect in July 2024, requires nearly all private employers in the state to implement plans to prevent specific types of workplace violence.

New York followed suit with the Retail Worker Safety Act, mandating violence prevention plans for most retail stores and requiring larger retailers to install panic buttons. The health care sector has also seen targeted legislation, with states like California, Ohio, and North Carolina passing laws to improve violence prevention in hospitals.

Political Violence Evolution

The 2024 U.S. presidential election campaign was marred by two failed assassination attempts on then-candidate Donald Trump, including a shooting at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, that injured Trump and killed a supporter. Despite these incidents, the election itself passed without significant outbreaks of violence or unrest, largely due to the decisive outcome, the report stated.

However, the assassination of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in December 2024 has raised new concerns about political violence targeting corporate leaders. This incident has highlighted potential threats to executives in politically salient industries, prompting a reevaluation of security protocols for business leaders across various sectors, according to WTW.

The threat of lone-wolf terrorism continues to pose a significant challenge to security forces across North America, the report stated. On New Year’s Day 2025, an Islamic State (IS) sympathizer carried out a devastating vehicle ramming attack in New Orleans, killing 14 people and injuring dozens more. The attacker, identified as Shamsud Din Jabbar, a Texas resident and former U.S. Army soldier, had reportedly been radicalized within the past year following a series of personal setbacks.

This attack, while shocking, is not an isolated incident, according to the WTW report. Federal authorities have disrupted multiple terror plots by individuals inspired by or loosely affiliated with IS. In October 2024, a man in Oklahoma City was indicted for planning an attack on Election Day on behalf of the Islamic State Khorasan Province (IS-KP). That same month, authorities in Arizona arrested a juvenile for plotting to bomb an LGBTQ pride parade in Phoenix in support of IS.

The persistent threat of lone-wolf terrorism highlights the ongoing challenge of online radicalization. Security experts note that there are multiple pathways towards extremism, especially in the digital realm.

The trend towards conspiracist movements online has further blurred ideological lines, with certain conspiratorial beliefs being held by both left-wing and right-wing extremists, according to the report. This convergence of ideologies presents a complex challenge for law enforcement and intelligence agencies working to identify and prevent potential threats.

Future Risk Landscape

As Donald Trump returns to the White House, the political landscape in the U.S. is poised for significant shifts, WTW stated. The incoming administration has promised sweeping reforms across various sectors, including trade, immigration, national security, taxes, and health care. While legislative limitations may temper some of these changes, the executive branch wields considerable unilateral power, particularly in areas such as tariffs and immigration, the report noted.

The implementation of controversial policies could reignite civil unrest across the nation. Although post-election protests were subdued, the potentially disruptive nature of new tariffs and White House policies may spark renewed demonstrations, WTW cautioned. In 2024, the U.S. witnessed over 10,000 incidents of civil unrest, primarily focused on workers’ rights and the Israel-Gaza conflict. The coming year may see a resurgence of such activities, potentially escalating to political violence by aggrieved or radicalized individuals, according to the report.

In the corporate security realm, the assassination of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in December 2024 has dramatically altered the risk landscape. This tragic event has spotlighted the vulnerabilities faced by executives, particularly those in industries embroiled in contentious political and social issues. Companies in sectors such as fossil fuels, natural resources, defense, health care, and insurance may find their leadership at increased risk, the WTW report stated.

The incident has prompted a widespread reassessment of corporate security protocols. Many organizations now recognize the need for a more comprehensive and proactive approach to executive risk management.

WTW advises that companies must develop more robust and adaptable security measures. This includes enhancing executive protection strategies and implementing comprehensive risk management approaches. These measures should account for both physical and reputational threats, as well as the potential for politically motivated violence.

View the full report here. &

The R&I Editorial Team can be reached at [email protected].

The Green Transformation: How Philadelphia Insurance Bolsters Companies Seeking Alternative Energy Solutions

Wind, solar and geothermal energy solutions are rising in popularity among insureds. Initiatives in this green transformation have environmental underwriting support from the experts at Philadelphia Insurance Companies.

By: Philadelphia Insurance Companies | March 3, 2025

Businesses know the green transformation is well underway, and they are preparing in the best way possible: by working with their environmental insurance partners to get ahead of risk and keep informed.

“Green transformation” is more than a climate shift or weather patterns; it’s a social transference to more environmentally sustainable energy solutions like solar, wind and geothermal sources.

“As companies invest in green transformation, and begin shifting their business models away from exclusive investment, use, or support of traditional energy sources like petroleum and coal, they are starting to look at the alternative energy space,” said Jamie Langes, Vice President of Environmental Underwriting for Philadelphia Insurance Companies (PHLY).

“Insurance can champion this repositioning by supplying financial support needed to companies engaged in green transformation through policies and programs.”

This is a promising growth area for environmental insurers and their clients—one that insurers are increasingly willing to support and help free up capital. Here’s a deeper look at businesses’ interest in green transformation, the potential underwriting challenges of alternative energy solutions and the grounds for a good partnership.

A Bigger Interest in Green Transformation

Jamie Langes, Vice President of Environmental Underwriting, Philadelphia Insurance Companies

There are plenty of reasons why companies are looking at green and alternative energy solutions. Sustainability is a big reason, as is the profit motive.

Insurance companies are looking at this shift with interest, with some carriers even reducing support for traditional energy sources to help bolster investment opportunities in green energy.

“In the insurance sphere as a whole, carriers are actively engaged in identifying strategies to deploy their capacity, and making conscious determinations regarding coverage offerings that as a marketplace, we have committed to allot to green transformation,” Langes said of carrier interest.

Green energy is important for businesses’ future as it provides a renewable source of energy. As interest turns toward utilizing the big three—solar, wind and geothermal—so too does the financial support to sustain these endeavors.

“The more companies dive into green transformation, and the more insurers support those operations fiscally, we’re projecting this could easily set a market pace in the billions in a very short time,” Langes said.

How Insurance Supports Green Transformation

Venturing into green energy should not be done lightly; that’s why it’s important to work with an environmental underwriting team that has its finger on the pulse of green transformation.

Businesses looking into alternative energy require support from the insurance marketplace in order to secure adequate liability transfer, as well as limit rising risks. Insurance plays its role by supplying financial support to these companies engaged in green transformation to be able to function.

“Insurance capacity is growing, and rate is supporting new ventures from a balance of coverage and premium,” Langes said.

Insurance further provides a risk management perspective that helps sustain start-up costs and exposures for liability. Having the backing of an experienced underwriting team can be the difference between sound risk management and coverage and failure to launch.

“Green transformation is being leveraged as one component of our environmental approach,” said Langes, “and with [PHLY’s] expertise and experience, that approach is finding new ways to do business—including collaboration and a long-term vision, which embraces our role as a financial vehicle for progressing and assisting green transformation and technology through insurance.”

Traditional and Alternative: An Important Underwriting Balance

There is one thing that a good underwriting team must also review when aiding clients in their green transformation: Underwriting for traditional energy sources has the benefit of historical data to help guide decision-making.

“The insurance marketplace has ample actuarial data to gauge pricing parameters and risk acceptance vehicles from insuring traditional sources of energy long-term. As a result, insurers understand how to write that risk explicitly to make sure they’re able to not only support the business but also have the profitability to support their insureds should there be a claims situation,” Langes explained.

In contrast, “Green energy and design risks don’t have that much value proposition data yet since these exposures are still relatively new in the insurance marketplace as an insurable risk.”

To fully bring about green alternatives, underwriters must lean into this transitional period with a pulse on both sides of the energy aisle. It will take additional considerations during the process, including a review of rates, coverage options and availability, and detailed terms and conditions to best service green transformation companies.

“The businesses have to coexist. Existing traditional energy sourcing companies that are investing in green solar, wind or geothermal will still have their original exposures; just less over time,” Langes said.

“The underwriting challenge, therefore, is that we must underwrite the two dichotomies, green transformation along with traditional, as companies transition forward.”

Environmental Underwriting Experts at Your Service

Insurance is a partnership forged by the insurer’s deep understanding of the insured’s risk management needs. At PHLY, the team is dedicated to better understanding its client partners’ businesses inside and out.

Companies looking to join the green transformation can rest easy knowing that the environmental underwriting team at PHLY applies this same level of understanding.

“We’re proactive in our approach, more than reactive,” Langes continued. “This means that what’s next, what’s new, what our insureds’ needs are, remains at the forefront of our decision making. Investing in green transformation is a fairly new endeavor for many insurance companies, but we, at PHLY, have the advantage that we’re always willing to be engaged in the evolving conversation.”

“We are integrating green transformation options into our coverage positions, investing in these initiatives as we would for any operation,” Langes said.

As part of Tokio Marine Group, its parent company, PHLY can further leverage the insurance experts within the umbrella to evaluate, at the highest level, the societal changes and community interest in green transformation and what clients are looking for from their financial insurance partners.

Further, PHLY has built an environmental underwriting team with tenured experience in the marketplace. But it’s more than that: “We not only have the experience but also the expertise,” said Langes. “Many of our underwriters come from the consulting field, so they also understand the technical aspects of sustainable energy solutions. We leverage that into collaboration, and towards being a resource for brokers to help them support their clients for insurance. Tokio Marine and PHLY bring all of that expertise to the table on products and service.”

This dedication to green transformation has enabled PHLY to have competitive and tailored coverage. Underwriters are paying close attention to companies transitioning to alternative energy solutions, as well as looking at related fields to constantly and consistently remain in the know.

To learn more, visit: https://www.phly.com/ESdivision/es-environmental.aspx

This article was produced by the R&I Brand Studio, a unit of the advertising department of Risk & Insurance, in collaboration with Philadelphia Insurance Companies. The editorial staff of Risk & Insurance had no role in its preparation.

Philadelphia Insurance Companies (PHLY) offers product-specific resources, alliances, and service capabilities to achieve a multi-faceted approach to risk management, including safety program development, site audits, and training (including interactive web-based training). We offer a wide range of products and value-added services at financial terms to be agreed upon to help you achieve your risk management goals.