BLACKMAIL USING THE THREAT OF CONTAGIOUS DISEASE TRANSMISSION

Abstract

In the autumn of 2014, the Czech Republic became a victim of blackmail. It was at
a time when the Ebola epidemic was at its peak on the African continent, and blackmailers used
this fact to threaten the Czech Republic stating that if they did not meet their conditions, the
disease would be spread in the Czech Republic. The communication through which the
blackmail information was communicated to the Czech Republic, was conducted along two
lines. Firstly, by sending e-mail messages and secondly through the logistics company Czech
post in the form of postal items, letters containing substances able to endanger health and
human lives. This article deals with the context between this case and the possibilities of the
state-owned Czech post for detection of shipments containing dangerous substances that were
sent through its logistics network.