The Original Rules

Many people asked me if The Rules are related to the ones I had with my team and posted back in the day in the other blog. The answer is, sort of. Those rules served a purpose back in the day.

Since the Red Teams Blog Rules are still very relevant, I decided to repost them here. For posterity.

Originally posted on Feb 2010 in the Red Teams Blog.

The Original 12

1. Always have an escape plan
2. Be aware of your surroundings.
3. Assumption is the mother of all fuckups.
4. Always have a backup plan.
5. Never get caught.
6. Keep your mouth shut.
7. KISS: Keep it simple, stupid.
8. Simple and light equals freedom, agility and mobility.
9. Plan, execute and vanish.
10. You don’t have to like it-you just have to do it.
11. Always invest in good quality stuff.
12. Trust your gut.

The Complete Rules

1. Always double-tap
2. Always have an escape plan.
3. Be aware of your surroundings.
4. Assumption is the mother of all fuckups.
5. Always have a backup plan.
6. Never get caught.
7. Keep your mouth shut.
8. KISS: Keep it simple, stupid.
9. 7 Ps: Proper Planning and Preparation Prevents Piss Poor Performance
10. Plan, execute and vanish.
11. Always invest in good quality.
12. Trust your gut.
13. Always carry a knife.
14. Do one thing at a time.
15. Pick your battles…
16. Simple and light equals freedom, agility and mobility.
17. Target dictates the weapon and the weapon dictates the movement. ("Mack" Machowicz)
18. Use ACTE: assess the situation; create a simple plan; take action and evaluate your progress. ("Mack" Machowicz)
19. Don’t believe what you’re told. Double check.
20. Hide in plain sight. Blend in.
21. Think like a man of action, act like a man of thought.
22. The more sophisticated the technology the more vulnerable it is to primitive attacks. People often overlook the obvious.
23. If you’re happy with your security, so are the bad guys.
24. “Bad guys attack, and good guys react” is not a viable security strategy.
25. An adversary is most vulnerable to detection and disruption just prior to an attack.
26. Low-tech attacks work (even against high-tech devices and systems).
27. Never mess with a man’s coffee.
28. Don’t spend time trying to move your opponent, just move yourself.
29. The quality of your friends always matters more than the quantity.
30. Always provide correction in private and praise in public.
31. Opening the door for a lady is not optional.
32. You can do big things with a small team.
33. Don’t go into debt.
34. Do not publish your life online, keep your life private.
35. The GORUCK - Under promise and over deliver.
36. Progress comes to those who train and train; reliance on secret techniques will get you nowhere. (Morihei Ueshiba)
37. You must understand that there is more than one path to the top of the mountain. (Miyamoto Musashi)
38. To know ten thousand things, know one well. (Musashi)
39. You are what you do when it counts.
40. If you think it was too easy, it was a trap. Look for jumping guards coming from the sides.
41. The bad guys don’t obey our security policies.
42. If there’s a question about if it’s necessary, remove it. Less is more and more is lazy. (Jason McCarthy, GORUCK founder)
43. Once is an accident. Twice is coincidence. Three times is an enemy action.
44. Never do the same thing twice.
45. Always take care of your team first, then your gear and finally yourself.
46. Check the crowd: who is staring at you, who is all the sudden silent when you enter.
47. Always sit with your back to the wall, even when there are mirrors you can use.
48. Never take the elevator.
49. The solution is in the problem.
50. Fail to Red Team and everything will go according to plan—right up to the point it doesn't. (Red Team Journal)
51. If it's stupid but works, it isn't stupid.
52. Don’t play by the rules.
53. Don’t become predictable.
54. Our fucks are our fucks alone to give. (Patrick Rhone)
55. Plans are useless, but planning is indispensable. (Dwight D. Eisenhower)
56. Act, don’t react.
57. Shitty situations inspire brilliant solutions.
58. Establish baselines. Look for anomalies. Have a plan.
59. If you want truly to understand something, try to change it.
60. Expectations = Disappointment. Don't expect anything.
61. You don’t have to like it, you just have to do it.
62. Understand. Anticipate. Adapt. (Red Team Journal)
63. Real attackers will make you patch your people.
64. First you check, then you double-check. Finally you commit.
65. He who angers you conquers you.
66. Find a way to succeed.
67. Clap only when you are impressed.
68. Once is an accident, twice is... Huh… No, I don't believe in coincidences. Twice is enemy action. (overwrites 42).
69. Add things until it starts sucking, take things away until it stops getting better. (Frank Chimero)
70. GLBYS: Gary, look before you sit.
71. If you can't be smart, you better be strong.
72. Be hard to break.
73. Every time you train, train with the motivation and purpose that you will be the hardest person someone ever tries to kill. (Tim Kennedy)
74. Tremendous detailed planning, violent execution.