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Wednesday, July 9, 2025

Global State of Supply Chain Security: Blockchain, Compliance and Risk Management

This is Part Two of a three-part interview. Read Part One here.

World Customs Organization Director of Compliance and Facilitation Ana Hinojosa brought 28 years of customs experience to the global body when elected to her post in 2015. The former U.S. Customs and Border Protection deputy assistant commissioner-international affairs also served as director of field operations for the El Paso Field Office from 2008 to 2013 and as area port director for Los Angeles International Airport and Dallas Fort Worth International from 2002 to 2008. Hinojosa talked with HSToday about threats to global supply chain security along with blockchain, compliance and risk management.

HSToday: You are hearing a lot about “blockchain” and its utility for securing information and data. Are there applications of blockchain relevant to you in your work? Where?

Hinojosa: Blockchain is growing in the types of applications that it is being used for. Its impact within the global logistics arena is only in what I would call the beginning stages of being tested within the many transactions that make up the full cross-border global logistics transactions.

I think there is still quite a bit of confusion about what blockchain is, and what it isn’t. Separating blockchain from its use with cryptocurrency is helpful in being able to conceive the possibilities in the legitimate global trade arena.

There are a number of governments that are looking to pilot various aspects of their transactions using blockchain technology. There are also some interesting partnerships between the private sector and some governments to test opportunities for blockchain to smooth out and facilitate some of the transactions in a transparent and more efficient way. I think that customs administrations are clear that blockchain is something they need to understand and be able to leverage to the extent the supply chain continues to embrace its use. Some of the current discussions among members are about the potential uses of blockchain for sharing of information between customs and looking at how blockchain could be useful in risk-management systems and even as part of single-window environments.

One concrete example that I am aware of is where financial institutions are using blockchain for transactions, in lieu of traditional letters of credit, companies are able to free up their money much quicker because the parties of the transaction can confirm the terms being executed in a more efficient and transparent way. So instead of their money or collateral being tied up for 30 to 45 days, they are seeing turnaround times of one week to 14 days. This translates to huge efficiencies for multinational companies. Clearly this requires financial institutions to offer these types of services. It may not make them as much money as the traditional letter of credit, but the benefits for their customers will certainly attract new customers.

HSToday: How does compliance impact global security?

Hinojosa: This is a great question. I hope I am not oversimplifying my answer. At the risk of sounding cliché, the truth is that global security is as strong as its weakest link. And, I think that, in the United States, most people picture borders and security procedures as those that are present at U.S. borders. The reality across the world can be very different.

I think that the issue of global security is one that governments and the private sector have an equally strong interest in protecting. Having a strong compliance program can go a long way toward helping overall global security, as many of the weakest borders around the world still recognize compliance requirements and the transparency that they bring to the process. Like all crime and terrorist acts, softer targets are much more desirable for the bad guys.

Companies that have strong compliance programs, in my opinion, harden themselves against criminals and other threats to security. This is certainly not going to solve all of the evils of the world, but it will actually help identify where the problems are, and enable additional layers of protection to be put in place for those weak spots.

I know that I am not telling you something that you didn’t already know, but perhaps this will help the compliance folks out there to better recognize the value of their hard work. Compliance isn’t just about dealing with bureaucracy; it is about corporate integrity.

HSToday: What types of risk-management programs does the World Customs Organization undertake?

Hinojosa: The WCO has developed a comprehensive risk-management approach to help members develop and implement sound risk-management systems. Along with the development of a Risk Management Compendium, we also provide a variety of capacity building and technical assistance missions to support our members in the implementation of their risk-management systems, including the use of post-seizure analysis. We regularly update the compendium and include member case studies to help translate the theory into practical examples. We also cover aspects related to risk management in our work on the SAFE Framework of Standards and, more specifically, in helping members develop and grow sound Authorized Economic Operator (AEO) Programs. Members need a good risk-management system to be able to differentiate between high- and low-risk shipments/passengers.

We have a couple targeting systems that we deploy to interested administrations, which need help in operationalizing a risk-management system for either cargo or passengers. These systems are deployed through the financial support of donors, like the U.S. State Department.

Kristina Tanasichuk
Kristina Tanasichuk
From terrorism to the homeland security business enterprise, for over 20 years Kristina Tanasichuk has devoted her career to educating and informing the homeland community to build avenues for collaboration, information sharing, and resilience. She has worked in homeland security since 2002 and has founded and grown some of the most renowned organizations in the field. Prior to homeland she worked on critical infrastructure for Congress and for municipal governments in the energy sector and public works. She has 25 years of lobbying and advocacy experience on Capitol Hill on behalf of non- profit associations, government clients, and coalitions. In 2011, she founded the Government & Services Technology Coalition, a non-profit member organization devoted to the missions of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and all the homeland disciplines. GTSC focuses on developing and nurturing innovative small and mid-sized companies (up to $1 billion) working with the Federal government. GTSC’s mission is to increase collaboration, information exchange, and constructive problem solving around the most challenging homeland security issues facing the nation. She acquired Homeland Security Today (www.HSToday.us) in 2017 and has since grown readership to over one million hits per month and launched and expanded a webinar program to law enforcement across the US, Canada, and international partners. Tanasichuk is also the president and founder of Women in Homeland Security, a professional development organization for women in the field of homeland security. As a first generation Ukrainian, she was thrilled to join the Advisory Board of LABUkraine in 2017. The non-profit initiative builds computer labs for orphanages in Ukraine and in 2018 built the first computer lab near Lviv, Ukraine. At the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, she worked with the organization to pivot and raise money for Ukrainian troop and civilian needs. She made several trips to Krakow, Poland to bring vital supplies like tourniquets and water filters to the front lines, and has since continued fundraising and purchasing drones, communications equipment, and vehicles for the war effort. Most recently she was named as the Lead Advisor to the First US-Ukraine Freedom Summit, a three-day conference and fundraiser to support the rehabilitation and reintegration of Ukrainian war veterans through sports and connection with U.S. veterans. She served as President and Executive Vice President on the Board of Directors for the InfraGard Nations Capital chapter, a public private partnership with the FBI to protect America’s critical infrastructure for over 8 years. Additionally, she served on the U.S. Coast Guard Board of Mutual Assistance and as a trustee for the U.S. Coast Guard Enlisted Memorial Foundation. She graduated from the Drug Enforcement Agency’s and the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Citizens’ Academies, in addition to the Marine Corps Executive Forum. Prior to founding the Government Technology & Services Coalition she was Vice President of the Homeland Security & Defense Business Council (HSDBC), an organization for the largest corporations in the Federal homeland security market. She was responsible for thought leadership and programs, strategic partnerships, internal and external communications, marketing and public affairs. She managed the Council’s Executive Brief Series and strategic alliances, as well as the organization’s Thought Leadership Committee and Board of Advisors. Prior to this, she also founded and served for two years as executive director of the American Security Challenge, an event that awarded monetary and contractual awards in excess of $3.5 million to emerging security technology firms. She was also the event director for the largest homeland security conference and exposition in the country where she created and managed three Boards of Advisors representing physical and IT security, first responders, Federal, State and local law enforcement, and public health. She crafted the conference curriculum, evolved their government relations strategy, established all of the strategic partnerships, and managed communications and media relations. Tanasichuk began her career in homeland security shortly after September 11, 2001 while at the American Public Works Association. Her responsibilities built on her deep understanding of critical infrastructure issues and included homeland security and emergency management issues before Congress and the Administration on first responder issues, water, transportation, utility and public building security. Prior to that she worked on electric utility deregulation and domestic energy issues representing municipal governments and as professional staff for the Chairman of the U.S. House Committee on Energy & Commerce. Tanasichuk has also worked at the American Enterprise Institute, several Washington, D.C. associations representing both the public and private sectors, and the White House under President George H.W. Bush. Tanasichuk also speaks extensively representing small and mid-sized companies and discussing innovation and work in the Federal market at the IEEE Homeland Security Conference, AFCEA’s Homeland Security Conference and Homeland Security Course, ProCM.org, and the Security Industry Association’s ISC East and ACT-IAC small business committee. She has also been featured in CEO Magazine and in MorganFranklin’s www.VoicesonValue.com campaign. She is a graduate of St. Olaf College and earned her Master’s in Public Administration from George Mason University. She was honored by the mid-Atlantic INLETS Law Enforcement Training Board with the “Above and Beyond” award in both 2019 – for her support to the homeland security and first responder community for furthering public private partnerships, creating information sharing outlets, and facilitating platforms for strengthening communities – and 2024 – for her work supporting Ukraine in their defense against the Russian invasion. In 2016 she was selected as AFCEA International’s Industry Small Business Person of the Year, in 2015 received the U.S. Treasury, Office of Small Disadvantaged Business Utilization Excellence in Partnership award for “Moving Treasury’s Small Business Program Forward,” as a National Association of Woman Owned Businesses Distinguished Woman of the Year Finalist, nominated for “Friend of the Entrepreneur” by the Northern Virginia Technology Council, Military Spouse of the Year by the U.S. Coast Guard in 2011, and for a Heroines of Washington DC award in 2014. She is fluent in Ukrainian.

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