Gavin de Becker

Gavin de Becker (born October 26, 1954) is a best-selling author and specialist in security issues, primarily for governments, large corporations, and public figures.

He is the designer of the MOSAIC Threat Assessment Systems used to screen threats to Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States, members of United States Congress, and senior officials of the Central Intelligence Agency. Along with the United States Marshals Service, he co-designed the MOSAIC Threat Assessment Systems currently used for assessing all threats to federal judges and prosecutors. Los Angeles County Law enforcement agencies adopted MOSAIC in 1997 to help police manage and reduce spousal abuse cases that might escalate to homicide.

He was twice appointed to the President's Advisory Board at the United States Department of Justice, and he served two terms on the Governor's Advisory Board at the California Department of Mental Health.

Mr. de Becker has shared his philosophies about prevention of violence in several appearances on the Oprah Winfrey Show, 60 Minutes, Larry King Live, and 20/20 (U.S. TV series). He has also been profiled in Time Magazine and Newsweek, the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, and others. Mr. de Becker's first book The Gift of Fear was a US #1 bestseller, on the New York Times Bestseller List.

In 2008, Oprah Winfrey dedicated a show to commemorate the 10-year anniversary of the publication of the book. In the last year of her show, she dedicated two hour-long shows to Mr. de Becker's work in domestic violence.

His latest book, Just 2 Seconds, has been described as a guide for protectors of at-risk people and includes 5 lessons for people charged with protecting others. It also includes summaries of incidents from the last several decades for training and analysis. Co-authors of the book are Tom Taylor and Jeff Marquart.

In 1997, his firm was hired by Bill Cosby to investigate the murder of his son, Ennis.

Mr. de Becker has served as an adviser for the anti-bullying resource, Bystander Revolution.

• de Becker, Gavin (1997). The Gift of Fear: survival signals that protect us from violence. Boston: Little, Brown and Company. ISBN 978-0-316-23502-0. OCLC 36143575. 
• —— (1999). Protecting the Gift: keeping children and teenagers safe (and parents sane). New York, NY: Dial Press. ISBN 978-0-385-33309-2. OCLC 317692059. 
• —— (2002). Fear Less: real truth about risk, safety, and security in a time of terrorism. Boston: Little, Brown and Company. ISBN 978-0-316-08596-0. OCLC 48746358. 
• —— (2008). Just 2 Seconds. Gavin de Becker Center for the Study and Reduction of Violence. ISBN 978-0-615-21447-4. OCLC 0615214479.