A hybrid threat: The Night Wolves motorcycle club

Hybrid threat actors are dynamic and often intentionally disguise their intentions. While the Russian motorcycle club Night Wolves dress comparably to outlaw motorcycle gangs, open source materials describe the club as posing a distinctly different national security threat. The Night Wolves’ambiguity and covert activities make the club hard to analyze; however, this case study uses open source materials to provide insight into their activities and characteristics across an array of security domains. International incidents indicate members and associates have the capability and resources to engage in crime, corruption and politically-motivated violence both for personal interests, as well as the furtherance of Russian goals.