Former NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly said Monday he's against allowing civilians easier access to guns, even in the face of increased fear about a Paris-style terror attack in the United States.
"I'm not totally in support of more guns," Kelly told CNBC's "Squawk Box," citing the accuracy rate in police-involved shootings within the NYPD as a reason to be wary of arming everyday Americans.
"Police officers, who are highly trained, strike their targets only 20 percent of the time," he said. "So if you have civilians out there with guns that perhaps they've only fired once or maybe even never fired and they're in a tumultuous situation with the adrenaline flowing, you want them out there shooting their guns? I think you have to think hard about that whole issue."
Read MoreMall security tight, but not 100%: Taubman Centers
Kelly was the city's longest-serving police commissioner and the first to serve non-consecutive terms. He headed the NYPD from 2002-2013 in Mayor Michael Bloomberg's administration. He also served as police commissioner under Mayor David Dinkins from 1992 to 1994.
Earlier this month, Kelly joined the corporate-investigations firm K2 Intelligence as vice chairman. He's also out with a book, "Vigilance: My Life Serving America and Protecting Its Empire City," in which he said 16 terror plots against the city were foiled under his watch.
The city is still the No. 1 terrorist target, he said. "If they were able to come to New York and do anything at all, it would be a major feather in their cap. Certainly it's a possibility of an attack here."
"We're surrounded by soft targets," he continued. "We live in an open society. We're vulnerable."
But Kelly said, "We're safer ... than we've been let's say five years ago. The police department [and] federal agencies continue to refine, to hone their skills."
He sees the so-called Islamic State as a triple threat. "ISIS is several things. It's a land army, albeit a small one around 30,000 ... [and] an Internet force, an inspiration force, a movement. And it's a guerrilla force as well."
"We haven't seen anything like this in the world of terrorism. It has been a game-changer," Kelly said. ISIS claimed responsibility for Nov. 13 Paris attacks that killed 130 people.
Read MoreObama visits Paris attack site, pays tribute to victims