Heads of security rarely have the kind of media profile enjoyed by their counterparts at the other end of the security supply chain – the Martin Grens, the Keith Bloodworths, the Eugene Kasperskys.Don Randall MBE, who made IFSEC’s 2014 roll call of the 40 most influential figures in security, is certainly a notable exception.
Widely respected in the fields of security, law enforcement, counter-terrorism, cyber crime and fraud the former Bank of England head of security and chief information security officer has recently been appointed senior advisor at global security and risk management specialist Pilgrims Group.
Treading a well worn route into the industry Randall started his career in the City of London Police, culminating in a stint as deputy head of the Fraud Squad.
Thereafter he became managing director at JP Morgan Chase before joining the Bank of England in 2008. He was elected Chairman of the Global Banks Heads of Security Group in June 2013.
In October of the same year Randall was awarded a Security Excellence Award for Outstanding Contribution to the Security Profession and remains a ‘cyber ambassador’ for the Bank of England in a consultative capacity.
Speaking to IFSEC Global he explains why he decided to accept the post at the Pilgrims Group, which has enjoyed 15-30% growth annually over the last 16 years, and reflects on the UK’s counter terror strategy.
IFSEC Global: Why did you join the Pilgrims Group and what are your main goals in the role?
Don Randall: Pilgrims are a well-established, highly recognised national and international firm with exceptional experience of providing security risk management solutions, protecting organisations internationally, particularly in troubled locations.
I was highly impressed by the quality and professionalism of the management and the whole team and I believe that their profile is lower than their clear capacity and capability deserve.
They really are a competitive, quality brand and I can add value to them in raising their global profile and adding my experience to their senior management team.
IG: If you could change one thing about how the UK is dealing with the terror threat, what would it be, and why?
DR: There’s no need for radical change but there is a need for greater public/private partnership in the prevention, detection and deterrence of terrorist activities. We need to heighten awareness of cyber terrorism, tightening up our preventative procedures, identifying potential terrorist activity and finding ways to counter cyber terrorism at source.
There needs to be a consolidation of some partnership initiatives and we need to maximise the support and engagement of the law enforcement agencies. There are perhaps 100 anti-terrorism initiatives out there at the moment which need to condense down to a far smaller number to make them more efficient.
The Cross-Sector Safety and Security Communications (CSSC) project, which I co-created as an Olympic legacy project, is a national communications vehicle which can distribute a counter-terrorism message to 9.3 million businesses in under 20 minutes, which is a measure of what can be achieved.
IG: How much of a role do you see smart technologies and the internet of things playing in combating a wide range of security threats?
DR: We’ve already seen terrorist activity engaging with the cyber world for propaganda and recruitment purposes. We therefore need to make the public more aware of the threats from cyber terrorism and cyber crime generally.
All the tools used by general cyber criminals can be used for terrorist purposes. It’s most important for both individuals and businesses to be aware of their potential exposure to cyber crime, in all its variations. Eighty percent of criminal cyber activity could be prevented by greater education.
