With National Identity Fraud Prevention Week 2010 having run from Monday 18 October and the number of reported identity fraud incidents growing each year, businesses should be aware of the importance of information destruction and the financial consequences of identity theft.
According to an annual study conducted by the Ponemon Institute, the cost of UK data breaches increased by 7% between 2008 and 2009, and has risen by a staggering 36% in the past two years alone.
These rather alarming figures highlight the need for all corporations to ensure that firm disposal procedures are in place for all documents containing personal or confidential information.
The most notorious data breaches in recent years include the loss of computer disks containing personal data for all families in the UK currently claiming child benefit, and the Information Commissioner stepping in to tell eleven UK banks to stop dumping customers’ statements in bins sited on the pavement outside branches.
These types of data breaches not only have a negative impact on a company’s reputation and consumer confidence, but can also induce serious financial implications.
PGP Corporation study results
According to the third annual UK study sponsored by data protection firm PGP Corporation, each individual record lost in 2009 cost UK organisations an average of GB pound 64.
Consumers, too, face hefty financial consequences when their personal data security is breached, with the expensive and time-consuming processes involved in relation to safeguarding or restoring their finances and credit ratings.
The law governing the destruction of confidential information is becoming tougher. Just recently, changes to legislation have given new powers to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), which can now issue penalty fines of up to GB pound 500,000 for breaching the Data Protection Act.
In essence, this means that businesses should be looking towards the services of a professional information destruction company in order to avoid such incidents.
National Identity Fraud Prevention Week aimed to raise awareness and provide individuals and businesses with vital information about how to prevent identity fraud from taking place.
Some examples of steps that can be taken include ensuring all unwanted documents, CDs and DVDs are being properly shredded, wiping clean the information held on old computers before disposing of them and regularly changing network and PC passwords.
Select a trusted information destruction company
“In recent years, financial institutions in particular have been criticised for the careless way in which they were disposing of sensitive personal information,” explained Russell Harris, chairman of the BSIA’s Information Destruction Section.
“To avoid similar mistakes, businesses should choose a trusted information destruction supplier who will dispose of their data correctly and in accordance with current laws.”
BSIA members meet strict corporate requirements. Customers who source confidential waste destruction and disposal systems from them can be confident that they will receive quality advice and an excellent service.
For more information on the BSIA’s Information Destruction Section visit the website (a dedicated link is provided on the right hand panel of this page)
The technology and practice of protecting lone workers
More than six million people in the UK currently work either in isolation or without direct supervision, often in places or circumstances that put them at potential risk.
What, then, are the latest developments being put in place in an effort to ensure the safety of such workers?
Health care professionals and the staff of housing or social services departments are typical examples of people who frequently work alone at various times of the day and night, sometimes in unfamiliar or even threatening environments and often in tense and emotionally charged circumstances.
Almost by definition, this kind of employment can be both intimidating and at times dangerous. That being the case, the protection of lone workers involves a two-fold approach: not only to provide safeguards, but also to offer the vital reassurances to those people involved.
Practice, technology and standards
To address these important issues, the security industry has worked with the police and end users in developing a combination of practice, technology and standards capable of providing an effective – and cost-efficent – array of solutions to negate the risks.
The development of technology and practice in the field has focused on encouraging and enabling lone workers to assess the risks they might be facing, and provide them with the means both to summon aid in an emergency and collect information that can be used in evidence (if necessary).
In turn, this has led to the creation of lone worker devices equipped with mobile phone technology that connect employees quickly and discreetly with an emergency response system that has direct links to the police.
Police response is clearly a crucial factor in all of this, and such technology has been developed to maximise its effectiveness through the reduction of false alarms. This is achieved through a combination of 24/7 remote monitoring and two-tier alert facilities, classified as amber and red.
All approved devices are monitored by an Alarm Receiving Centre (ARC), accredited to the British Standard BS 5979.
Amber alert allows users to undertake routine risk assessment by informing the ARC when they encounter a potential risk (before walking across a dark car park, for example).
Red alert can be activated discreetly if the user experiences a problem or encounters a situation that seems likely to escalate into something more serious.
Widespread support from many organisations’ end users
Such systems have been widely adopted by organisations such as NHS Trusts in the wake of extensive trials in various lone worker environments. Widespread support has been gained from staff members who now feel more secure when undertaking their day-to-day work.
The high level of reassurance derived by users is a recurring feature of research into (and Case Studies of) lone worker systems, with those users ranging from sales representatives through to the staff of housing associations and Marie Curie Cancer Care nurses.
A key element of all this work has been the development of British Standard BS 8484, the Code of Practice for the Provision of Lone Worker Services. This is employed by all BSIA members in the field, and forms the basis for police response to lone worker systems.
The BSIA has also published an associated guide, providing employers with some easy-to-follow advice about and what to look for when sourcing a solutions supplier.
The guide covers the employers’ responsibilities to its lone workers, as well as specific criteria for selecting technology, monitoring services and providers (including the possession of quality management systems such as ISO 9001 and the delivery of appropriate training).
Copies of Lone Workers: An Employers’ Guide can be downloaded free of charge by visiting the BSIA’s website (again, a dedicated link is provided on the right hand panel of this page) and searching for form number 288
The Big Issue: The Way Forward (The BSIA attends the Conservative Party Conference
Influential political figures recently descended on Birmingham to discuss the changing political landscape and its impact on both people and businesses across the UK.
The BSIA’s James Kelly was in attendance. Indeed, it was a busy few days for the Trade Association’s CEO, whose ongoing efforts to place the BSIA – and the issues affecting our industry – at the heart of the new Government’s agenda were reflected in a series of meetings with key policymakers and political influencers.
Since the new Government was elected in May this year, the BSIA has been quick to implement a strategic contact programme that reaches out to those new ministers and MPs with the most influence over the private security industry in the UK. These individuals include the Parliamentary Under Secretary for Crime Reduction, James Brokenshire, and Lynne Featherstone (the Government minister with direct responsibility for the SIA).
At the heart of this communication programme was the BSIA’s debut at the Conservative Party Conference, which took place at the International Convention Centre in Birmingham.
Meetings were held with Mary McLeod MP, (parliamentary private secretary to policing minister Nick Herbert), Kit Malthouse (the deputy mayor of London), policy influencers Blair Gibbs (of Policy Exchange) and Dale Bassett of Reform and members of the LGA Safer and Stronger Communities Board. There was also a meeting with Christian Guy of the Centre for Social Justice.
Future of the SIA heads the agenda
Of the wide-ranging topics discussed, the rumoured abolition of the SIA was clearly top of the list. James Kelly reinforced the key role that regulation has played in the professionalisation of the security industry over the past decade, and the importance of Government consulting with the industry over any proposed changes.
The potential for partnerships between the police service and the private security industry was also highlighted, with many of the BSIA’s contacts agreeing that our industry’s role in securing the country will only grow in the face of public sector budget cuts.
Indeed, Home Secretary Theresa May’s speech – listened to by the BSIA delegation – reinforced the message that there is “no greater responsibility than keeping our country safe”. A positive premise, then, on which to base our industry’s future work alongside the public sector.
Also highlighted were the issues of in-house licensing of security personnel, the ongoing fight against Cash-in-Transit crime, the security challenges posed by the 2012 Olympic Games and the importance of CCTV in protecting our local communities.
Step forward for the BSIA’s public affairs activity
“Attending the Conservative Party Conference has been a real step forward in the BSIA’s public affairs activity, and has enabled us to get closer to those responsible for making the decisions that directly affect our industry,” commented James Kelly.
“Work now begins to maintain the momentum of these relationships, and we will be working with our members over the coming weeks and months to ensure that our message is fully representative of our industry’s views.”
Amanda Beesley is PR and marketing communications manager at the BSIA
