10 Stories in Security You Might Have Missed Last Week

1. Security Excellence Awards 2013: The Winners

Click here to view Figure 1.

The fifteenth annual Security Excellence Awards Ceremony was held on Wednesday night at the London Hilton Hotel, Park Lane. Winners of 18 individual categories were honoured, so too the victors in the Engineers of Tomorrow competition, the Security Institute’s Wilf Knight Award, and the Inspiration in HR Award.

Check out the photo gallery.

2. “Record Number of Security Apprentices Recruited Through 100 in 100, 2013“

Sponsored by CSL DualCom and supported by Skills for Security, the National Security Inspectorate and the Security Systems and Alarms Inspection Board, the 100 in 100 initiative has attracted record interest in 2013. This year’s campaign to recruit 100 brand new apprentices across the UK security sector has witnessed the recruitment of 1,316 young apprentices. The results were announced at the Security Excellence Awards by CSL DualCom’s Simon Banks, a co-founder of 100 in 100.

3. Major Industry Players Pledge Exclusive Support for IFSEC International 2014

Leading industry solutions developers have pledged their exclusive support for IFSEC International 2014, which takes place from June 17-19 at ExCeL, London. A staggering 92 percent of exhibitors have said that IFSEC International is their preferred event. Key association players offering exclusive backing or the show include the BSIA and the FIA, with exclusive support also received from companies such as Everfocus, Risco, Anixter, Pyronix, IDIS, Paxton, and TDSi.

4. “National Crime Agency: ‘Recruiting the Crime-Fighters of Tomorrow‘”

The National Crime Agency (NCA) has launched the first phase of its campaign to recruit up to 400 trainee cyber and intelligence officers over the next 12 months. From day one, the new recruits will undergo a two-year training programme to become fully-fledged NCA officers and help the agency lead the UK’s fight to combat serious and organised crime.

5. “Has the UK Government Let the Security Industry Down?“

According to Infologue.com’s Bobby Logue, “time is running out” for the Home Office to introduce the primary legislation required for business licensing in terms of the Private Security Industry Act of 2001.

Logue also stresses there’s growing concern that the Security Industry Authority has not yet revealed what the overall cost of licensing will be under the new regulatory regime: a factor which is “crucial” in an industry that enters into two-to-three year contracts.

6. “PwC on ‘New Fines and Severe Penalties’ in European Data Protection Directive“

European MEPs have voted in favour of a series of changes to the European Data Protection regulations that will have a significant impact on how companies manage their data… and could see them face fines of up to euro 100 million for data breaches.

PwC’s legal partner Latika Sharma comments: “This clearly marks a shift in the regulation of data security and privacy. The new regulation will leave organisations with numerous challenges, not least around understanding that they have a responsibility to report breaches.” If adopted in the UK, the regulation could be in place by 2016.

7. “CIFAS and Ordnance Survey Report Improves Understanding of Identity Crime“

CIFAS has issued “Identity Crime: On Your Doorstep”, a 24-page report that analyses (on a geographic basis) identity crimes recorded during 2012. The report challenges and clarifies understandings around crimes such as identity fraud and account takeover. The document also provides a greater understanding of the factors that influence such frauds, while in turn highlighting some of the measures that can be taken to counteract them.

8. “Eddie Aston Appointed UK and Ireland CEO at G4S“

On 23 October, Eddie Aston became the new CEO for G4S in the UK and Ireland. Aston joined the G4S Group from DHL in July this year, taking on the role of COO with responsibility for service excellence, risk management and controls, group procurement and group IT.

9. Your CCTV System Might Be Illegal This Morning

Did you remember to put your clocks back this weekend? Good. Well done. You changed the timepieces at home and the ones on the wall at work… but what about the time on your surveillance system?

Paul Mackie from Camerawatch asks, “Did you allocate a specific resource responsible for ensuring your CCTV’s time is correct, and therefore compliant with data protection legislation?”

10. “Polish and Romanian Officers Join Met in Fight Against London Crime“

The Metropolitan Police Service has unveiled its latest weapon in the fight against offenders from abroad. Over the next two years, eight Romanian and three Polish police officers are to work in London alongside Operation Nexus colleagues. Experienced specialist officers from Poland will be on six-month rotations while Romanian officers serve three-month rotations.