Threat Level Lowered - 'Substantial'

Home Secretary Theresa May has announced that the terror threat level for the UK has been reduced from severe to substantial.

However, a terrorist attack still remains a strong possibility and may well occur without further warning, she went on to warn.

Mrs May said: "The change in the threat level to substantial does not mean the overall threat has gone away - there remains a real and serious threat against the United Kingdom and I would ask the public to remain vigilant."

There are five levels of threat, ranging from low, meaning an attack is unlikely, to critical, when an attack is expected imminently.

The Home Secretary said: "The decision to change the threat level is taken by JTAC (the Joint Terrorism Analysis Centre) independently of ministers and is based on the very latest intelligence, considering factors such as capability, intent and timescale."

The terror threat level was first made public on August 1, 2006, and was set at severe.

Just nine days later it was raised to critical following a series of arrests over an alleged plot to blow up a transatlantic aircraft, but was once again lowered to severe the week after.

The threat was last increased to critical in June 2007, following an attack on Glasgow Airport in which a car loaded with explosive canisters was driven at the entrance to the terminal. The day before, two bombs were discovered at central London locations and disarmed.

The level is under constant review and often changes quickly in response to events.

The threat from dissident Republican and Loyalist terrorists in Northern Ireland was increased to substantial in September 2010, meaning an attack was a "strong possibility".

It followed a warning from the head of the MI5 that dissident Irish Republicans could attempt to mount a wave of terrorist attacks on the British mainland.

Scotland Yard chief Sir Paul Stephenson also urged the public to remain vigilant days after the world's most wanted man, Osama bin Laden, was killed in a US operation in Pakistan.

Sir Paul said: "Osama bin Laden led an organisation which is responsible for the injury and death of thousands of people worldwide in the name of an extreme and perverted ideology, committed to the use of terror and murder to achieve their aims. "However, one man's death does not mark the end of an ideology and we must remain alert to the continuing threat from al Qaeda, its affiliates and those acting alone."

Chatback says: I completely understand the process of evaluating the threat level and response, although I do find it difficult to understand why now as this is not in keeping with what is being said elsewhere publicly. There is a real danger to organisations in not maintaining momentum with their security arrangements and makes discussions about enhancing those security mitigation's or understanding the current security risks that more difficult.

Prior to the terror threat level that was first made public on August 1, 2006, the level was again reduced in July 2005 and the following day the atrocities of 7/7 occurred.

Whilst it is inappropriate to maintain an unnecessary level of threat response, I do hope for a consistent approach in the timings of changing the level and hope it's for the right reasons and not political.....

Posted by Richard using BlogPress from my iPhone

Terrorists (aka Tourists....according to the House of Commons) Banned From Big Ben!

According to the Sun newspaper all 'foreigners' have been banned from Big Ben over fears that this iconic worldwide tourist landmark could be targeted by an Al-Qaeda type attack. The reasoning behind this is that it is too costly to pre-screen foreign visitors who are looking to tour the location (which are all pre-arranged in any case), however British citizens will still be allowed (after the appropriate checks have been carried out of course).

The only view of Big Ben that foreign tourists will now see!
Photo by Brandon Swartz

I cannot help but think that the House of Commons has got this one a little wrong. Isn't the insider threat one of the most significant security risks to any establishment at the moment? Also what about the British Citizens whom are 'sleepers' and have never been on the authorities’ radar but with the right opportunity wouldn't think twice about causing harm to others.

Since when did British Citizens pose a lower risk then most foreign citizens - apart from of course a number of obvious countries!?

So what is next banning tourists from St Pauls, London Eye or the Natural History museum? You heard it here first.............

AQAP Attempted Air Freight Bombing

Janusian - The Risk Advisory Group has released its analysis of the AQAP air freight bombing attempt. Read it here.

Security is simple - another data loss

USB stick with anti-terror training found outside police station:

Keychain cops

A memory stick containing anti-terror training manuals and other sensitive material was reportedly found on a street outside a Manchester police station.…

Certificate in Terrorism Studies

Richard says... "I completed this online programme in Certificate in Terrorism Studies: a couple of years ago and enjoyed it very much. I wouldn't say it help me in my role, but it certainly made me understand and appreicate the wider issues related to terrorism. The support offered is second to none and even though it's on line, there is a good oppotunity to speak to others from the profession all over the world".

The Certificate in Terrorism Studies is a 16 week programme of study from the Centre for the Study of Terrorism and Political Violence (CSTPV) at the University of St Andrews and Informa.

Delivered entirely online, this is the leading terrorism studies course, vital if it's part of your responsibility to protect people, infrastructure, organisations or investments. Find out more: http://www.terrorismstudies.com/LR0038BA1V1

A 16-week online programme from the renowned Centre for the Study of Terrorism and Political Violence (CSTPV) at the University of St Andrews and Informa which provides a sophisticated introduction to the fundamental issues behind terrorism as well as the motivations, ideologies and modus operandi of the various strains of terrorism in the world today. Knowing how and why terrorist organisations function makes an unmistakable difference to counter terrorism and security strategies, whilst providing a valuable context to operational duties. Study the leading terrorism studies course, which has enrolled students from over 72 countries.

E: mailto:info@terrorismstudies.comT: +44 (0)20 3377 3210 (UK)

Counter Terrorism Conference, 10th – 11th November 2010, London, UK

Latest Chatback News.......


Counter Terrorism Conference, 10th – 11th November 2010, London, UK

Counter Terrorism Conference “Prepare, Prevent, Pursue, Protect” will be held 10th – 11th November 2010 at Hilton London Kensington, United Kingdom. Take the chance to hear a Keynote Address from Richard Bryan, Director of Commissioning, Olympic and Paralympics Security Directorate, Home Office, UK. His presentation will update you on the challenge of securing the London 2012 Olympic Games.

Hear how we will ensure a joined up multi-agency approach and the challenge of striking a balance between effective and visible security.

Keynote addresses also include:

• Assistant Chief Constable John Wright, Head of Prevent, Office of the National Co-ordinator Special Branch, Home Office, UK
• Asim Hafeez, Head of Intervention, Office of Security and Counter Terrorism, Home Office, UK
• Detective Chief Inspector Raffaele D’Orsi, S015 Counter Terrorism Command Ports, Metropolitan Police, UK

HOW TO BOOK

Visit www.smi-online.co.uk/counter-terrorism7.asp
Contact Teri Arri on: +44 (0) 20 7827 6162or email: tarri@smi-online.co.uk

£3m 'anti-terror' CCTV cameras 'set up to spy on Muslims' to be covered

The 218 cameras have sprung up in Birmingham’s Washwood Heath and Sparkbrook areas – to the outrage of residents who say they were not asked. They have been paid for with £3million from the Association of Chief Police Officers’ terror and allied matters fund.

None of them will be used until a public consultation exercise has taken place.
Rodger Godsiff, Lab­our MP for Hall Green, said: ‘Police have got themselves into a bit of a hole now because they have a difficult problem to explain to the public and try and get them on their side. ‘If the money did not come out of a counter-terrorism budget they may have got a different reaction.’

The Respect Party’s Sparkbrook councillor Salma Yaqoob said: ‘In terms of reassurance it’s going to take a lot more than plastic bags.’ The police say the cameras are there to fight all types of crime.

Personnel Security - Something we should all be paying a lot of attention to!

Personnel security is everything involving employees: recruiting them (also known as pre-employment screening), training them, monitoring their behaviour, and sometimes handling their departure. Personnel Security relies on a system of polices and procedures to reduce the potential security risk.

In these modern times not only are organisations at risk from external threats but we also have a very significant threat from the insider. An insider is classed by the CPNI (part of the security services) as 'someone who exploits or has the intention to exploit their access to an organisations assets'. So this could result in a number of different scenarios including fraud or an employee who sells your company data to a competitor or an employee who is feeding information to a terrorist organisation.

Personnel security is an area that many 'security professionals' think they understand, but in my experience actually don't. There are elements of personnel security which are managed by non security departments for instance pre employment screening by HR or it may even be outsourced to a 3rd party provider. If this is the case I recommended carrying out some of your checks to see if they are doing what you think and expect they should be doing.

I am lucky enough to receive training from some world class experts in this area, but the level of understanding is very different from organisation to organisation. The strategic objectives for personnel security are the same for everyone but in a private sector environment I believe it is a little more difficult, for example government departments have a security policy framework(SPF) which includes 70 mandatory controls (supported by various baseline standards) which must be adhered to (along with a annual declaration of adherence). The private sector has not got this level of hierarchy governance but of course there is no reason why at a local level you can’t have a similar assurance process. I would recommend any security professional obtaining a copy of the SPF which is publicly available here It is useful and a document which I refer to regularly.

The insider threat has seen a dramatic increase in the UK in recent years and one contributing factor to this are the advances in physical and electronic security. In order to gain access to organisations, it is now considered easier to infiltrate it with the co-operation of an insider. The current financial crisis has also increased the likelihood of the insider threat as staff who would normally not be tempted into exploiting their 'privileged position' may be willing to do so (e.g. for personal gain or they maybe disgruntled for not receiving their bonus etc). It is important to note that the vast majority of employees are genuine but with a robust Personnel Security process in operation the potential insider threat is reduced and you will ensure they are detected quickly and efficiently.

My top 10 recommendations are:

1. Assess Personnel Security Risks and include these on your risk registers
2. Have a helpline in place for employees to confidentially report concerns
3. Know the source of employment references
4. Confirm employee has the Right to Work in the UK (a legal requirement)
5. Carryout qualification checks and check physical certificates where possible
6. Where possible complete the 'pre-employment screening' process prior to start date
7. Promote a positive security culture
8. Advise potential employees of the level of checks you use, this may deter potential insiders

from joining the organisation
9. Transparency - have clear polices and procedures in place
10. Audit - to provide assurance that the systems are effective

In future blogs I intend providing some more details on each of the individual personnel security subjects which will hopefully help you going forward.

Cultural sites 'vulnerable to criminals' during 2012 Olympics

Former Scotland Yard expert warns that security focus on London games will leave museums, galleries and cathedrals open to theft

The Ashmolean museum in Oxford was broken into in 1999. Photograph: Graham Turner for the Guardian A former head of Scotland Yard's art and antiquities squad has warned that "virtually nothing" is being done to secure Britain's cultural and religious sites against criminal attacks which he claims could be sparked by the London 2012 Olympics.

Charles Hill said security around the games was focusing on Olympic sites, while many so-called "soft targets" – including museums, galleries, churches and cathedrals – are being overlooked.
Hill pointed to evidence of "high and holy day trophy art crime" being carried out when police resources are especially stretched.

During the 1994 winter Olympics in Norway, thieves stole Edvard Munch's painting The Scream from the Oslo National Art Museum and left a note that said: "Thanks for the poor security."

On New Year's Eve 1999 robbers broke into the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford and took its only Cézanne, while Rembrandts and a Vermeer were stolen from a museum in Boston – still the art world's biggest unsolved theft – on St Patrick's Day 1990.

Hill has investigated some of the most high-profile art thefts and headed undercover operations to recover works. Today, he said soft targets inside and outside the capital would be vulnerable during the Olympics, which could also be a target for terrorist attacks.

His comments came after the sports minister, Hugh Robertson, announced last week that the security minister, Pauline Neville-Jones, is carrying out a review of security for the 2012 games.
However, it has not been confirmed whether the review will include soft targets, with the Department for Culture, Media and Sport saying security was a matter for the Home Office.

Hill's concerns were echoed by Peter Osborne, a former national security adviser for the nation's museums, who said: "It is imperative that the security of [cultural] sites is not overlooked." But the directors of the Museum of London and the National Portrait Gallery said today that their security was being reviewed through the National Museum Directors' Conference, which represents the UK's national collections.

Jack Lohman, the Museum of London director, said: "We're hot on security …liaising with police. All national museums have plans, co-ordinated by the NMDC." However, Dr Michael Dixon, the chairman of the NMDC, said: "There is no specific project that NMDC is working on to consolidate security issues for the Olympic year.

"It's up to individual museums, and there are good relations with the security services."
A spokesman for the Association of Chief Police Officers said: "Museums, galleries and cultural sites typically put in place their own security measures where necessary."

Our opinion on what the current security sector risks are

These are generic and as we all know there isn't really a one size fits all!

Security is simple......

Sometime ago a colleague and I were discussing the security arrangements for a particular site. We agreed on the asset we were trying to protect but could not agree on the security solutions that had been deployed and this quickly became quite a heated discussion. I believe that security in its purest form is quite simple, yet if this is true why is it one of the most emotive topics for me right up there and alongside with religion, football and now coalition politics.

I suppose the purpose of writing this blog and sharing my experiences, questions and concerns is a way of me trying find out more and attempt to understand what it is about security that makes everyone an expert. I understand that the physical or technical security application to a site, risk or areas is important, but will always strongly maintain that without the right people, processes and procedures it doesn’t matter about the Rolls Royce kit if it’s not being utilised properly.

I was fortunate to present at the recent Counter Terror Expo 2010 on providing assurance to senior management of security risks. Whilst preparing I found myself getting angry at the lack of people in the security world actually talking about this subject and noted that there are lots of ideas, discussions, plans and strategies about what the government do and how parts of the Critical National Infrastructure (CNI) are assisted by that, but the gulf between public and private I think is just too great. What happens to the private company, limited company or the small business that would not have exposure to or have the staff to understand the CONTEST strategy or the HMG Security Policy Framework (which I believe is being widely touted and over used as the way forward) what does it mean to any of them? The same could be said for most other areas of the (and for now I use the words loosely) ‘security world’ as what do they do about countering fraud, personnel security and screening arrangements for the insider threat.

Following my presentation I received feedback from a couple of visitors who said it was interesting and that they hadn’t really given providing assurance much thought, "my Finance Director could understand some of our security risks that way, thanks". Now I am not suggesting it was a pinnacle of my career but I took this feedback as a compliment (don’t get many so I’ll take it) but thought maybe I should open this discussion up to others, maybe I could post some of the questions that I don’t think I could answer without comparing it to religion, football or politics. So here goes…..it’s a simple one really….. Ready….....

What is Security?

I really hope anyone visiting this blog can help me, I am guessing there's no absolute right or wrong answer but any comment will assist in my quest, thanks for reading.