Noah Price, Head of the G4S Academy, provides an overview of the security threats faced by many businesses and organisations, as well as a useful reminder of what makes good security, to help stay one step ahead.
Terrorism
With the current threat to the UK from terrorism rated as ‘substantial’, meaning that an attack is likely, terrorism is one of the biggest security concerns for many.
Attacks could potentially occur at any location. Preventing them is challenging, with the target usually an individual choice that cannot always be anticipated.
Activism
Activist groups that could pose a threat include Extinction Rebellion, Insulate Britain and the anti-vax movement, with the likelihood of an increase in activity through Spring of 2022.
Covid-related Protest
Protests against Covid vaccinations are carried out by a wide range of different groups and individuals. According to an investigation by The Times, some anti-vaxers are turning to extremist beliefs and advocating violence against healthcare workers.
Urban exploration
The trend for people to trespass into buildings to explore, climb and post videos of their activity, poses a significant threat.
Risks include physical danger to the climber on a business’s property, legal action against the building’s owners if the intruder is injured or killed, disruption to business operations, particularly if an evacuation is required and damage to property. As content is usually posted on social media, there is also the risk of reputational damage and of hostile reconnaissance being available to organised criminal gangs and terrorists.
Insider threat
Insider threat can take many forms. It could be:
● A ‘deliberate insider’ that obtains employment with the intent of abusing their access.
● A ‘volunteer/self-initiated insider’ who obtains employment without intent to abuse their access, but at some point, decides to do so
● An ‘exploited/recruited insider’ who obtains employment without intent to abuse their access, but at some point, are exploited or recruited by a third party to do so
● An ‘accidental insider,’ who by their actions might inadvertently leak information or provide other types of access, either because they haven’t received adequate training, or because they have been asked to undertake an action that they don’t recognise as being something they shouldn’t do.
Accidents, fire, natural disaster
Accidents can happen at any time, and there is also the chance that organisations could be affected by fire, flood or another natural disaster.
Covid
Covid is a threat to security on many levels, from risks associated with new ways of working to potential staff shortages.
The pandemic has led to significant changes in ways of working and this has made cyber security, as well as physical security, a real challenge for many organisations.
To read more exclusive features and latest news please see our Q4 issue here.
Media contact
Rebecca Morpeth Spayne,
Editor, Security Portfolio
Tel: +44 (0) 1622 823 922
Email: [email protected]
