STM Security Group, a member company of The International Professional Security Association (IPSA), won the award for the Customer Care Initiative of the Year at last night’s Security and Fire Excellence Awards. The award was specifically for the Fatality Mitigation project run by STM for the rail sector. STM joined IPSA in 2009 and have more than doubled in size since then, with high contract retention and gaining major national contracts. The company has a strong focus on customer service, with a nominated responsible Director, Stephanie Anderson, and have incorporated BS 8477 Code ...

One of the UK’s largest security companies, Cordant Security, part of The Cordant Group, recently opened their new National Control Centre, a state-of-the-art communications facility in which they deal with scheduling, incident management and intelligence updates. Infologue’s Chris Lanchbury visited the West London based site which is in operation 24/7, and staffed 365 days a year, to ensure that incidents and updates are dealt with swiftly and efficiently. With 20 members of staff working during the day, and numerous tasks, such as administrative work, incident reporting and accident log...

This Friday will herald the third Black Friday since the sales event began in the UK in 2013. While other security service providers are urging retailers to consider their security approach, Positive Response, a leader in the research and development of remote safety monitoring, is urging property and security managers not to forget their staff. Asda recently became the first major retailer in the UK to abandon the notoriously frenzied, one-day-sale and police chiefs, and even some MPs, have urged stores to cancel or boycott Black Friday. The growing popularity of the event has raised a gro...

Judicial and law enforcement authorities from Belgium, the Czech Republic, Germany and the UK, supported by Europol and Eurojust, took action early today against a Europe-wide organised crime group (OCG), composed primarily of Czech and Albanian nationals. The OCG is suspected of arranging for mainly Albanian nationals to be brought into the European Union in breach of immigration law. The OCG is also suspected of money laundering. The OCG, operating since late 2013, transported irregular migrants to the UK via two routes: either from Turkey or Greece to Belgium and then on to the UK in ve...

Today sees the launch of National Counter Terrorism Awareness Week 2015 and the following is a communication from the police regarding the week, writes Ryan Gordon. "Following the recent shocking events in Paris, it is important to highlight that the threat level to the UK from international terrorism remains at severe, which means an attack is highly likely. The UK has been operating at this level since August 2014 and it is important that following these events all communities remain alert but not alarmed. "The police and security services are working hard to protect the public and bus...

Retailers have been warned by the National Police Chiefs' Council to consider the security implications associated with the sales surge expected this Black Friday (27 November). Originally an American calendar event, designed to mark the beginning of the Christmas shopping season, Black Friday promises to be the day when British shoppers hit the shops in order to make the most of the deals on offer. Savvy seasonal bargain hunters can look forward to a day of substantial savings. Likewise, British retailers can expect to reap the financial benefits associated with this annual shopping bonanza...

Crime cost the UK retail industry £603m last year, 18% higher than the previous 12 months, according to British Retail Consortium (BRC). But the period in the run-up to Christmas brings a particular risk of retail losses to theft - with increased footfall, distracted staff and thieves targeting a range of premium products to use as gifts and also to convert into cash. The growing use of self-service displays and open merchandising at this time year encourages shoplifters, as it does legitimate shoppers, unfortunately. There is also an escalating threat to staff - particularly in smaller, in...

The SIA will be holding their annual stakeholder conference on Wednesday 18 November at the Cavendish Conference Centre, Duchess Mews, London, W1G 9DT. The agenda will include presentations on: introducing the SIA’s work on service improvements, violence reduction and diversity and equality our vision for the future improving standards a forum involving representatives from the industry issues facing police forces as they seek to protect the public and to reduce crime. Our Chief Executive, Alan Clamp, will close the conference. The delegate fee is £99.60 which includes V...

Europol's European Cybercrime Centre (EC3) is actively supporting the National Crime Agency (NCA) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in their activities aimed at bringing down Dridex banking malware which has inflicted £20m of estimated losses in the UK alone. Dridex, considered the successor of Cridex banking malware, has been developed by technically skilled cyber criminals in Eastern Europe to harvest online banking details, which are then exploited to steal money from individuals and businesses worldwide. Global financial institutions and a variety of different payment syst...

On Tuesday 22 September 2015 at Luton Magistrates Court, Asif Abrar of Speckmans Way, Slough entered a guilty plea to a charge under Section 3 of the Private Security Industry Act 2001. Abrar had been working as a security guard for Nationwide Security Management Limited on a construction site in Kings Langley, Hertfordshire. Although his SIA licence had been suspended in January 2014 he was found working as a security guard by SIA investigators in March 2015. Nationwide Security Management Limited and its director have entered pleas of not guilty to associated charges, and will be heard at a...