British CSOs are coming to grips with a new piece of legislationthe Private Security Industry Act, which received Royal assent in 2001. The act brought into being a new government-backed agency, the Security Industry Authority (SIA), which opened its doors 18 months ago and is now making its presence felt.The role of the authority, explains Assistant Director Mary Hennessy, is to regulate security companies in order to make them more effective as well as more professional in some of their recruitment and employment practices. While industry has yet to feel the full force of the authority’s strictures, some of its requirements are already being rolled out across parts of Britainthe requirement for security employees to be licensed, for example, which involves assessing employees’ basic competencies, criminal record and proof of identity.Licensing began last March, and as of April it will be an offense to employ nonlicensed door supervisors. By early 2006, every one of the nation’s 90,000 security guards must be licensed too. More SIA-inspired changes lie ahead. Related content news UK government plans 2,500 new tech recruits by 2025 with focus on cybersecurity New apprenticeships and talent programmes will support recruitment for in-demand roles such as cybersecurity technologists and software developers By Michael Hill Sep 29, 2023 4 mins Education Industry Education Industry Education Industry news UK data regulator orders end to spreadsheet FOI requests after serious data breaches The Information Commissioner’s Office says alternative approaches should be used to publish freedom of information data to mitigate risks to personal information By Michael Hill Sep 29, 2023 3 mins Government Cybercrime Data and Information Security feature Cybersecurity startups to watch for in 2023 These startups are jumping in where most established security vendors have yet to go. By CSO Staff Sep 29, 2023 19 mins CSO and CISO Security news analysis Companies are already feeling the pressure from upcoming US SEC cyber rules New Securities and Exchange Commission cyber incident reporting rules don't kick in until December, but experts say they highlight the need for greater collaboration between CISOs and the C-suite By Cynthia Brumfield Sep 28, 2023 6 mins Regulation Data Breach Financial Services Industry Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe