Door Industry Journal - Summer 2020

THE door industry journal summer 2020 Also online at: www.dijonline.co.uk Secured by Design In 1829 Home Secretary Sir Robert Peel founded the Metropolitan Police and in doing so established a basic principle of policing: to prevent crime. However, what we would recognise as modern-day crime prevention didn’t start in earnest until the early 1960s. This is when some police officers took on this role in addition to other duties after a marked rise in burglary as families became transfixed to their first TV sets whilst leaving front and rear doors unlocked. At this time, the last remaining police boxes for 999 calls were still in use, police whistles continued to be blown to raise an alert and patrolling night shift officers checked premises were secure by ‘shaking hands with door handles’. The rise in burglary continued during the housing boom of the 1960s–1980s when estates were built quickly and cheaply, without regard to security. The reason for my brief reminisce is to emphasise the fast pace of change in crime prevention since the Police Service set up Secured by Design (SBD) in 1989 and we began working with partner organisations and businesses to develop police-recognised, crime prevention standards – our Police Preferred Specification – for security-related products with the most immediate priority being for robust doors and windows. As new technology advanced, a new generation of products emerged and new standards were created to keep pace with changing patterns of criminal behaviour. Most recently, we have seen the widespread use of mobile phone apps into all our lives and we have now accredited our first app (to combat tool theft) which meets the BSI Kitemark certification for Secure Digital Applications as referenced in the article opposite. This standard recognises that the product has the security controls in place for the information it is handling. Being pro-active on crime prevention can save time, money and misery. As recently as June, I spoke to a police force investigating a £15,000 van tool theft that has devastated the owner’s business. We’re help to here with guidance and information about police recognised products. Jon Cole, Chief Operating Officer Secured by Design A regular column by Jon Cole, Chief Operating Officer, Secured by Design, the official police security initiative, which has been delivering a wide range of crime prevention activities across the UK for over 30 years and operates a product-based police accreditation scheme for security-rated products. Jon Cole categories that have achieved our Police Preferred Specification. A number of these companies specialise in vehicle security to protect vans and tools. Products range from wheel clamps and steering wheel locks through to internally anchored security boxes, property marking and forensic coding systems, key fob and signalling blockers, and tracking systems. We now have our first member company that has an app specifically developed to combat tool theft, which has achieved the BSI Kitemark for Secure Digital Applications. With company and product sharing the same name, the Tool Watch App encourages users to register the make, serial number and photo of their tools onto the app. This enables police, who have their own interface, to carry out on-the-spot checks to see whether tools they have recovered have been stolen – providing the opportunity for police to reunite crime victims with their tools. The app is being piloted by the Metropolitan Police. The product was raised in the House of Commons on 8 June 2020 by MP Bim Afolami (Hitchen and Harpenden), who asked the Minister for Crime and Policing, Kit Malthouse, whether he would champion the Tool Watch App to police forces. The Minister replied that there was a lot more the Government could do to harness technology to fight crime and, when COVID-19 restrictions allowed, he would be keen to meet its developers and see the Tool Watch App for himself. SBD advises businesses of all sizes to take steps to protect their tools and secure their vans. It may seem like an optional purchase, but it could save considerable business disruption. Visit: www.securedbydesign.com