PIKE News
Recent News
- Illegal Workers
- Catalytic Converter Theft
- Share Selling Scam
- PIKE - New Members Section
- Joint Effort Needed to Beat Crime
- Security Scam for Surveillance Equipment
- Free UV Marker Pen Offer
News Archive
- British Chambers of Commerce Report
- Liverpool Daily Post article - Business Crime
- Latest PIN Security Warning - Sky News
- Anti-Vandalism Idea - BBC News
- Security Advice for Christmas
- Financial Times article - Business Crime
- Times article - Hackers Force Website Closures
Illegal Workers – New Legislation
Many businesses in the North West are seasonal in terms of their requirements for labour. Industries such as Hotel/leisure and food production are often busiest during the summer months. The shortage of seasonal workers in some areas of the region could lead to a reliance on the foreign national labour market.
There are plenty of misconceptions over who is entitled to work in the UK. Those who are nationals of a pre-1994 Member State of the European Union (Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and the UK) or the EEA (the above plus Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein) and Swiss nationals are generally free to take employment in the UK.
New legislation which will punish businesses caught employing illegal foreign workers has come into force. Employers can now face a custodial sentence of up to two years and/or an unlimited fine if they knowingly employ an illegal worker. The maximum civil penalty for this offence has increased to £10,000.
Whilst is can be argued that small businesses should not bear the brunt of this new legislation. It is vital that any business which employs any foreign nationals who are not part of the EU designated states should be diligent in checking that all relevant paperwork is correct.
Although at first this process all seems very complicated there is a lot of advice available to help with this. Further information can be found on the following websites.
BBC
direct.gov
Home Office UK Border Agency
Catalytic converter theft on the rise in the UK
The high price of precious metals is leading to a rise in thefts of catalytic converters from a wide range of motor vehicles. The average catalytic converter contains one to two grams of three precious metals - platinum, palladium, and rhodium - and the international prices of these metals have risen by 67%, 200%, and 600% respectively over the past two years. It is believed that stolen converters are shipped to recycling companies in Poland, Canada, China and Latvia, where they undergo a carbochlorination process that extracts their precious metals.
The converters are thought to be removed from parked vehicles with cordless reciprocating saws pointed with a stainless steel blade. A competent thief can, say experts, remove a converter in just six minutes and sell it for up to £150.
Police were alerted to the trend in the UK last year when four men were arrested in Worcestershire in connection with the theft of 40 catalytic converters in the Wyre Forest area.
As with other stolen metals (see our metal theft feature story in the members section of the PIKE website). In response, the BMRA has launched a stolen metals bulletin, which alerts all members by email of known thefts within 24 hours of being notified. It also produces information for members to help them identify stolen materials.
For further information regading the metal theft alerts please visit the BRMA website:A major scam that has recently come to light regarding the selling of “worthless” stock market shares has been highlighted by the BBC. Using “boiler room” tactics the criminals buy shareholder lists with names and numbers of potential victims. Then they smooth talk them over the phone for days or weeks.
The BBC quote on the website:
“Boiler rooms are staffed by teams of salesmen who cold call unsuspecting investors to offload worthless investments. They use a mixture of telephone bullying and sophisticated sales tactics gleaned from legitimate business.”
For more information on this story and other similar share scams please contact the BBC website here.
The PIKE team has announced the launch of its new Members section, which can be found on this website. Designed to provide more in-depth support to eligible businesses, this new section provides an A-Z of crime prevention ideas, useful downloads and news articles, including a feature on an issue of current concern - metal theft.
The section is free to enter, provided that companies are eligible for support under the European Union's ERDF (Objective 2) programme.
Joint Effort Needed to Beat Crime
Chief executive of Cumbria Chamber of Commerce and Industry, chief executive Rob Johnston, has written to Chief Constable Craig Mackey following a survey that highlights the rising cost of business crime.
The survey revealed that the annual cost to UK business through crime is £12.6bn - a 20 per cent increase on 2004.
More on this story can be found on the North West Evening Mail
Some firms are being targeted by an intricate scam offering surveillance equipment at cheap prices. Once the firms hand over the money for the equipment no more is heard of from the suppliers of the equipment.
More on this story can be found on the Security Management Today website.
Marking
property with a special UV marker is an excellent way to help deter theft
and to assist in the recovery of stolen items. With this in mind, the
PIKE team is offering a free UV marker pen to any eligible businesses
that registers for support.
To sign up for PIKE's free support services and to claim a free pen, companies should contact the PIKE office.
News Archive
British Chambers of Commerce: the £12.6 billion cost of crime
The British Chambers of Commerce have released a report that examines the real cost of crime to businesses. Its estimate of £12.6 per annum is up by 20% on its 2004 report, and the BCC claims that this figure now represents one sixth of "the total cost of all crime in the UK."
The report is called "The Invisible Crime: A Business Crime Survey" and is based on a survey of 3,900 British businesses. Some of the key findings include:
- 59 per cent of businesses have experienced at least one incident of crime in the last 12 months.
- 81 per cent feel that crime against business is a problem in their local area.
- 24 per cent of firms have experienced damage to vehicles, whilst 20 per cent said they had experienced vandalism and graffiti, with 19 per cent being burgled.
- Experience of crime is greater amongst businesses based in industrial estates/areas (73%), shopping centres (70%) and out of town locations (70%).
- 68 per cent of businesses said they would not report relatively small crimes or damage to premises or property to the police.
More on this story can be found on the British Chambers of Commerce website.
Daily Post: Campaign to Report all Business Crime
The Federation of Small Businesses’ has launched a campaign to tackle crime against business. Its “Every Crime Every Time” scheme calls on businesses to keep a record of every crime they are a victim of, no matter how small, and to report it to police.
More on this story can be found on the Liverpool Daily Post website.
Latest PIN Security Warning - Sky News
Sky News has issued a warning about a new trend amongst fraud gangs involving the installation of pinhole cameras in shops above chip-and-pin machines. The cameras can record customers' PIN numbers so crime prevention experts are urging consumers to take the same precautions to shield their PIN numbers as they would when using an external cash machine.
More on this story can be found on the Sky News website.
Anti-Vandalism Idea - BBC News
BBC News has reported a novel idea for discouraging vandalism to the windows of a disused building. The windows have been painted with images of white clouds in a blue sky and the results seem impressive. After four months, the unoccupied building has remained free from breakages and graffiti.
More on this story can be found on the BBC News website.
PIKE Security Advice for Christmas
Christmas
may bring a welcome break from the working routine but businesses should
ensure that they take proper precautions to keep their premises secure
over the holiday period.
Many companies close down at Christmas and the lack of visible occupation combined with the long December nights make empty premises particularly vulnerable at this time of year. It is therefore essential that business owners do everything necessary to protect their property and minimise the opportunities for criminal activity.
“Carrying out a proper assessment of the risks is the best way to begin,” explains PIKE project leader June Armstrong, “This should consider all the possible risks to the organisation, taking in to account its location, the building and the physical security measures that protect it. For companies that need help with this, PIKE advisors can provide a comprehensive review.
“Of course, simply recognising the potential threats is only half the battle. The next step is to put in place effective safeguards and deterrents, and again, this is something with which we can help. Some of the most successful crime prevention techniques cost nothing at all to implement; they’re about vigilance and sensible management of the premises. So, for example, it makes sense to check that all tools and ladders have been locked away and that items aren’t left outside that could help intruders to gain access to roofs or unprotected windows.
“These actions are cheap and effective but it’s amazing how often we see barrels, boxes or pallets stacked up against walls and perimeter fences, and how much valuable equipment seems to be left out unattended in yards and even car parks. That’s making life easy for opportunistic thieves, and there’s absolutely no reason to do that. By contrast, a combination of simple measures – such as checking all doors and windows before leaving – can make the difference between a restful holiday and a very unwelcome interruption to the Christmas celebrations.”
The PIKE team has published a series of checks and recommendations for businesses that will be leaving premises unoccupied for several days over the Christmas season. Suggestions include:
- Consider setting up a Business Watch scheme with neighbouring companies.
- Mark property so the owner can be identified; options include etching, UV pens, smart water etc.
- Leave no cash, credit cards, keys or similar valuables in unoccupied premises.
- Post signs, visible from outside, stating that all property is security marked and that no money is left on the premises.
- Place valuable items in a secure store room.
- For valuable portable equipment, either remove the items to secure storage areas or fit secure worktop fittings.
- Back up essential computer files and keep copies off-site.
- Introduce a policy to ensure that employees do not leave valuables, keys or similar items in potentially vulnerable locations (such as parked vehicles).
- Lock all desks and interior doors wherever possible.
- Check that fire doors cannot be used to gain entry to unoccupied buildings.
- Check that the premises are well lit; ensure that any security lights and CCTV cameras are working at that they aren’t obstructed by dirt, branches, vehicles or other objects.
- Check that all alarm and access control systems are working properly.
- Check that all external boundary walls and/or fences are secure and in good order.
- Check that all locks, bolts etc. are well maintained and fit for purpose.
- Lock all doors, windows, rooflights and perimeter gates etc.
Eligible companies can request a site review and obtain more detailed and individually tailored advice by contacting the PIKE office on 01772 892702.
FT: "Business Crime Up By 20%"
The overall level of business crime was up by a fifth during the third quarter, compared with the same period a year earlier, according to the number of claims settled by AXA, the insurance company.
Theft claims increased by 27 per cent on the previous 12 months and by 45 per cent on the previous quarter. The average crime claim settlement was £3,998.
AXA provides a free crime prevention toolkit, which can be downloaded from: www.axa4business.co.uk.
Originally published in the Financial Times. Jonathan Moules, December 14th 2007.
The Times: "Hackers Force Mass Website Closures"
Hundreds of websites have been shut down temporarily
by one of the largest web hosting companies in Britain after the personal
details of customers were stolen by computer hackers.
The hackers managed to access the “master database” of Fasthosts
for information, including addresses, bank details, e-mails and passwords.
The action is expected to lose vital business for hundreds of small companies in the run-up to Christmas.
Fasthosts claimed that it had no option other than to perform an emergency shutdown after it discovered that the hackers had tried to use information gleaned from its servers. New passwords had to be sent out by post rather than e-mail to avoid the information being compromised again.
The company discovered a network intrusion in October and recommended that users change their passwords. Last week, staff noticed “unusual activity” on some of its sites and closed down all those that had not yet changed their passwords, as well as some that had.
David Roberts, the chief executive of the Corporate IT Forum, which shares expertise among its companies, said: “This could well be the biggest internet attack of its kind. The criminals could theoretically have taken everything on the database.”
Police are investigating the network intrusion.
Originally published in the Times. Simon de Bruxelles, December 6th 2007.
