The National Counter Terrorism Security Office (NaCTSO) has unveiled a mobile app to help businesses obtain relevant advice and report concerns on possible threats.
Named the Actions Counters Terrorism (ACT) app, it has been built on the Urim development platform with input from organisations in the security, sporting and retail sectors.
It is available in Google Play and the Apple App Store, and provides access to the ACT online reporting form and confidential hotline.
Along with this it includes guidance on protecting a business and how to respond to an attack, information on the suite of ACT training products from Counter Terrorism Policing, access to an e-learning package and live time news updates from UK Protect.
NaCTSO said new features will be added to the ACT app based on user feedback.
Crucial information
Deputy Assistant Commissioner Lucy D’Orsi, the senior national coordinator for protective security, said: “We have made crucial information available for our business partners even easier and quicker to access, and the added bonus is that it is free.
“The feedback we have received during the trial phase has been overwhelmingly positive and I encourage everyone working in crowded places – particularly those with a security role - to sign up to use this new tool. We would like everyone to feel that they have a role to play in national security and making the UK a hostile place for terrorists to operate.
“For me the ACT app is a further example of how collaboration and integration between police and the private sector can enhance national security and collectively work to make all communities safer.”
Ian Todd, chief executive of the Security Industry Authority, said it will encourage all security businesses to sign up to use the app.
Image from GOV.UK, Open Government Licence v3.0
