ASIS International, the global association of security management professionals, is enjoying its 60th anniversary this year. ASIS has over 38,000 members worldwide with 234 chapters in more than 125 countries. With close to 800 members, the ASIS UK Chapter is one of the largest ASIS chapters. The association is based in Alexandria, Virginia and has an office in Brussels.
ASIS is dedicated to increasing the effectiveness and productivity of security professionals by developing educational programs and materials that address broad security interests, , as well as specific security topics. ASIS also advocates the role and value of the security management profession to business, the media, government entities, and the public.
The association’s annual European Security Conference and Exhibition runs in Frankfurt, Germany from March 29 to 31. The 2014 event was attended by a record 700 delegates in The Hague. This year’s will feature a variety of security management topics, besides corporate executives in IT, supply chain management, representatives from companies providing security services and solutions, academics and architects.
The conference will start with a welcome party. Then over two days, delegates will be able to attend 33 high-level educational sessions divided over three parallel tracks. The event will also feature:
•A Chief Security Officers (CSOs) Round Table Summit, organised by the CSO Roundtable of ASIS International.
•A Technology and Solutions Theatre featuring the latest security products and services
•networking opportunities at the welcome party and at the President’s Reception, business lunches and networking breaks.
•A trade exhibition with Europe’s leading suppliers of security technology and solutions
After Snowden
Axel Petri, pictured, Senior Vice President Group Security Policy and Public Safety at Deutsche Telekom AG, will give a keynote presentation. He will discuss the Snowden revelations that caused an earthquake in the digital industry in the summer of 2013 as well as the ever growing crime rate in the digital world. In his speech he will explore their impact on telecoms and the need to indispensable trust of the users.
Axel Petri is Senior Vice President Group Security Governance at Deutsche Telekom AG. As Group Security Coordinator he is responsible for assuring the holistic and group wide security approach. This contains strategy, regulations and control in all security domains as well as steering the group wide co-operation of all security departments. He is also in charge of information protection and economic security as well as investigations and prevention. As security commissioner he is responsible for the fulfilment of the legal obligations in the field of public safety including strategy and steering of lawful interception and data provision in Germany.
He reports directly to Dr Thomas Kremer, Board Member Deutsche Telekom AG for Data Privacy, Legal Affairs and Compliance. He is co-author of the Rechts-Handbuch zum E-Commerce (Legal Compendium on E-Commerce) and author of other publications on internet-/media law as well as security. He is visiting lecturer at the University of Applied Sciences Darmstadt.
Focus on terrorism
Ahead of ASIS Europe 2015 and the recent events in Paris Mike Hurst, Vice Chairman – Strategy ASIS International UK Chapter and Member of the European Advisory Council of ASIS said: “As the reality of the threat posed by terrorism is felt by another country, our thoughts go to the families, friends and colleagues of the victims and to the French nation. Whilst the main responsibility for the detection, prevention and investigation of these atrocities will always fall to the police, military, intelligence and security services, we also realise the increasing importance on the private security sector. Corporate security professionals with the support of security technology and security services organisations, have responsibility for the protection of the people, property and assets in their care. They need to instil an increased security awareness in their employees; assess the enterprise security risk; identify threats; ensure good practise in all areas and make best use of the technology available. It is staggering to believe that I still find security managers who are prevented or at least dissuaded from attending security conferences, seminars; exhibitions and other events by their employers.
“Quite how they are mean to learn of current threats; keep their skills up-to-date and develop an network of contacts if all they do is sit in an office all day, I just don’t know. Since March 2014, facilitated by the ASIS UK Chapter, the ASIS Chapter in France, led by Chairman Eric Davoine has been working with the UK Project Griffin Team (Don Randall MBE and Graham Bassett) to launch Griffin in Paris. Initiatives such as this can only increase the city’s security and readiness to face future threats. It is partnerships like this that demonstrate the benefit of being part of a trusted network of fellow security professionals internationally and from experience I know that many meaningful discussions will take place and partnerships forged when we all meet in Frankfurt for the ASIS European Conference in March.”
ASIS Europe 2015 will feature several sessions dedicated to the threat of terrorism facing security professionals.
Glenn Schoen, Director of G4S Risk Advisory, G4S, Netherlands will cover what may lie ahead for Europe into mid-2016, as the terrorist threat in Europe associated with jihadi extremist elements continues to evolve and associated challenges for security managers are mounting. This includes the indirect effects of threats that might require attention, such areas as threat alert systems, social media, false alarms, screening, government and community relations and cyber security. The presenter has nearly three decades of international experience in counter-terrorism study and risk management for several countries and over 200 companies.
Bill Enright, Managing Director, Parkton Risk Management, Ireland will present on hotel security and soft target protection. The aim is to educate the prospective guest on how he or she can take certain protective measures to ensure that their stay is a memorable one for all the right reasons. Both the hotel and the guest have responsibilities when it comes to security and sometimes these responsibilities can be misunderstood resulting in loss, damage and injury to all concerned. What should be taken into account when choosing a hotel from the risk management perspective?. And how might guests themselves in some vulnerable situations which may have a negative impact on their professional and private lives?
Ivor Terret, Director of Training and Specialized Consulting, AS Solution, Israel will present on protecting soft targets from terrorism. As the threat of terrorism grows, so does the threat against soft targets in populated areas. This presentation deals with options to integrate all the tools at the security manager’s disposal as well as presenting models for close co-operation between private and government sectors, to maintain civil liberties while protecting the public. This is largely based on homeland security as in Israel, and adapted to Europe both from a legal and cultural aspect.
About ASIS
Founded in 1955 as the American Society for Industrial Security (ASIS), the organisation officially changed its name in 2002 to ASIS International to reflect its global expansion. The name “American Society for Industrial Security” no longer exists except in historical legal documents. Visit www.asis.org.uk.
