Secure Futures has identified 'crowded places' as an important and challenging theme on which to focus the UK’s innovation talents. Crowded Places are everywhere we go – the high street and the shopping centre, the station platform and the bus queue, the busy cinema and the sold-out venue. They are the public places we use; the public spaces we enjoy. They are the fabric of our everyday lives.
But Crowded Places are also where we are at our most vulnerable to attack or emergencies. Crowds and public places are very difficult to protect and if tragedy or danger strikes, it can often mean mass casualties, major damage as well as widespread panic and fear. There is a loss of control, communication and containment.
To the terrorist, seeking to make an impact, damage and destroy, there are no better targets. To the first-responders, seeking to manage the scene, there is no greater challenge. To the wider public, seeking a life free from harm, there is no greater need. See crowded-places.com for more details.
In order to encourage and reward relevant innovation, Secure Futures has joined forces with our partner, Global Security Challenge, to launch an innovation award, with the prize comprising cash and consultancy, access and advice.
The Crowded Places Ideas Award is an open call for ideas focused on crowded place protection, from across the UK and elsewhere. It is hoped that the competition will draw out practical technologies that can safeguard the public and the places they enjoy.
The Web, its evolving infrastructure and its burgeoning capabilities continue to change the way people communicate, interact, work and entertain. Governments, businesses, interest groups and individuals are constantly developing new modes for using the Internet. It is ever easier to access and to use; and it provides access to billions of users and data-sets across the globe. It is largely open and unregulated, providing anonymity of communications when required. It is fast. It enables information-sharing and communication across multi-media types. It is pervasive in nature. And it is also constantly evolving.
It is this constant evolution and perpetual cycle of use and uncertainty that makes this an important area for the national security community to understand:
- How is the online world evolving – and how are people using it? Now and tomorrow.
- What opportunities does it provide to the terrorist and what does that mean for us?
- What opportunities does it provide to the national security community?