National security advice

What are threat levels?

The threat levels are:

• Critical - an attack is expected imminently
• Severe - an attack is highly likely
• Substantial - an attack is a strong possibility
• Moderate - an attack is possible but not likely
• Low - an attack is unlikely

To report any suspicious activity, please call the anti-terrorism hotline on 0800 789 321.

Useful Websites

• in an emergency call 999
• call the anti-terrorism hotline on 0800 789 321 to report any suspicious activity

Staying safe at home

Be prepared for any major disruption, including severe weather and floods. In many types of emergency, you could lose access to power, water, telephones, and roads.

Keep a store of:

• batteries
• a battery-powered torch
• a battery-powered or wind-up radio
• ready-to-eat or tinned food
• bottles of water
• blankets or duvets
• Keep phone numbers handy
• Have phone numbers of your local police, council, utility companies and family members handy in one place
• Know the location of stopcocks and fuses
• Make sure you know where the main switches for electricity, water and gas are located in your home, as you may need to turn them off in an emergency.
• Know your environment
  Know who and what you expect to see each day within your neighbourhood, and report anything suspicious.
  Ask yourself:
• • is there anything out of place?
  • is there anything there that is not usually there?
  • is my home as I left it?
    
• Protect yourself from identity fraudCriminals, including terrorists, use stolen identities to conceal themselves.  Keep all identification documents such as bills, bank statements, passports and driving licenses, safely hidden away.
• Terrorists often finance their operations illegally. Take care of your credit cards and other financial records, and do not donate or contribute to a collection if you are unsure where the money is going.

Staying safe at work

• make sure that you are certain they are who they say they are
• check employees references and employment records
• be aware of any behaviour or changes in behaviour that might give cause for concern
• ensure any managers are aware of how they should handle such instances
• ensure similar standards are applied to any agency or contract staff working for you
• know and develop appropriate contingency plans
• ensure your business have suitable contingency plans if your office is not accessible
• make sure that your staff can contact the office to check the current situation
• work with the police and the fire brigade to ensure your standard emergency plans, such as fire evacuation drills, are up-to-date and regularly exercised
• make sure your staff know emergency procedures
• invest in security measures
• existing security measures
• your existing measures may be adequate but they may not be well maintained or staff may not be aware of them.
• before you invest in additional measures, review what is already in place - simply reinstating good basic security practices and regularly addressing them brings benefits at negligible cost. Make sure that:
• existing measures form a cohesive security package that provides overall assurance
• someone in your organisation has specific responsibility for security
• protect against electronic attack or hacking
• the National Infrastructure Security Co-ordination Centre offers the following advice to companies and organisations to protect against electronic attack:
• consider if changes in your business circumstances or relationships might increase the threat of electronic attack to your organisation
• check that protective security measures are properly implemented and up-to-date
• anti-virus software should be updated regularly
• patches should be applied to eliminate known vulnerabilities
• internal security policies should provide appropriate protection from inside attack
• More information about how to protect against electronic attack, and details on the latest vulnerabilities and patches, can be found on the NISCC website  

Further advice on protecting your work place from harm