The Government is to send civil servants and contractors on IT
security training courses as it prepares to offer more public
services online.
The Cabinet Office has put together a new training programme for
government security managers and IT staff, in an initiative to
raise the profile of IT security throughout Whitehall.
The Infosec Training Paths & Competencies scheme will be one of
only a handful of schemes in the UK to offer a formal qualification
in IT security. If it is successful, observers believe it could
spark interest from private sector employers.
IT security training has had a low profile until now, despite
security being high on the agendas of IT bosses. There are few
benchmarks that managers can use to assess employees' security
expertise.
"We are hoping that this programme will make a big difference.
There has been a feeling in certain areas that security is a bit of
an add-on, rather than something that should be seen as key from
the outset," said a Cabinet Office spokesman.
The Government believes it can highlight the importance of IT
security and bolster the role of IT security managers in government
by awarding formal qualifications for their work.
"With e-commerce work, the UK Online initiative and the mechanics
required by the move towards information age government, staff
working in those areas are going to face the same challenges as
industry and commerce," the Cabinet Office spokesman said.
The programme, taken over the course of a year, will teach the
background to government security policies, risk management,
fundamental IT security concepts and terminology, and security best
practice through standards such as ISO 7799 (BS7799).
To gain a certificate, the candidates will also have to write a
5,000-word dissertation based on the results of a security project
they carry out during their work.
Courses for contractors will focus more on the management of IT
security and less on government policy. There will also be a
fast-track version of the course for staff with two to three years'
security experience.
The Cabinet Office said it would encourage successful candidates to
go on to sit an enhanced version of the British Computer Society's
Iseb infosec certification examination.
They will also be able to use their certificates - which are
equivalent to a National Vocational Qualification - as part of the
entry requirement to IT security courses offered by the
universities of Westminster, Glamorgan, and Royal Holloway and
Bedford.
The course is being jointly managed by the Civil Service College,
the British Computer Society and the Guild of Security Controllers.
Fifty civil servants have applied for training since the scheme
went live in May.