South Africa: Changes to Private Security to Improve Safety
All Africa  |  31 January 2013
> Police Minister Nathi Mthethwa says the proposed amendments to the laws governing the private security sector seek to improve the manner in which the industry functions.

NSCDC seals 4 private security firms
news24 nigeria  |  30 January 2013
> The FCT Command of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) on Tuesday sealed off four offices of private security companies allegedly operating illegally in the FCT.

Exclusive: South African-led operation frees hostages from Somali pirates
DefenceWeb  |  29 January 2013
> In December 2012 the Puntland Maritime Police Force rescued 22 sailors who had been held hostage on board the Panama-registered ship Iceberg 1 for nearly three years – the longest period for any hostages held by Somali pirates.

Putting Credibility Into a Code of Conduct
Huffington Post  |  28 January 2013
> For those who are familiar with what was once Blackwater, which became Xe Services in 2009, and then Academi in December 2011, the saying the third time is a charm comes to mind. That's because Academi is about to release a new Code of Conduct, which should go a long way towards assuring people that when it comes to responsible ethical behavior...

Security for oil & gas projects can't ignore human rights
Al-Jazeera  |  25 January 2013
> As oil and gas companies review their security plans in the wake of the Algeria attack, there will inevitably be a move towards higher, stronger fences and beefed-up security patrols.

Military contracting: our new era of corporate mercenaries
The Guardian  |  23 January 2013
> A niche business has become a huge industry – but murky as ever: privatising conflict means bypassing democratic oversight.

Mercenary companies to face ban
Swissinfo.ch  |  23 January 2013
> The cabinet wants to outlaw private security firms whose activities take them to war zones, saying they undermine Switzerland's traditional neutrality and its foreign policy aims, including the respect of humanitarian law.

Private security firms seek clearance of pending applications
The Times of India  |  23 January 2013
> Be it a property dealer, an industrialist or a local leader, a security guard has become a necessity for everyone nowadays. The private security agencies had recently held a meeting with the ADGP (law and order) MS Mann demanding clearance of a long list of pending applications.

Military contracting: our new era of corporate mercenaries
The Guardian  |  23 January 2013
> A niche business has become a huge industry – but murky as ever: privatising conflict means bypassing democratic oversight.

Mercenary companies to face ban
Swissinfo.ch  |  23 January 2013
> The cabinet wants to outlaw private security firms whose activities take them to war zones, saying they undermine Switzerland's traditional neutrality and its foreign policy aims, including the respect of humanitarian law.

Private security firms seek clearance of pending applications
The Times of India  |  23 January 2013
> Be it a property dealer, an industrialist or a local leader, a security guard has become a necessity for everyone nowadays. The private security agencies had recently held a meeting with the ADGP (law and order) MS Mann demanding clearance of a long list of pending applications.

Outsourcing Peace
The Boston Globe  |  22 January 2013
> Doug Brooks, the outgoing president of the International Stability Operations Association...advocates outsourcing UN peacekeeping to contractors, says that companies can get difficult tasks done cheaper and faster.

Security Widens at Algeria Energy Hubs
The Wall Street Journal  |  20 January 2012
> Algeria and Western oil firms are beefing up protection of the country's critical energy industry—including the dispatch of more Algerian military forces—after a deadly attack at a major natural-gas facility in the Sahara raised questions about the adequacy of security measures at Western oil facilities.

Sen. Claire McCaskill leaps hurdles to overhauling wartime contracting
McClatchy  |  19 January 2013
> When Claire McCaskill set out to crack down on waste and fraud in wartime contracting six years ago, the newbie senator from Missouri figured that finding ways to save taxpayer dollars in Iraq and Afghanistan would be a no-brainer project, even in the highly partisan halls of Congress.

Funds for SIGIR, agency charged with oversight of Iraq reconstruction, set to expire in March
The Washington Post  |  19 January 2013
> It will mark the end of an effort to document and fix the myriad failings of the most ambitious U.S. rebuilding effort since the Marshall Plan. The extent to which U.S. military personnel abused their positions during the war is a part of the legacy of the deeply unpopular conflict that has gone largely unnoticed.

Security agencies flouting norms in recruiting armed guards
The Times of India  |  18 January 2013
> Armed security guards cannot be deployed by private security agencies in Haryana, if one goes by the Haryana Private Security Agencies Rules, 2009, but in Gurgaon alone more than 1,000 armed security guards are deployed by different private security agencies.

Lawbreakers at War: How Responsible Are They?
TIME  |  18 January 2013
> Regardless of what side you are on in the eternal PMSC debate, everyone agrees that private contractors are not state officials or employees. That can make it difficult to prosecute and punish their acts, especially when committed on foreign soil.

Mutiny in Kabul
POGO/Foreign Policy  |  17 January 2013
> Private guards responsible for protecting what may be the most at-risk U.S. diplomatic mission in the world -- the embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan -- say security weaknesses have left it dangerously vulnerable to attack.

UK: Solace Global Maritime to Train Internal Auditors
World Maritime News  |  16 January 2013
> Already certified to ISO 9001, 18001 and 14001, the company is one of the first PMSCs to have conducted such training in preparation for the new ISO PAS 28007 accreditation, Guidelines for Private Maritime Security Companies.

Surge in private security raises concerns over rights
CBC News  |  16 January 2013
> As the number of security guards in Canada rises faster than the number of police officers, some are expressing concerns over blurring the line between private and public police forces. There are now more than 140,000 private security guards licensed in Canada and only about 70,000 active police officers.

So Tell Us What You Really Think
Huffington Post  |  15 January 2013
> For all the commentary, opinions, fulminations, debate and demagoguery that has been lavished on private military and security contractors (PMSC) by journalists, academics, policymakers, industry trade groups and citizenry, one group, has been mostly hidden from view. That is the contractors themselves.

Tanzanian private security guards to receive police training
Sabahi  |  14 January 2013
> Tanzanian police will offer private security guards standard police training starting in February to help strengthen security in the country. Dar es Salaam Deputy Commissioner of Police Suleiman Kova said there are fewer than 1 million police officers in the country and that private security guards are filling the gap.

Privateers - Pirates face a new foe: a private navy
The Economist  |  12 January 2013
> A company called Typhon will use a 10,000 tonne "mother ship" to accompany convoys of merchant vessels. With 60 mostly armed, mostly British ex-soldiers on board, it will deploy speedboats and unmanned drones to watch and intercept hostile boats.

Closing Europe's Borders Becomes Big Business
Inter Press Service  |  9 January 2013
> The European Union is implementing a new border management system with tougher migration control the core aim. Major security and weapons companies are already reaping the benefits.

Abu Ghraib scandal continuing to create repercussions for contractors
Washington Post  |  9 January 2013
> Years after the Abu Ghraib scandal, the repercussions continue to ripple, as Chantilly-based defense contractor Engility has paid a $5.28 million settlement to dozens of former detainees who claimed mistreatment at that and other U.S.-run detention sites in Iraq.

CAR leader calls rebels mercenary terrorists
Al-Jazeera  |  9 January 2013
> President of the Central African Republic has labeled the country's Seleka rebels, who have seized control of much of the country's north, as "mercenary terrorists", in an exclusive interview with Al Jazeera.

Rising crime makes private security a booming business
The Times of India  |  9 January 2013
> Security is a booming business in Gurgaon. Thanks to corporate culture and the rising crime. Sample this: Out of 114 security agencies, which were issued license by the state government in 2012, around 50 % are from Gurgaon.

KBR, Guilty In Iraq Negligence, Wants Taxpayers To Foot The Bill
Huffington Post  |  9 January 2013
> In November, a jury found KBR, the military's largest contractor, guilty of negligence in the poisoning of a dozen soldiers, and ordered the company to pay $85 million in damages...KBR, however, says taxpayers should be on the hook for the verdict

Thinking of Suing a Private Military Contractor? There May Be a Way...
TIME  |  7 January 2013
> Even if you're not a lawyer, you may be aware that traditionally the U.S. military establishment enjoys a lot of immunity for casualties that happen to those who wear the nation's uniform.

Private navy goes to war on Somali pirates
The Sunday Times  |  6 January 2013
> Britain's first private navy in almost two centuries is being created by a group of businessmen to take on the Somali pirates who are terrorising a 2.5m square mile expanse of the Indian Ocean.

PNG Police Concerned by Private Security Plan
Radio Australia  |  4 January 2013
> A plan to install security cameras around Port Moresby and outsource minor policing to private security is meeting resistance from PNG police...the Governor's plan goes a step further, he wants G4S security guards to respond to minor incidents because police are not up to the job.