G4S Secure Solutions (USA) Inc.: Optimas Gold Winner for Training 
Workforce  |  30 November 2014
> A recent study led by Michigan State University criminal justice professor Mahesh Nalla found that, even though there are more than 1 million private security officers in the United States, training is often neglected. The study, published in the Security Journal, also found “no dramatic increase in the stringency of industry regulations since 1982.”G4S Secure Solutions (USA) Inc. set out to change that with its Custom Protection Officer Certification Program.

The High Seas are becoming less secure and “edgy” for the people who sail them 
Hellenic Shipping News Worldwide  |  28 November 2014
> Despite the significant reduction in piracy attacks over the last few years it is now widely accepted by the maritime community that the safety of the High Seas cannot always be guaranteed by Governments. The future of security in the marine environment is about cooperation between the public and private sector according to the leading private maritime security company MAST.

Distrust in police make private security a big business in Latin America 
Fox News Latino  |  27 November 2014
> A panic alert flashed across Alberto Herrera's computer screen. Men claiming to be with the notorious Gulf Cartel had stopped a convoy transporting chemicals through a lawless region of northeastern Mexico. They seized two drivers from an escort truck and demanded the valuable cargo in exchange for their release.

Pentagon imposes strict standards on private security firms 
The Washington Post  |  26 November 2014
> The Pentagon is for the first time requiring private security contractors to meet a series of certifiable standards that govern how their businesses are run and how they operate overseas, a move that some say is long overdue.

BDS movement claims victory as U.S. county drops Israeli security firm 
Haaretz  |  26 November 2014
> Durham County, North Carolina, has dropped an Israeli security company under fire from the BDS movement, prompting anti-occupation activists to claim victory. However, county officials were less equivocal about their reasons for searching for a new security provider, according to local newspaper The Herald-Sun.

The Development and Regulation of Private Maritime Security 
The Maritime Executive  |  24 November 2014
> Before countries possessed the capacity to create and maintain ocean-going navies, privateers dominated the business of protecting maritime commerce from the risks of piracy, sabotage, and other threats. As key maritime countries developed their navies, they phased out privateering in order to ensure a monopoly over armed conflict and, therefore, state power.

Security firms' operations 'ungoverned' 
IPPMedia.com  |  24 November 2014
> The government is yet to formulate a security and defense policy which would oversee operations of security companies in the country. According to Tanzania Security Industry Association (TSIA), private security companies have been operating under no laws, guidelines or regulations, something that is contrary to the country’s constitution of 1977.

British mercenaries fighting Isil 'open to murder charges' 
The Telegraph  |  24 November 2014
> Former British Army soldiers who have travelled to Syria to fight against the Islamic State in Syria and the Levant (Isil) have placed themselves in legal limbo and could be charged with murder, a former government legal officer has warned.

ISIS: Ex-British soldier becomes 'mercenary' to fight Islamic State in Syria 
Mirror  |  23 November 2014
> An ex-British soldier has become a “mercenary” to fight Islamic State terrorists in Syria. James Hughes – who served on three tours of Afghanistan – is among several Brits now taking on the IS in brutal battles. He is in the city of Rojava fighting alongside a friend Jamie Read. The revelation comes as it also emerged members of crack SAS squads are in the region taking on the IS threat.

Private Military Contractors Hired to Move Guns and Gold Out of Ferguson 
Vice News  |  22 November 2014
> Business owners in the St. Louis, Missouri area have hired private military contractors to transport guns and gold, fearing their shops will be targeted by looters if a grand jury does not indict Darren Wilson, the police officer who shot and killed Michael Brown in the St. Louis County suburb of Ferguson.

Privatizing Security 
The International Relations and Security Network  |  19 November 2014
>  Private military and security companies (PMSCs) have become a relevant topic in international relations and in academic literature during the last decades: the case of Executive Outcomes in the 90s, the well-known actions of Blackwater in Iraq, and G4S controversial practices are good examples of it.

Conservative government to study privatization of some police services 
The Star  |  19 November 2014
>  The Conservative government is examining the “opportunities and challenges” involved in privatizing some policing services in Canada. Public Safety officials are commissioning a study to examine the growing industry of private policing in Canada and abroad, and to outline the role private security firms could play in traditional public policing roles.

Coalition wants private developers to produce military and special-purpose products through tenders 
Kyiv Post  |  18 November 2014
>  The draft coalition agreement proposes to introduce the necessary mechanisms, due to which private developers could develop and test military and special-purpose produce on the results of the bids.

Maritime security company takes action on new threats 
Hellenic Shipping News  |  18 November 2014
>  An international maritime security company is stepping up its services to combat increasingly sophisticated threats worldwide. Neptune Maritime Security is expanding its specialist support to meet rising demand in offshore security, port security, risk management and cruise ship protection.

Danger zone: Chasing West Africa’s pirates 
BBC  |  13 November 2014
>  Take a boat ride out from the Nigerian port of Lagos and it is easy to see why piracy, sea robbery and other forms of maritime crime are such a problem. The ocean is swarming with cargo ships, oil tankers, barges and other vessels waiting for permission to enter the overcrowded port.

Blackwater.ru: The Future of Russian Private Military Companies 
The Moscow Times  |  12 November 2014
>  In Soviet times, Russian military professionals worked across the globe from Cuba to Vietnam, teaching, advising and sometimes just pointing Kalashnikov muzzles at the enemy for the sake of the proletariat. Now Russian authorities want them to do so again, but this time, for profit — and, just possibly, as a governmental proxy. A bill filed with the State Duma late last month would legalize private military and security companies (PMSCs) in Russia, an idea endorsed in 2012 by President Vladimir Putin.

Rule of law: Navigating the muddy waters of private security firms 
The Jerusalem Post  |  6 November 2014
>  A US court’s conviction of Blackwater contractors for killing Iraqi civilians shines a light on the intractable problem of policing private security contractors – both globally and in Israel.

Privatizing security: talking with Lou Pingeot 
Open Democracy  |  5 November 2014
>  Private military and security companies (PMSCs) have become a relevant topic in international relations and in academic literature during the last decades: the case of Executive Outcomes in the 90s, the well-known actions of Blackwater in Iraq, and G4S controversial practices are good examples of it.

The ethics of a mercenary 
OUPblog  |  2 November 2014
>  In July 2014, the Ukrainian President, Petro Poroshenko, claimed that Ukraine wasn’t fighting a civil war in the east of the country but rather was “defending its territory from foreign mercenaries.” Conversely, rumours abounded earlier in the year that Academi, the firm formerly known as Blackwater, were operating in support of the Ukrainian government (which Academi strongly denied). What is interesting is not simply whether these claims are true, but also their rhetorical force. Being a mercenary and using mercenaries is seen as one of the worst moral failings in a conflict.