Computer security is a growing field: in London, in Edinburgh, and in the rest of the UK. In the world as a whole, information security has evolved from a specialist discipline to a central component of an organisation's security function. Since the advent of the personal computer in the 1980's, computers have escaped from the data processing centre to colonise every office in the country, and in great numbers. Right behind them is the consequent increased need for computer security, due to the exponential growth in the numbers of malicious hackers and opportunistic cyber-criminals in recent years.
As an industry sector in the UK, computer security is relatively new, whether in London, Edinburgh or other cities and towns. Information security has yet to reach its natural level in most areas of the UK, and in principle there is still room for expansion in at least the major financial and industrial centres, such as Edinburgh. In practice, however, further expansion will probably depend on an increase in awareness at board level of the vital importance of information security to all business types today.
In London, this has translated into a plethora of information security consultancies. The UK's capital city is the location of the British headquarters of international banks, financial services companies, and multinational companies of every type. Many of these organisations are subject to stringent regulatory requirements, which include the need to comply with information security standards. This means that computer security in London is a highly active industry sector, with many specialist consultancy firms, as well as regular conferences (such as the annual Infosecurity Europe conference) and university degree courses in information security (such as the highly-regarded MSc in Information Security from Royal Holloway College, University of London).
However, it is a different picture in other areas of the UK. Even in large cities, such as Liverpool or Edinburgh, there are comparatively few computer security consulting firms, and only a few education or training courses in the subject. This is no doubt due to the comparative lack of large companies that are subject to regulatory pressures on information security governance. Without such pressures, organisations can be tempted to relegate computer security to a lower priority: a policy which may be appealing in the short term, but which risks damaging consequences in the longer term.
This unequal relationship between London (and the south-east of England) and the rest of the UK is not seen only in computer security. Although Edinburgh, for example, is a capital in its own right, and the headquarters of several banking and finance companies, it has only a fraction of the wealth and attractive power of London with regard to employee mobility, senior management posts, and international recognition. This situation has built up over many years, over centuries even, and will not change in a matter of a few years only.
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