Category: Industry News

The Home Secretary, Priti Patel, has ordered a wide-ranging, independent review of Border Force to assess its structure, powers, funding and priorities to ensure it can keep pace with rapidly evolving threats and continue to protect the border, maintain security and prevent illegal migration.

The review will be carried out by Alexander Downer as an Independent Reviewer. Mr. Downer has a wealth of relevant experience to bring to this review, having previously served as Australian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom and Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs. He is currently Executive Chair at the International School for Government, King’s College London.

The first of its kind since Border Force was set up, the wide-ranging review is expected to take several months to complete. It will ensure the UK government is prepared for future challenges at the border, by identifying change and improvements needed across Border Force’s work on illegal migration, customs and national security to help keep the UK safe, secure and prosperous.

“Border Force officers work tirelessly to protect our borders at 140 sea and air ports right across the UK,” Home Secretary, Priti Patel said. “Since Border Force was set up in 2011, its remit has grown to meet the changing border threats we face, and in recent years has supported delivery of the government’s Brexit commitments and COVID-19 measures. The public rightly expects this work to be carried out to the highest possible standard, which is why I have ordered this review of Border Force to identify ways in which it can keep improving its operations. I have appointed Alexander Downer to do this vital work and look forward to his findings and recommendations.”

Any further details on the review will be set out by the Independent Reviewer in due course.

“I am delighted that the Home Secretary has asked me to lead an independent review of Border Force, to ensure the UK’s border is protected from the changing threats of today, and prepared for future challenges,” said Independent Reviewer of Border Force, Alexander Downer. “As an Independent Reviewer, I plan to lead a review that is robust, evidence-based and outcome-orientated. I look forward to assessing Border Force’s structure, powers, funding and priorities, and hearing from a wide range of voices from across the organization and beyond.”

On Saturday February 5, Russia sent a two long-range nuclear-type bombers on a flight over Belarus as tensions over Ukraine mount.

The Russian Defense Ministry confired two Tu-22M3 bombers conducted a practice session with the Belarusian air force during a reported four-hour mission. The flight came after similar patrols over Belarus, one of the border countries of Ukraine.

Carbyne recently announced the hires of new leadership executives. Rahul Sheth joins as the new CFO, Kelly Ercolino is assuming the role of VP of Marketing, Melissa Cooper is coming in as VP of Strategy and Corporate Development, and Alex Gruber will be VP of Product.

Carbyne is a global leader in mission critical contact center solutions. The company expanded its capabilities globally within the public safety industry and continues to provide enterprises and government agencies with life saving technologies. Carbyne believes “Every Person Counts; “the company is not only using technology to save lives, but is also empowering emergency contact center agents with real-time, interactive data which enables them to have a stronger impact and better outcomes.

Carbyne is the largest rich-data provider globally, delivering over 155 million data points per year. After two consecutive years with 300% growth, Carbyne is poised to strengthen its role as a global industry leader in emergency services by expanding into new markets worldwide. In 2021, the company obtained new customers every week. This success was due to Carbyne’s esteemed reputation in delivering end-to-end advanced SaaS-based solutions at scale while reducing costs and saving lives. Carbyne is credited for sustaining a 100% retention rate with its first and existing customer base. “We are proud of our growth internally,” said Amir Elichai, founder, chairman & CEO of Carbyne. “We concluded 2021 with 170 employees, doubling where we were last year and have invested in bringing on new executives to continue our success.”

Joining the team is Rahul Sheth, a finance executive who has spent the last fifteen years developing high-growth technology companies, specializing in financial planning, strategies and operations, as well as capital market (debt and equity raises), IPO readiness and IPO registration. Sheth worked in various finance roles over the last 15 years. Most notably, he has led growth for Socure (now a Unicorn), DigitalOcean (IPO exit), and Emerge (metaverse). He is a CPA and Chartered Accountant (Finance – India) with an international profile. “I am thrilled to join Carbyne as the CFO to help the company continue executing its strategic plan, accelerate growth and deliver value for its shareholders. I look forward to partnering with the exceptionally talented Carbyne team on its next phase of global scale and product innovation, and on a mission to build a safer world,” commented Sheth.

Kelly Ercolino joins Carbyne as the vice president of marketing and is recognized as an inspirational industry leader with an exemplary record of developing successful marketing strategies, breakthrough traditional and digital marketing programs to achieve aggressive revenue goals and notably positioning accredited brands in their marketspace. Her experience includes professional services firms such as Cushman & Wakefield, Tectonic Engineering and ADP, Inc, specifically focused on Technology Products and Services Companies such as Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) and NICE. Kelly explains “My goal is to increase Carbyne’s brand identity and penetrate new global markets transforming how emergency responders are equipped with advanced real-time communication and information. I am honored to help impact today’s technology revolution in emergency management with Carbyne’s life-saving solutions.”

Melissa Cooper comes to Carbyne as VP of corporate strategy and development with a successful record as a strategic growth leader who has over a decade of experience in driving global acquisitions, growth strategy, strategic operations, and corporate development. She has helped several companies enter new markets and geographies, taking organizations to their next level of maturity. “My experience in building longer term strategies, and collaborating with executives, boards, investors, and external partners will drive Carbyne’s growth across the globe. I am thrilled to join Carbyne and help us continue to build on our strategic foundation and further accelerate our growth into new markets. I strongly believe in our mission and am privileged to be part of such a talented leadership team,” said Cooper.

Alex Gruber has more than 15 successful years developing complex strategies across the communication and healthcare Industries. Alex was responsible for the lifecycle of product lines from design, sales, integration, and support with expertise across B2C, B2B and B2B2C at enterprise scale. Today, Alex oversees the development and strategy of Carbyne’s Emergency Management product suite of APEX and Universe for both the public and private sectors. “Carbyne’s products are at the intersection of technology and critical life events. I’m excited to contribute to and shape the future of mission critical collaboration, create innovative technologies to deliver more information and by extension improving the outcomes for people around the world,” added Gruber.

“Each one of these executives have an impressive background and we are excited to see the future ahead for Carbyne. I am confident with these additions to our Executive Leadership team, we will continue to expand our emergency management advanced technologies in public safety and bring new growth for mission critical solutions into other markets across the globe,” commented Elichai.

Milton Security, a provider of Threat Hunting as a Service, XDR & MDR (MxDR) SOC Services, announced plans to further expand its U.S. presence with the opening of an office in the Capitol, Washington, D.C. The company will initially open its doors at Servcorp, a shared workspace located at 1717 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Suite 1025, with the intention of further expanding and taking a permanent location in 2022.

“Adding a third location in the U.S. was intentional and instrumental for our continuing growth,” said James McMurry, CEO and founder of Milton Security. “With the rapid growth of Federal Cyber Regulations, and the signing of the infrastructure bill by President Biden last week, which allocates $2 billion for Cybersecurity over 4 years, this location will become a major hub for Milton Security.”

“We are very excited about the new location in D.C.,” commented Eric Cowperthwaite, COO of Milton Security. “Expanding into our nation’s Capitol city, will allow us to better engage our federal government customers, and recruit from a diverse talent pool, that includes a large veteran population. It also allows us to better connect with prospective customers.”

Milton Security now has three locations: Brea, California; Las Vegas, Nevada; and Washington, D.C.

A Paris street was closed off Thursday, July 29, 2021, after a car slammed into a cafe and the driver of the vehicle ran away. Several people were injured.

The street was closed out of an abundance of caution to determine what occurred. Police said the incident is most likely an accident but they are investigating.

Following the passage out of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of Senate Bill 2016, a bipartisan surface transportation bill that would authorize $78 billion over five years, the Rail Security Alliance thanked Congressional leaders for prioritizing the security of the United States freight rail industry in the legislation.

The surface transportation bill was introduced by U.S. Sens. Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Roger
Wicker (R-MS), with Sens. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and Jerry Moran (R-KS) sponsoring an amendment to the bill, the Stopping America’s Foreign Enemies Through Rail and Infrastructure National Security (SAFE TRAINS) Act.

Today, the Senate Commerce Committee passed the bill in a vote of 25-3, keeping the SAFE TRAINS Act in the bill through markup. Erik Olson, vice president of the Rail Security Alliance, said, “The leadership of Sens. Cantwell and Wicker and Sens. Baldwin and Moran advances the work that has already been done to ensure that the North American freight rail industry and our critical rail infrastructure is free from foreign threat.” The SAFE TRAINS Act includes key provisions that protect the national and economic security
of the U.S. by ensuring freight railcars are manufactured and built in North America, not by
state-owned enterprises (SOE), as has happened in the domestic passenger rail market. The
SAFE TRAINS Act mirrors legislative language included the INVEST in America Act that was
passed out of the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee last week.

Chinese state-owned enterprises, including CRRC, are at the forefront of the China military-civil
fusion strategy and have been identified on a Department of Defense list of companies backed
and supported by the Chinese military. It has also been reported that the state-backed company
uses forced child and Uighur labor in its supply chains.

CRRC has made inroads in the domestic passenger rail market by underbidding on railcar
manufacturing contracts for transit agencies from Los Angeles to Boston, reaping $2.6 billion in
contracts, with the majority of funding coming from taxpayer dollars. The SAFE TRAINS Act
prevents this kind of attack in the U.S. freight rail market.

Congressional leaders on both sides of the aisle and U.S. defense experts have spoken out about
the risks of doing business with Chinese state-owned enterprises.

“In a few short years, Chinese state-owned enterprises like CRRC have demonstrated their intent
to take over U.S. manufacturing and supply in key industries through non-market, anti-
competitive practices and mercantilist policies backed by the Chinese Communist Party. It’sbeen shown time and time again that our freight rail industry is at a great risk from these foreign
threats. The SAFE TRAINS Act, included as part of the surface transportation bill, goes a long
way to ensuring rail security in the U.S.,” Olson added