BT opens nominations for the Information Security Journalism Awards 2013

International category introduced for the first time - opening up competition to journalists outside of the UK

Entries are now open for the seventh annual BT Information Security Journalism Awards. Created in 2005, the awards recognise, reward and inspire journalists working in this hugely important field.

Up until now the awards have celebrated the quality of security journalism in the UK and the importance of information security to British organisations. This year's awards open up the competition to journalists from outside of the UK with a brand new international category, acknowledging the growing popularity of the awards and the increased importance of information security in the global market place.

Last year there was an encouraging response to two new categories – Best Investigative Feature of the Year and Best Security Broadcast Feature/News Story of the Year. The expert judging panel commented that the quality of entries was outstanding. A broad range of entries were received from news outlets including The Guardian, BBC News and Channel 4 leading to the awards being the most prestigious to date.

BT is committed to improving information security and recognises the importance of security to the UK and beyond, from home users through to multi- national organisations. Its business dedicated to serving customers in this important field, BT Security, is one of the largest security and business continuity practices in the world1. Made up of industry experts and leading security minds, it has extensive experience in implementing security solutions for some of the largest global organisations.

This year the awards will again be judged by an expert panel, chaired by Ray Stanton, vice president, BT Advise, BT Global Services, and made up of leading independent figures from the security industry including (in alphabetical order):

• Dr. Robert Coles – CISO & Head of Digital Risk & Security, National Grid
• Ron Condon – Freelance Journalist
• Graham Edwards – Head of Group Information Risk, Centrica Plc
• Professor Dr. Hannes P. Lubich – University of Applied Sciences, North- Western Switzerland
• Malcolm Marshall – Global Leader, Information Protection Services, KPMG
• Professor Fred Piper – Information Security Group, Royal Holloway, University of London

Misha Glenny, independent journalist, author, and winner of last year’s Best Investigative Feature of the Year award said:

There is a growing recognition that information security is at the heart of contemporary business and families’ digital life. The need for informed, readable and cutting-edge journalism about Information Security has never been greater. BT's awards are making a significant contribution to sharpening the output in this key area of the media.”

Ray Stanton said:

The awards have now become a fixture in the calendar for information security journalists, reflecting the increased importance of information security and the valuable work that the media does in this field. We are delighted to host the event for the seventh year and remain committed to improving information security in the UK and internationally. We recognise the vital role that journalism plays in raising awareness among businesses and the public about the issues surrounding security and the steps that can be taken to remain secure. Over recent years we have seen increased depth and new styles of reporting on information security. To recognise this, last year we introduced two new award categories: Best Investigative Feature of the Year and Best Security Broadcast Feature/News Story of the Year. This year for the first time we have opened the awards up to journalists outside the UK by introducing a brand new international category.”

• Information Security Journalist of the Year - £2,000 prize
• BT Enigma Award - £1,000 prize
• Best Information Security News Story of the Year - £500 prize
• Best Security Broadcast Feature/News Story of the Year - £500 prize
• Best Overall Information Security Feature Article of the Year - £500 prize
• Best International Feature/News Story of the Year - £500

• Best Privacy Feature of the Year - £500 prize
• Best Cybercrime Feature of the Year - £500 prize
• Best Investigative Feature of the Year - £500 prize

Follow this year’s awards online on Twitter at @securethinking or through the hashtag #BTISJA. Regular updates will be posted on the BT Let’s Talk Security blog, Facebook and LinkedIn .

Award submission instructions

All entries must have been published or broadcast between 01 July, 2012 and 30 June, 2013. With the exception of the Best International Feature/News Story of the Year category the awards are open to journalists working for UK-based publications/news outlets. Entries can be accepted from journalists, their editors or publishers.

For the Information Security Journalist of the Year category, entrants must submit five articles written by an individual journalist to be eligible for this award.

The BT Enigma Award is decided by the judges and awarded to the journalist who, in their opinion, has made an outstanding and consistent contribution to information security journalism. This is based on submissions to the other categories.

For the Best Security Broadcast Feature/News Story of the Year category journalists, editors or producers are asked to submit the relevant file on a DVD, CD, or file transfer. This can include broadcast packages/reports that have been featured on broadcast news or on news websites.

The new Best International Feature/News Story of the Year category is open to journalists writing for non-UK based publications/news outlets. Articles submitted must be written in English or translated into English. For the remaining categories journalists, editors or publishers are asked to submit one article per category. Entries can be made to multiple categories but an individual article can only be submitted once (however, articles submitted for the Information Security Journalist of the Year category can also be submitted into other categories).

• Award Category:
• Journalist name:
• Publication:
• Date of article:
• URL (if applicable):
• Phone:
• Email address:
• Postal address:
• Twitter ID (if applicable):

Please email entries to Camilla Morgan-Giles at BTSecurityAwards@porternovelli.co.uk or send by post to Porter Novelli, 31 St Petersburgh Place, London, W2 4LA, England by 23 August 2013.