One of Britain’s high cybersecurity specialists is quitting the intelligence providers to affix Amazon in a transfer that would reignite the controversy in regards to the revolving door between Whitehall and the non-public sector.
Sky News has learnt that Ian Levy, who turned technical director of the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) in 2016, has been recruited by the know-how behemoth in a senior government function.
Details of Mr Levy’s new place had been unclear on Thursday, however sources stated his transfer was more likely to be vetted by the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments (ACOBA), which scrutinises functions about new jobs for former ministers and senior civil and crown servants.
One insider stated that Mr Levy’s new job can be at Amazon – which final week started making roughly 10,000 members of its workforce redundant – reasonably than Amazon Web Services, which supplies cloud-hosting and different IT providers to quite a few authorities departments.
Nevertheless, Amazon itself was reported in May to have been awarded UK authorities contracts price £425m throughout the earlier two years, a determine that drew criticism due to the Seattle-based firm’s questionable observe file at paying company taxes.
One supply aware of ACOBA’s scrutiny stated it was doubtless that Mr Levy can be prohibited from direct involvement in UK government-related contracts for a interval of no less than 12 months from the date he takes up his new put up.
Prior to taking on his function on the NCSC, Mr Levy was technical director of cyber safety and resilience at GCHQ.
He is very regarded internationally for his work within the fast-evolving cybersecurity panorama, and is more likely to have been handed a profitable monetary bundle to work for Amazon.
He introduced his departure from the NCSC in a prolonged blog-post final month, however didn’t disclose his skilled vacation spot.
“I’ve met and worked with some of the most amazing people, including some of the brightest people on the planet, and learned an awful lot,” he wrote.
“I’ve got to give a special mention to everyone in the NCSC and wider GCHQ because they’re just awesome.
“And I’ve additionally had the pleasure of working with distributors, regulators, wider trade, academia, worldwide companions and an entire bunch of others.”
Amazon and the NCSC each declined to remark.
Source: information.sky.com”