Prisoners unpick hi-tech lock system
The Scotsman reports on the catastrophic failure of a biometrics-based security system at a Scottish prison:
Prison officers have been forced to abandon a new security system and return to the use of keys after the cutting-edge technology repeatedly failed.
The system, which is thought to have cost over £3 million, used fingerprint recognition to activate the locking system at the high-security Glenochil Prison near Tullibody, Clackmannanshire.
After typing in a PIN code, prison officers had to place their finger on a piece of glass. Once the print was recognised, they could then lock and unlock prison doors.
However, problems arose after a prisoner demonstrated to wardens that he could get through the system at will. Other prisoners had been doing the same for some time.
Instead of fixing the state-of-the-art technology, prison governors have decided that it is more cost-effective to get rid of it and return to the system of every officer having his own key.
For more than a month, the 420 inmates – including some murderers and other high-risk inmates – had been able to wander around the high-security jail. Staff claim that the unlimited access to all parts of the prison had allowed some prisoners to settle old scores with rivals.
