British intelligence service enlists independent firms

Britain’s intelligence service is looking beyond BAE Systems Plc, Lockheed Martin Corp and other big defence contractors to an untapped army of independent innovators for tools to fight terrorism and for cyber security.

The Government Communications Headquarters spy agency and the MI5 domestic security service have teamed with the defence ministry to enlist small-and medium-sized companies they have not previously worked with, the agency said today.

The procurement partnership marks the first time the ministry’s Centre for Defence Enterprise is working with the intelligence community. The goal is to find university startups and companies with technology for covert surveillance and online identity verification. GCHQ and MI5 can fund research activities, with CDE in charge of the technical assessment and program management.