The design of the site undertaken by Claire Kellock, started in November 2014, as it became apparent that the demand for SCA’s services had extended beyond the Algarve. In fact enquiries are regularly received from overseas from people who have visited Portugal as those planning to move or invest here. Following discussions with the national police authorities in Lisbon, it was therefore decided to embark on a new site with some of the input being provided by them.
The new SCP site follows the same basic design of the SCA site but incorporates some new important features.
Given the large increase in the number of cybercrime enquiries it was decided to launch a cybercrime section divided into a number of pages, including a Cyber security alert page. This page is updated daily where necessary and shows samples of threats and attacks that people have received in Portugal and have brought to our attention as well as global attacks that may affect the country. We are grateful to Jim Litchko, a computer security analyst for his expert help in creating this facility.
Another new feature is a “For tourist” page. Although Portugal is one of the safest places to visit in Europe, it is important it remains so. Crime prevention tips are in seven languages at present and it is hoped to include Russian shortly.
We have also added a section on safety advice for children named “Keeping Kids Safe”, as well as the most comprehensive emergency contacts and hot-line contacts list available. The latter includes “click-through” contacts to the main support organizations in Portugal dealing with health, safety, and social services.
Following discussions, with the Economic and Food Safety Authority (ASAE) they are also featured in the police section on the website together with the GNR, PSP, SEF and the Judicial Police. We are grateful for the assistance and input received from these organizations.
The civil protection area on the website has been expanded from that available on the SCA site with a particular focus on forest fire prevention, given the risk this poses in many parts of the country.
With over 70 crime prevention downloads, it is hoped that the new site will help further enhance awareness of crime prevention, public safety and cyber security within all communities, supplementing the work of the various law enforcement agencies.