UK thinks out of the box to hire new James Bonds
Britain is seeking spies from the “X-Box” generation, at ease with social media, global connectivity and interactive gaming, and started an apprentice scheme for potential new James Bonds.
The aim is to recruit 100 youngsters from outside the traditional university route, who will be trained and sent to work for GCHQ in signal intelligence and electronic surveillance and for agencies like MI5 and MI6, foreign secretary William Hague announced at Bletchley Park in Buckinghamshire on Thursday evening.
Britain’s intelligence agencies, which traditionally used to recruit from old-boy networks and universities, have of late become more open, innovative and varied in hiring processes. Last year GCHQ released a code-breaking challenge to recruit new talent. In 2007, it had embedded ads inside computer games to target “computer-savvy, technologically able, quick thinking” potential recruits.
The GCHQ runs an National Cipher Challenge every year for schools to inspire the young to think about a future career in mathematics and cybersecurity. It also has a regular job scheme for mathematicians. MI5 had advertised for staff on the sides of London buses a few years back.
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