BT cracks down on thieves in a bid to save their copper wire network

BT has launched a new initiative, which, it hopes, will bring an end to the pilfering of the large amounts of copper contained in their nationwide network.

Thieves are said to be stealing the copper wire in increasingly brazen moves due to the increased price of copper scrap. BT estimates that theft of the metal rose by nearly 10 per cent last year, and the knock on effects of having network downtime is also costing money and creating customer discontent.

In a bid to minimise the pilfering, BT is adopting an invisible paint solution called SmartWater developed by British scientists. This is a marking liquid that allows the network cables to be sprayed thereby giving them a unique mark. If any cabling subsequently goes missing and is recovered, Police can cross-check using the SmartWater system to establish where the valuable copper originated from.

The SmartWater liquid has a usable lifespan of several months while it can also remain on skin for up to sixty days. It could help BT and the Police track down criminals who are finding increasingly rich-pickings from stealing chunks of the copper-wire network that runs throughout the UK. BT's OpeanReach division has already started the trial in Scotland.

Bernie Auguste, head of security for BT Openreach, said: "Any criminal who targets the BT network in Scotland now risks being invisibly tagged with SmartWater, meaning the police can trace them, and any stolen cable or equipment."