Scouts' downed Compass database won't be back 'til autumn

The Scout Association will not have its troubled Compass database — which holds the details of 450,000 young people and volunteer adults — restored to operation until early autumn.

The Compass database was taken down in January following revelations by El Reg that members had raised serious concerns over the security of the system.

In an update this week the association acknowledged that it had been "extremely difficult to carry out many Scouting tasks without a functioning database".

The note said the association had identified the security challenges. A spokesman said the issues were around "potential access", although he added that no one has hacked or broken into the system.

The Scouts intend to restore Compass in several stages. By early autumn a version of Compass will be back online with the "equivalent functionality" of its previous MMS database.

The spokesman was unable to confirm when the database will be restored with full functionality.

"We are looking at the possibility of turning Compass back on for a limited number of users so that there is at least one person in each Scout District and County/Region/Area who can access and update the system," said the association.

"However, this does require a full assessment of this potential solution taking external advice and a full evaluation of the security risks," the association added.

"We are instigating an external, independent review of the Compass project over the last five years to ensure that we have learned all the lessons we can. Clearly your input and feedback to date will be fed into this process and has been incredibly helpful in this work to date," said the association. ®