Today, we look at the journey of one UK county council navigating complex security and compliance issues and charged with safeguarding online activity in their public library. As the council has requested anonymity, we’ll refer to them as ‘the Council’ for illustration.

Rest assured, however, the stories are real, the council is real, and the stakes couldn’t be higher.

The Challenge: Balancing Public Safety, Security, and Compliance

The Council recently expanded its reach by merging with neighbouring districts, leading to an increase in its internal workforce from 4,500 to nearly 7,000 employees. Alongside managing a growing staff, the council’s IT team, under the leadership of the Strategic Manager for Enterprise Architecture and Governance, need to ensure safe, secure internet access for the public. This is especially critical in council-run public libraries, where diverse users, including vulnerable groups and individuals with specific legal restrictions, rely on Internet access. 

The Council began their search for a solution that went beyond traditional web filters, evaluating a range of alternatives before landing on and sticking with Fastvue.

We needed something robust—something that could handle monitoring everything from inappropriate staff browsing to criminal activity in public libraries,'  Strategic Manager for Enterprise Architecture and Governance, UK County Council.

Boosting Employee Productivity with Fastvue’s Monitoring Capabilities

The Council places a high priority on ensuring that staff remain focused and efficient. In a growing organisation, productivity management is essential to achieving its operational goals. Fastvue has become a valuable asset in tracking digital behaviour across departments, allowing the council to monitor employee productivity and maintain transparency in internet usage.

Each week, Fastvue generates a comprehensive productivity report that gives the Strategic Manager an at-a-glance summary of online activity patterns within the council.

We run weekly reports… it’s nice to be able to say to the chief exec, sometimes we're down to 2% this week for unproductive browsing. Over time, we’ve sent out articles in newsletters, staff magazines, and meeting notes, and we’ve really brought those numbers down. Most staff know that we’re looking at what they’re doing, so unproductive browsing is consistently low.

This regular reporting provides a measure of staff productivity and helps identify trends or potential concerns in digital behaviour. Fastvue’s productivity tracking allows the council to pinpoint areas where time is misallocated, offering department heads actionable data to guide discussions with team members.

The visibility provided by Fastvue has also supported a cultural shift within the council. With the monitoring in place, staff are increasingly aware of acceptable use policies and the importance of focused online behaviour. This awareness has reduced the rate of unproductive browsing, and in cases where inappropriate usage has been detected, Fastvue’s detailed logs make it easy to address specific concerns directly.

By reinforcing a culture of accountability and focus, Fastvue has become a vital tool for the Council in supporting an efficient workforce.

Achieving Compliance with Fastvue’s Advanced Monitoring and Reporting

For the Council, maintaining compliance with stringent regulatory requirements is critical. From GDPR to safeguarding laws, councils must manage data responsibly and ensure that public networks are used appropriately. Fastvue’s monitoring tools have proven instrumental in helping the Council achieve and sustain compliance across these areas, streamlining complex processes and providing reliable, actionable insights.

One of the core compliance challenges for the council is data protection. Fastvue’s system is self-hosted, which means all data remains securely within the council’s servers rather than being stored in a cloud environment. 'The fact that Fastvue is self-hosted is a big win for us. We know exactly where the data is stored, on our own servers, which aligns with our compliance requirements under GDPR,' the Strategic Manager explains. By keeping data local, Fastvue allows the council to manage sensitive information securely and confidently meet this GDPR requirement.

Fastvue’s Site Clean technology further supports compliance by filtering unnecessary background data, such as ads and tracking pixels, ensuring that only meaningful user activity is captured in reports. 'Fastvue’s Site Clean really helps cut through the noise. Managers get reports that show only real user behaviour, and that level of accuracy is crucial for our compliance standards,' the Strategic Manager notes. This 'noise-free' reporting enhances data accuracy and helps the council meet GDPR’s data minimisation and accuracy principles, reducing the risk of unintentional data handling breaches.

In addition, Fastvue’s real-time alerts and tailored reporting allow the Council to quickly respond to any compliance breaches. When flagged content or high-risk behaviour is detected, the system provides instant notifications, enabling IT staff to act immediately if necessary. This proactive approach is essential for compliance with safeguarding obligations, especially in environments like public libraries, where certain individuals may have strict legal restrictions on internet use. 'With Fastvue, we’re notified instantly if a flagged user tries something suspicious, and we can act right away,' the Strategic Manager confirms, underscoring Fastvue’s value for safeguarding compliance.

Solving Crimes: Fastvue's Role in Real-World Investigations

Digital evidence has changed the way that investigators solve crimes. Almost every criminal investigation now involves some type of digital trail, which can sometimes be the crucial piece of the puzzle for investigation. For the Council, Fastvue’s sophisticated monitoring and reporting capabilities have been essential in assisting law enforcement in high-stakes criminal cases.

Monitoring High-Risk Users

As part of the People’s Network, the Council’s public libraries provide internet access to a broad user base, including individuals with specific legal restrictions. As the strategic manager explains;

We use Fastvue Reporter extensively. In public libraries, we have a large number of users, including those under strict legal constraints. Fastvue allows us to monitor this activity, track any suspicious behaviour, and act immediately if we spot misuse.

Fastvue’s real-time alerts and detailed reporting enable the council to monitor these high-risk users closely in line with various acts, allowing them to quickly contact the police when inappropriate online behaviour is detected. Fastvue’s insights have led to the re-incarceration of offenders who violated their conditions, protecting other library users and the broader community from potential harm.

Solving a Murder

In a case where truth is indeed stranger than fiction, two individuals used the council’s library computers to research ways to commit a murder, believing that using public access terminals rather than their personal devices would shield them from detection. Little did they know, Fastvue was monitoring everything on the library’s network.

When the authorities asked for help from the Council, Fastvue’s tracking logs were the critical, admissible digital evidence. Council staff could put together a report of the suspects’ search history in minutes and deliver it to the authorities. The evidence included timestamped records, URLs and keywords, and a complete story of the individuals’ digital footprint leading up to the crime.

There was also a murder, and the individuals actually did their research on how to commit the murder in a library. Rather than do it on their phone or their own home equipment, they went into the library and did it. We were able to provide the information that was used in the court case

Strategic Manager, UK County Council.

Locating a Kidnapped Child

When police approached the Council for help in locating a child abducted by a non-custodial parent, Fastvue’s detailed logs enabled council staff to identify critical clues that had previously eluded investigators. The child’s father, who had no custody rights, had taken the child unexpectedly, and initial leads had gone cold. Using Fastvue’s monitoring capabilities, council staff were able to trace the father’s online activity at a local library, where he had been searching for nearby caravan parks and booking accommodation.

With this information, police quickly identified the specific caravan site, allowing them to locate and safely retrieve the child. 

The police came to us and said, ‘Is there anything you can tell us about this individual?’ We did some searches, and through the software, we found that they were actually looking for caravan sites, and we found a booking. We handed that to the police and said it's worth going and having a look here because there's a booking in this particular caravan site, and police went there and there was the dad with his son.

Achieving Balance: Public Access with Security and Compliance

Thanks to Fastvue, the Council can now confidently manage public internet use, allowing lawful access while maintaining strict security protocols. With features like video extraction, keyword detection, productivity estimates, and real-time alerts, Fastvue provides an accurate, detailed view of network interactions without the need for blanket blocking. This clarity enables the Council to protect users effectively without restricting access to valuable information.

The Strategic Manager sums it up:

We love that it’s ‘fire and forget. Fastvue automates reports, sends them to managers, and lets us know when something’s wrong. If we’re ever dealing with a serious incident, Fastvue is the tool we trust to provide exactly what we need, when we need it.

I’m not going to give you a 10 because you’d stop improving it. But realistically, it is a 10. It does everything we need it to do.

For this UK Council, Fastvue has proved a valuable addition to their tech stack, helping to prevent security incidents, meet legal requirements and remain GDPR compliant. With real-time alerts, flexible reporting, and precise monitoring, Fastvue enables the council to create a safe, inclusive environment for all users while staying ahead of potential risks.

Book a demo today to see how Fastvue can help your council stay secure, compliant, and connected in a rapidly evolving digital world. Don’t get left behind. Fastvue is the intelligent, adaptable solution every council needs to keep public spaces safe and accessible for all.