Business Security Information

You own or manage a store, restaurant, bank, check-cashing establishment or other similar type of business.  One or more robbers entered your business through the front door and demanded money.  You or your employees complied with the robber(s) demands and gave them the money.  No one was hurt and now the robber(s) have left your business through the back or side door.  The employees locked all the doors so the robber(s) don’t return and have called 911.  Now what?

One of the key components to this scenario is the doors that the robber(s) used to enter and exit the business.  When the police arrive, does it matter what door they are let in?

Do you use an EAS (electronic article surveillance) system in your retail store?  I know that most of the major retailers use these type of systems.  Actually, I was at a department store the other day, and I noticed, like I have so many times in the past few years, how ineffective they can be.  Let me explain that statement.

It seems like there are numerous websites on the Internet covering the main aspects of computer security but very few on physical security for a typical business.  On this website I try to cover all types of security on this website, but today I want to focus on physical security.

Physical security is mainly related to the protection of people, buildings, equipment and other physical or tangible assets.  Physical security is often overlooked in this high-tech business world where protecting digital assets of a business is emphasized. Adequately protecting digital assets, though, depends on implementing physical security as well.

In the past couple of weeks, I have talked to a couple of different business owners who have paid fines to their local government because the local police have responded to a business because of a security alarm system that was activated.  Both of these businesses used a third party monitoring company who  notified the local police after receiving the alarm signal.  The police responded and found no activity that they felt was related to a break-in or other type of security incident and wrote it off as a false alarm.  According to local ordinances, both business owners were allowed a couple of false alarms per year before they received a fine which was over one hundred dollars in both cases.

Video Analytics is some times called video analysis or intelligent video but is very different than the older technology of basic video motion detection.  Video Analytics is basically computer software or algorithm that can be configured to analyze specific behavior that the security camera sees.  It usually encompasses a combination of hardware and software.

Traditional video motion detection uses a simple rule that when a set number of pixels change in the video, an alarm is sounded or the video starts to record the movement or both.  Video motion detection has a high false alarm rate due to the fact that any motion, not just security incidents, causes changes in the video picture.  Currently, this technology is used mainly to reduce storage space needed to record security cameras.  This way, security camera footage is only recorded when motion is detected.

There are four basic principles of security that should be used no matter if you are looking at physical security or computer security issues with your business.  When you are planning security for your business, base all your decisions on these four principles.  If you do not incorporate all four of the them, your security measures have a higher chance of being defeated.  Any security system can be beaten, but thieves are looking for the greatest amount of return with the lowest risk.  If you use these principles correctly, you will increase the risk criminals must take to be successful.  In most cases, the thief will choose an easier target down the road.  Many businesses rely on security alarm systems, also called intrusion alarm systems, which notify of someone trying to break into a building.  Security alarm systems by themselves, however, are not a deterrent to criminals, especially against professionals.  They are important but should be incorporated into your overall security plan.

Magnetic Switch

Most security alarm systems have magnetic switches or reed switches which are usually utilized as door contacts and to secure some types of windows.  These sensors have been vulnerable to different attack methods for some time (Bypass Movie 1), but UL (Underwriters Laboratory) has recently changed the requirements for magnetic switches.  This was done to make these switches harder to defeat.  Underwriter Laboratories established a Level 2 which defined requirements to better protect the switch from being bypassed.  You can read the requirements in UL 634 if you want to read the whole standard.