Business Security Information

Businesses just like yours spend time, money and energy every day trying to protect their assets from a variety of security issues.  How do you know if you are expending that time, money and energy covering the right security issues?

This month I came across a survey of security directors from a variety of companies that covered the major security issues they face and the cost of security incidents when they did occur.  I will highlight some of that information in this article so you can see the type and cost of a variety of security issues.  You can use this information to evaluate if you are addressing the right security issues in your own business.  Here is the list of security issues based on the highest annual dollar losses to the lowest dollar losses:

When most companies think about disaster planning, a variety of thoughts come to mind.  Some businesses I have dealt with think about preparing for a natural disaster or a fire while others think about nothing but planning for an IT or network outage.  For the purpose of this article, I am referring to the planning for and recovery from a disaster.  This definition encompasses more than just the planning and recovery of IT services, infrastructure, data (information) and other technology resources of a company.  Disaster planning must include preparing for and recovering from the loss of human resources, such as key employees of a business, and other essential resources that allow a business to function.

New internet attack methods or new variations of old ones seem to be developing on a regular basis.  This makes it hard to keep up with all the ways your business’ computer system can be attacked as well as adequately protecting your most vital business asset–information.

If you are one of many types of businesses that sell or service vehicles, you should look at how you are storing keys for the vehicles you are servicing or selling.  Over the years, I have seen numerous dealerships and service centers that store keys like the company noted in the pictures.  As you can see from the pictures, the keys are just stored on a board-type key holder.  While I do not usually recommend the use of such a board because keys are easily accessible to anyone in the area, I want to focus on the more pressing security issue of the proximity of the keys to the entrance to the business.

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote an article called “Bulletproof Enclosures” where I discussed movable bandit barriers or bulletproof enclosures.  Just today I read about a different but very similar type of robbery security measure called a security screen.  The concept is very similar to the movable bulletproof enclosure, but different in that it is a bullet-resistant metal wall.

GFI has two e-mail security services—MailEdge and MailProtection.  We were given a choice between the two when we registered for a free trial.  We chose GFI MailProtection.  Once we had logged into our account and configured a domain, we were then given, under the Domain Management tab in the Services settings, an option to change from Full (MailProtection) or Edge (MailEdge) protection.  Depending on which one was chosen, additional options were available to configure prior to saving the setting.  The only real difference we noted between GFI MailProtection and GFI MailEdge is that GFI MailProtection also provided virus protection where GFI MailEdge did not.  Both products are marketed to small and medium sized-businesses.

A couple of months ago I was having a discussion with a contractor who had thousands of dollars worth of tools and equipment stolen.   I was discussing with him different ways to make improvements to security so that he would be less likely to experience some of the large security losses he had suffered.  One of his comments was that he had a $1000 deductible with his insurance company so he would never spend any more than that to improve security.   I realized then that a lot of businesses really feel that security is just a waste of time and money.  In this short article, I am going to share some of the reasons security should be thought of as an investment and not a waste.

In my last article, I wrote about the importance of padlocks and gates.   I also mentioned that chain link fences do not really provide good security for a storage yard or lot.  In most situations, metal fence type barriers (such as in the pictures) provide better security than chain link fences.  The pictures show a good security solution for protecting huge equipment tires but would provide no real security if you were trying to protect smaller stored items or against someone trying to steal parts from your equipment or vehicles.  Always choose a security solution that will fit your needs and provide adequate security for what you are trying to protect.

Recently, I have been at a couple of businesses that had experienced theft or attempted theft of their outside HVAC units.  It appears from their situations that the thieves were motivated by the copper in the HVAC units.  Over the past couple years, copper theft has been an issue for a variety of contractors, home builders and other related businesses.  Last year, I even discussed copper theft issues with a carnival ride manufacturer because they were experiencing thefts of long electrical leads on machines being stored outside in a lot prior to shipment.  With the high price of metals and the down-turn in the economy, the theft of copper and other metals will continue to be a problem for most businesses in the near future.

This week I stopped by what use to be an auto dealership in a city near where I live and saw some examples of good and bad security that I thought I would share with you in this post.  While there, I took some pictures to illustrate what I saw.  If you look closely at these pictures, you will see that the business installed a metal barrier which  prevents vehicles or other equipment from easily being taken from the lot.  It is a simple design of steel piping that is secured in the ground with the openings to the lot being protected by a sliding gate made from the same material.  The steel posts in the ground are close enough that even if the top steel piping was removed, it would not allow a vehicle to be driven between the steel pipes.  Not placing posts close enough together is a major problem in most dealership lots I have evaluated.  The pictures show a good example of how to do it right without making the barrier an eyesore.  In addition, the business secured the steel piping in the ground with concrete and even formed a raised concrete lip, making it difficult to remove individual steel piping from the ground even with the right type of heavy equipment.  Please note:  this type of lot protection is good when you are trying to prevent theft of vehicles or equipment, but additional security is required if you are trying to protect against parts theft.