Business Security Information

While putting gas in our vehicle today, I saw a simple security issue that probably occurs at a lot of businesses as well as gas stations.  This gas station was the typical type you find outside a supermarket or department store–gas pumps with a small structure in the middle for the cashier to handle customer who don’t pay at the pump.  The small cashier structure was bullet-resistant with a portal for customers to pass cash and credit cards safely to the cashier.  The one door to the structure was metal with a regular lock as well as a deadbolt.  I am presuming it was set up this way to prevent thefts and robberies.  In my opinion, the physical security was adequate for the location.

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:

Watch this short (less than a minute) video on how simple it is to gain access to a building through a garage door. While there are other methods of breaking into a home or business, this is one that is often overlooked or forgotten even by seasoned security professionals. It is also one that is low-tech and very easy to do.

Garage Door – I Am In!

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.

On a recent trip, I stopped for gasoline and a snack at a convenience store along the highway.  When I entered the store, I noticed a bulletproof enclosure (also called bandit barriers) had been installed at the cashier’s counter.  It was different from other ones I had seen used in check-cashing businesses and banks in that it moved horizontally. The cashier could simply press a switch, and the bulletproof cashier window would open or close.  During the day when the risk of robbery may be less, the window could be left open.  In this way, interaction with customers could occur more easily, and it did not appear as intimidating to those visiting the convenience store.

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.

You hear about customer and employee personal information being lost or stolen from businesses quite frequently.  This information is accessed using a variety of attack methods including SQL injection, buffer overflows, use of default accounts, and even the loss of unencrypted backup tapes.  No amount or type of security will guarantee absolute database security for your business, but until you implement some basic database security measures, you are wasting your time and money on more elaborate security measures.

As I travel around and see a variety of businesses I always find security solutions that businesses have developed and implemented themselves.  The pictures in this article show one security solution a business implemented after someone broke into their warehouse.  The pictures show the interior view of one of the doors in the warehouse.  If you look closely, you will see that the business basically took some strips of steel and a cabinet handle and made an interior bar-type lock that they engage during non-business hours.  The steel bars are bolted to the door, and when the handle is turned, the steel bars move into openings that someone cut into the door frame.  This secures the door to the door frame.

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.