Business Security Information

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.

This past month I have been working with a business regarding some physical security improvements, and one of those items was a security or intrusion alarm system.  It got me thinking about businesses that I deal with who usually ask me about why a certain element of security they have implemented, such as security systems, is not working.  Most of the time when I look at their particular situation, one or more elements of the security system does not fit their needs.  Usually this is not discovered until the system has been installed and paid for, leaving the business with a system that does not fulfill their needs and sometimes results in the system not being used after a period of time.  This results in wasted time and money for the business owner as well as poor or nonexistent security.

Let me begin by saying that I am not a big proponent of using security cameras to secure a business.  I have dealt with a number of businesses that install security cameras without looking at their overall security needs.  Businesses that have installed security cameras often think they have adequate security but find out they don’t when a theft occurs.  Even though they have a nice recording (if the camera image quality is good) of the theft or other security incident occurring, the cameras did not stop or prevent the event from happening.  Security cameras can be used as a part of security to protect a business but should not be the first, and definitely not the only, element of security they use to protect their business.

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.

This week, I read two stories that prompted me to write this post.  The first was about construction sites using wireless security camera systems to reduce vandalism and theft.  Wireless security camera  systems were being used because of the temporary nature of construction sites.  The system can be taken down and used at another construction site when the job is completed.  The second story was about the murder of Byrd and Melanie Billings, a couple from Florida.  If you have not read the story, a number of men broke into the couple’s home and killed the couple while eight of their children were in the house.  If I remember correctly, the couple actually adopted 12 children with many of them having a variety of developmental disabilities.  They have a total of 16 children.  The couple had an extensive security camera system in the home, as much for security as to keep track of the children when they were in the house and yard.  The security camera footage provided some leads for the police but sadly did not prevent the crime from happening.

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.