ContactWhen A Physical Security Assessment Is Needed
The world is a dangerous place. This is true no matter where you might be, including at the building where you work. Therefore, ensuring that you have proper security becomes a highly important element to consider for your workplace. It does not matter whether you are running a small company or a large business, proper security is essential when it comes to dealing with just about any type of danger or disaster that could affect your employees and the building. This includes natural disasters, intruders and more.
To help make the premises secure, having a physical security assessment performed is essential. This is a full inspection of the security system that is set up for the property. Going through one of these assessments will help people to get a better understanding of what they need to do to make improvements to their current security. It can show the holes and flaws that you might not have known existed. Many times, the assessments will also highlight any physical security redundancies that you might have. Changing or eliminating those could even help the company to save costs.
How Does A Typical Security Assessment Proceed?
It is important to understand that there are many different types of threats that could cause problems in a building. Whether it is a fire, an intruder, or any other type of threat, it poses a danger to the personnel, assets, resources, and information that you have on-site. There are also many different types of buildings that have different setups and different needs, of course. This means that the physical security setup that you have for your space could be vastly different from the setup of another company, even though they might be in the same field as you.
The assessment will examine the entire system that you have set up to keep your property safe. This includes any security hardware and software you might be using, the types of locks you are using, along with other technology that is used in the physical defense of your facility or building. It will also be an examination of the practices that you are using to keep your business safe.
Choosing the Right Security Team
The company that you choose for the physical security assessment needs to make sure that they are treating your business as a unique entity. They should not use a cookie-cutter approach when providing the security audit. Instead, they should be capable of providing a unique assessment that works well for your company.
Often, the assessment team will request information about your company, such as building and site information, copies of your policies and protocols, an employee handbook, and similar items. The company may want to interview certain people who are working at the company, such as the security manager and key team members. The auditors will likely want to take some time to check out the property in the daytime and at night to check on the security measures.
Of course, it can vary from one physical security assessment company to the next. You will want to speak with the company to determine what they will be doing to help with your business’s security and what they will expect from you and your employees.
What is Reviewed In A Physical Security Assessment?
As mentioned, all companies will have different features and capabilities, and the auditing company should be able to provide you with a custom assessment. However, there tend to be some elements that are common from one assessment to the next.
The auditing company will be able to provide you with risk identification and analysis, as well as an assessment of your overall vulnerability in various areas. The company will evaluate the plan and tools you have in place on paper, as well as with a physical visit to the location. They will review operating procedures, security staff, physical and electronic systems, architectural security, security policies and procedures, the management of physical security, the costs, and more. They will also help to identify any holes or weaknesses that might be found in your physical security setup.
They may be able to help with loss prevention, finding methods of stopping potential intruders or burglars from getting into the building, and more. Depending on the type of business you are operating, the assessment team can also help you with various protocols that you might have to meet from a legal perspective. For example, those who keep financial records and medical records on their premises need to ensure they are compliant with the laws for their specific industry.
Physical Security Report
The goal of the physical security assessment is to have a realistic and honest look at your overall safety. This is why you want to hire an unbiased third-party that will be able to come in and tell you where you are doing well, where you need to improve and point out the main problems that could be serious security threats. It is highly important that you do more than just read over the issues that were found. You need to make sure that you are taking action to remedy the problems.
The physical audit has the potential to highlight a range of serious issues that are a part of the system. Consider the number of “moving parts” that you have in your setup including the physical locks, intelligent locks, guards, alarms, cameras, and more. Any one of those could have an issue that could negatively impact other parts of the overall security system. The audit helps to shine a light on those problems so you can fix them now rather than lament about a break-in that might have been prevented if you had taken the right steps.
It is important that the company take the report seriously and take the advice of the company on making improvements to their security sooner rather than later. While it might be easy to add better locks, to change the position of cameras, and to make certain physical changes, it is also important to consider the personnel and management. Those who are in the security department need to be top-notch and following all of the protocols, naturally. However, it is just as important for others who are working in the business to consider the safety and security of the space. They need to know and follow any protocols that you might have in place when it comes to things like access to certain areas, bringing visitors into the company, etc.
To make a location truly secure, everyone needs to be on board and they need to know the protocols that need to be followed. You may also want to have consequences for those who continually break the protocols.
Next Steps for Your Building
After you have gone through the process of updating, upgrading, and improving your physical security, you might want to bring out the physical assessment security company again. Have them go through the property now that you have made the updates. This will help to ensure that you have taken care of the gaps in your security.
By shoring up their physical security, it can help to make the office, factory, retail store, or any other business a much safer and more secure place. Even those who have a relatively small location should make it a point to invest in a physical security assessment.
Take the time to find a quality, reliable company that can provide you with a high-quality physical security assessment. It could make all the difference in the world.
