Criminal activity has evolved over the years, with thieves, burglars and cybercriminals all finding increasingly devious and ingenious ways to get aware of the products and information of businesses. This has meant that the security world has had to constantly adapt and stay one step ahead of those involved in crime. As a result, keeping your business premises secure is all about adopting a multi-faceted approach to security as this article will explain.
There is no one size fits all solution for business security. By their very nature, all specific individual businesses and distinct sectors have different vulnerabilities and different kinds of desirable assets and will, therefore, require tweaks to security measures. However, there are some universally applicable rules and measures that can help you to put together an approach that is as watertight as possible for your business.
Where are your weak points?
By analysing and understanding where you are most exposed, you will then be able to deploy the appropriate security measures. You should if possible get an expert to carry out a site visit and find the weak points in your current security. You should be asking questions like:
- Where are your entry points and how secure are they?
- Commercial access control systems that give you all the features you need to protect your business, do you have one or can one be introduced?
- What are your most desirable assets and items on-site and how secure are they?
- How quickly would such items be recognized as missing and how swiftly could an alarm be sounded for someone to come to the building?
- Could somebody easily start a fire on the premises?
Physical security measures
One of the most effective ways to boost physical security on your premises is via the installation of industrial roller shutter doors. Made from galvanized steel, such doors offer excellent protection – being able to open and close the doors swiftly encourages good security practice and offers potential intruders a very limited scope for entering areas that you designate as higher risk.
In addition, it is imperative that any vulnerabilities are spotted and sorted out as soon as possible. For instance, any broken windows should be repaired immediately and windows and of course doors should be locked at the end of every day. Window bars or grilles are particularly effective when fitted on the inside of your windows and all accessible windows should be afforded some level of protection.
It is also very important to makes sure that the perimeter of your premises is as secure as possible, because if it is difficult for potential criminals to breach the perimeter without being spotted or recorded it will make your premises far less vulnerable to crime. In order to make your perimeter more secure, it makes good sense to maintain an effective wall or fence and have good lighting for potential access points. It is worth remembering, however, that this can actually aid thieves in more isolated areas, so it is important to get the advice of security experts in the local area. Car park gates should be locked and secured when not in use and remember that discretion is important so as not to impact the staff and potential customers.
Protocol
No security measures are effective without an efficient and streamlined overall protocol. The best practice is always to have one individual in charge of security in broad terms. This makes it completely clear who is responsible for ensuring your security systems are operational and avoids any ambiguity. Of course, some services will be outsourced, but it should remain that same individual’s responsibility to oversee these operations.
Ensuring a good knowledge of and compliance with procedures among all members of staff is also vital. Training should be given where necessary and signage should be in place where applicable. Alarm codes should be changed on a regular basis and whenever an employee departs the business. A strict record of keys and keyholders should be kept.
Cybersecurity
A whole separate article could be written on the importance and difficulties involved in cybersecurity, but in the simplest terms, it is vital that cybersecurity is outsourced to an efficient and highly experienced IT Support company, ideally in the local area, with whom you have a good rapport and can count on to deal with any potential issues swiftly and effectively.
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