The top 5 physical security threats to your business (and how to protect against them)

With the world of work moving towards a more online-focused model, many businesses are spending a lot of time worrying about stopping cyber attacks.

But those extra considerations should never be made at the expense of physical security. Because physical security threats are just as much of a problem as they always have been.

In this post, we’ll be going through the five most common physical security threats and we will also offer some expert advice on how to secure your business and livelihood against them.

Tailgating

Named after the American terminology for following too closely behind another vehicle on the road, tailgating refers to the act of a criminal following close behind a person in order to access a secured area.

This might mean following them through a previously locked door or even waiting until they reach a location to attack them and steal their access cards or keys.

This can be mitigated by installing a decent CCTV camera system and sensor-activated lighting, as these kinds of criminals generally only operate under cover of darkness.

Manipulation

Some criminals are incredibly smart and have engineered dozens of ways to fool employees into thinking they are just a part of the scenery or a fellow worker.

These clever criminals use social engineering as a security threat, manipulating other workers and even managers to sneak their way into a secured location.

The best way to secure against this kind of attack is to undertake a full risk assessment of your business.

Stolen ID

If you utilise an access control system that utilises ID cards then it’s incredibly easy for a rogue agent to gain access to somewhere they shouldn’t be if they can somehow get their hands on an ID card.

In many businesses, employees might get into the habit of lending their ID cards to one another or leaving them out on the side when they go to the toilet. This is a habit you need to break them out of.

Unaccounted visitors

Many businesses would be unable to function if they were completely locked down 100% of the time.

But all visitors must be accounted for if you want to be secure, particularly given the extra risks of COVID contamination we now have to worry about.

All visitors to your business should be supplied with their visitor passes and CCTV should be monitored at all times to ensure all visitors are there for benevolent reasons.

Document theft

You might assume that all information theft in the 21st century is done online but that’s not necessarily the case. 

Sensitive documents can still fall into the wrong hands. The most reliable way to ensure this doesn’t happen is to minimise the amount of paper used in your daily operations.

However, if physical documentation is still required for whatever reason, a Clean-desk policy must be instilled so that all desks are free of potentially ruinous materials at the end of every workday.

And there’s always the shredder to turn to if you think there’s something that would be better destroyed and left to chance.

Perhaps the most important thing you can do to secure your business is educate your employees and cultivate a culture of security in the workplace.

Encourage everyone to take an active stance on security and keep their ears to the ground. Because, when all is said and done, your team is always going to be your first and strongest line of defence.