printer friendly version

Your next move ...

While there are many solutions, not all deliver effective security to estates.

The security industry faces a difficult challenge, while residents in gated communities often feel safe just knowing that they live in a gated community, many clients do not seek security upgrades until the proverbial paw-paw (or any other unlikely-to-be-flying-items) has hit the fan.

The security industry is an on-going chess game between the criminals and the ‘anti-criminals’ (security firms, technology etc), with the criminals always playing off white and thus having the first move. This chess game is played on largely three interdependent fields: surveillance, perimeter and access control. If you up the strength of defence on either one of the three fields, it leaves the other more exposed and more likely for attack.

In order to avoid this attack (or negatively to breach the defences), the pieces that a player can use consists of a combination of human resources and capital resources (or technology), which work hand in hand. You can have the best technology, but without proper human resources your defence will fail and vice versa. When it comes to the human resource component, cheaper is not always better; this affects staff turnover rate and the quality time that a guarding company’s management would spend on your site. When it comes to the technology component, it is important to establish a culture within the organisation where regular upgrades are planned and budgeted for, as opposed to waiting for systems to start failing.

One step ahead

The first principle of security is always well illustrated with the story of two friends who were walking on a game farm. As they were walking, they heard this lion roar behind them. They looked back and saw a lion with a hungry and angry look on his face. Upon seeing this, the one guy drops down on his knees and starts to tighten his laces. His mate looks at him and asks him: “Are you mad, you cannot outrun a lion!” To this, the friend replies: “I do not have to outrun a lion; I have got to outrun you!”

The principle being that in order not to be caught in the security chess game, you have to be better prepared to defend the attack than the other opportunities.

When it comes to the defence from a technology point of view, it is important to understand what you are trying to achieve with which component. Surveillance is there to monitor activities once a person has entered the secure area, and perimeter security is to prevent someone from entering via any entrance point other than the access controlled entrance point. The access controlled entrance point should then be able to firstly, prohibit unauthorised entrants from entering but secondly to accurately record who entered when and who exited when.

In this respect, a differentiation has been established between regular entrants (residents, tenants, employees etc) and irregular entrants or the typical visitor. In order to control access to many gated communities, card based systems have managed to identify which card comes in and out, but a better solution is biometrics. Biometrics can identify a person as opposed to a card. A typical enrolment process for a biometric or card-based system can determine the identity of the person, but when it comes to visitors, positive identity is seldom requested.

Accurately assessing access

While most residents of gated communities are satisfied to see visitors simply signing in at the main access gate, a typical access control book contains entries that anyone could fake. Apart from the fact that a document is not searchable, it is totally inaccurate as it does not answer the important question of who came in when. Perimeter security also provides a feeling of security and safety, but for this type of security to be as effective as possible in a gated community or an estate, access control needs to be at its best.

There are however solutions on the market. ATEC’s i-Dentifid Visitor Management system is a quick, efficient, seamless solution that retains an indelible legal record of anyone who enters an estate or gated community. By scanning the barcode on a driver’s licence, car licence, ID document or passport, positive identification is achieved. This information is then uploaded to a time based searchable database with several management functions, like for example flagging of unwanted visitors. The system is also integrated to systems like Impro, Softcon and Chase, which allows for further functionality like biometric integration to further strengthen the defence. This system will not allow any unwanted visitor to enter or leave the premises without leaving a record of it.

If you are using an access control book without enforcing positive identification, the breach in your defence is quite clear. Your next move?

Share this article:

Further reading: