The world continues to innovate as it heads past the digital age. Almost every part of life goes through the internet, so people don’t need many physical establishments to get things done.
People can now work from home more comfortably, compared to long commutes to the office, where they must spend their entire days with their computers. However, this might also mean that physical security might grow weaker and prone to vulnerabilities.
Importance Of Physical Security
Because almost everything is moving through the digital world, it doesn’t give everyone a pass to let go of their physical security.
With that in mind, you should also ensure that you provide maximum physical protection for everything. Moreover, here are a few things that can happen if you ignore physical security in your company or yourself:
You Can Lose Track Of Visitors
Sometimes, no matter how strict you are with your access to your home or office, intruders might still find a way of entering your premises.
This allows them to do anything they want, hidden from the public eye. Unfortunately, this scenario can leave you unsafe as an intruder slipped in under your watch.
There is very little you can do with thefts and your missing items. The only thing you can do is to track who the intruder is and make them face the consequences of stealing from you.
What You Can Do
Suppose you want to protect your premises from intruders or trespassers. You can install security systems like closed-circuit television (CCTV) and hire a security company.
Most modern security systems provide you with the peace of mind you need, knowing your premises are secure with the help of professionals.
For example, with CCTV cameras, you can monitor who comes in and out of your premises closely, track them, and provide the necessary evidence to let the authorities do their jobs.
Biometrics systems limit those who can enter your company’s premises to authorized staff. If you live or operate in Calgary, Canada, you can hire a Calgary security company by Logixx or other security companies local to you.
You Provide Unauthorized People Free Access
Failing to protect your physical establishment provides practically everyone free access to your company or home.
Unfortunately, this can attract criminal elements that can harm your business, such as leaking your personal information, thefts, scams, and more. Furthermore, your employees will feel uncomfortable and unsafe working for your company as they can see many suspicious faces who can go in and out of the building.
Even with the digital age, you shouldn’t forget to protect your physical establishment as everything starts there. When unauthorized persons can enter your office, they can harm your business.
They can do this by tailgating or simply entering your office without anyone checking their credentials as they step onto your office floor.
What You Can Do
To prevent unauthorized people from entering your office, you must assign personnel to screen and inspect everyone in and out of the building.
They should ask about their credentials and who they’re with if they enter the building. This also gives liability to your team member if their guest did something that could harm your business.
You Risk Theft Of Documents
Physical security includes taking extra care of your documents. While you might want to keep everything digitally, having a physical record is another layer of protection. That way, cybercriminals won’t have access to your sensitive documents. This can help prevent your company from any possible harm and theft.
Offices usually overflow with plenty of documents on tables that need signing from someone as they’re quicker and more reliable. Some offices still print sensitive documents rather than uploading them to the cloud to ensure safety and security.
However, suppose you allow those papers to lie around the room without providing protection. In that case, you might just be putting your business in jeopardy.
What You Can Do
To prevent the theft of documents, you should begin by ensuring that you place every record in a secure room as much as possible.
You can even provide additional security measures by entry points to prevent anyone from coming in. Furthermore, you can install RFID access to track and limit who can come in and out of the room.
You Allow Cybercriminals To Steal Data From Your Network
Without proper physical security inside the room, it can allow everyone to steal data from your network. Admittedly, some people choose to go offline but still upload their files through their network for maximum security.
This way, they can keep up with the technological security trends without risking themselves from hackers and other cybersecurity threats online.
However, if anyone can enter your server room, they can steal your data from your network. This can still allow them to access your data and leak it to the public or use it for blackmail. To prevent such scenarios, you should protect your network at all costs.
What You Can Do
To prevent anyone from stealing your data, begin by implementing a ‘No Hard Drive’ or ‘No USB stick’ policy inside the production floor. You can also place your network in a secure area and limit who can enter. Apart from RFID, you should also add a passcode that you provide to authorized people.
Unauthorized Personnel Can Steal Identification
Stealing someone else’s identification is one of the oldest tricks that allow criminal elements to enter the premises without anyone noticing.
They could try to pose as some part of your team by wearing the proper work attire, having an ID, or simply looking like someone who belongs with them. Without appropriate physical security, you can allow anyone to enter your office by pretending to be someone they’re not.
Additionally, using social engineering is a great way to manipulate people into thinking that they belong by sharing some information that only employees know.
They can try to smooth-talk their way into the office or ask help from someone to let them inside. Some attempts can allow them to enter without having to prove their employment easily.
What You Can Do
To prevent social engineering or unauthorized individuals from stealing your information, you should ask for a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) from all of your employees. An NDA legally obligates your employees to keep all sensitive data within the premises only. Moreover, raising awareness about social engineering can give them tips and tricks about what to do in these cases.
Takeaways
Even in today’s digital age, prioritizing physical security is still highly important as it could harm your company when you fail to do so.
Hiring a security company is your best shot to ensure maximum security and prevent intruders from entering your premises. Lastly, allowing employees to learn about proper safety measures enables a safe and secure office workspace for all.