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Deter, Detect, Delay, and Respond- security tips every business should consider

The principles of perimeter security are much the same as 1000 years ago with moats and drawbridges acting as deterents, however the technology has thankfully improved! Perimeter security still requires a total response that deters, detects, delays, and responds to an intruder’s access to your property.

Deter
A few generations ago, perimeter security would have been concerned only with “deterrence.” Protecting the perimeter was somewhat of an afterthought. Once the main facility was built, access control and building security installed, the project team might say as an after thought- we better install a fence.”

The fence, of course, is a great deterrent. It can be built as a strong decorative fence with heavy iron, or a chain link fence with barbed wire offsets. Certainly, if your fence is more formidable than your neighbor’s, a trespasser will attack the other location instead of yours. High-security fences are still designed with deterrence in mind.

Detect
Detection is necessary because a person can climb over a fence. A highly skilled trespasser can get to the other side of a well-designed fence in about 4 seconds. In a high security application, it is accepted that a trespasser will get through a fence within 4 to 40 seconds, so it becomes very important to convey information that someone has gotten over the fence, or is presently attempting to do so. This is where intrusion detection enters the picture.

For many clients, perimeter security is one of the most important applications to install. It needs to be detailed, with a variety of methods that double-check for intrusion, and must be maintained to be effective,” says Lukas Bendt Security Specialist for Guardcorp Security.

Fortunately, there is great technology available to handle detection. Besides fiber optics, many other things can be used at the perimeter for detection. There is the old standby, taut wire, which is still one of the most efficient systems. Other systems that can be attached directly to the fence include electro-magnetic devices, which can be capacitive or inductive in nature or even magnetic. This type of system works very well to protect a warehouse and surrounding yard. Many airport fences protecting runways have this type of system installed. Magnetic detectors will usually pick up humans carrying metal—even if it’s only fillings in their teeth—and will ignore animals. You can also protect an area using microwave beams, light beams, or heat seeking infrared detectors. So, now we have “deter and detect.” The next step is to delay, and ideally we want our delay to equal at least our response time to deny a trespasser entry to our infrastructure.

Delay / Respond
The look and nature of our perimeter security is the deterrent. The technology we have in front of our perimeter and connected to the perimeter will handle the detection. The delay is a function of how long we need to respond. The response can be instant – turning on the lights, sounding a siren, or aiming a video camera along the perimeter to the point of intrusion. A longer response time is required if personnel must rush to the area. In that case, we may have to design layers of perimeter security.

However, we can have the best detection system available in the world, but if we can’t communicate the information that our fence has been breached in a timely manner the system is worthless. All of the detection and delay technology must have the ability to “talk” to each other, or at least communicate via a software application package of some sort, says Bendt. With this integrated capability, a fence breaching will instantly show up on a computer screen at the monitoring station, and a response can immediately take place.

Final thought
As you begin to review your security process take the time to look for possible gaps in your systems capabilities. You may find there is a greater need for securing a different or entirely new risk. Before you commit to changing your security consider enlisting a security specialist to help you evaluate your current system and help determine additional risks you may be unaware of thus eliminating the risk of costly security breeches.

Avoiding these common mistakes can greatly improve the results of your security
process, giving you an advantage in today’s increasingly savvy theft tactics.

If you need assistance with any of your security decisions call Guardcorp Security today on 02 9281-9911.