Physical security is just as important as virtual security, especially for startups, and yet this can be a neglected aspect of your operations that is in need of a major rethink.

To keep your employees and your mission-critical data safe, here are tips regarding the technologies, systems, and solutions you’ll need.

Deploy High Quality, Secure Gates for Vehicle Access

If team members are expected to commute by car, then you’ll need a place for them to park their vehicles throughout the working day without worrying about the potential for theft.

A combination of top-notch, secure gates and commercial sliding gate openers will mean that the people who have a legitimate reason to access your site by car or truck will be able to do so, while any illegitimate interlopers will be kept at arm’s length.

Require Passes for Building Access

Even small businesses cannot afford to allow anyone to come and go as they please, so enforcing a policy of staff passes for access to the premises is wise.

It’s also sensible to set up a tiered approach to access, specifically in the case that you have certain areas of the site that only select team members have a genuine reason to visit from day today.

This works whether you have a single entry point to the premises, or multiple to take care of; choosing a cohesive system for controlling access will give you the control and security you crave.

And of course issuing visitor passes is an option, so long as you are rigorous in policing how they are issued, used, and collected by those who are only on-site temporarily.

Protect Data Resources Comprehensively

Having talked about only allowing access to specific parts of the premises for those team members that actually need to be there for work purposes, the best example of this is anywhere that features mass data storage.

If you have server hardware hosted locally, for example, this should not just be in a room that anyone can wander into. Instead, it must be locked away, so that the possibility for theft or any other malicious disruption to vital business systems is minimized.

Obviously, for portable data storage solutions, this is less achievable, which is why encryption must also be implemented across the board.

This means that even if a piece of hardware is purloined, it won’t leave your company’s data exposed in a way that could cause embarrassment and incur the wrath of regulators.

Another useful tactic in this context is to use a labeling system to indelibly identify business-owned devices. That way, if they are stolen, they can be traced and recovered with greater consistency. This will also act as a deterrent to potential crooks.

Use a Monitored Camera System

Smaller businesses might be tempted to install a camera system to monitor the office, but only really use this in a passive capacity, checking the footage if some theft, incursion, or incident is detected via another means.

Having an actively monitored camera system is better still because it means that threats can be reacted to in real-time.

And you don’t need to hire a full-time team member to handle this in-house, as there are now companies that provide this service remotely to clients across the country and around the world.

Always Look For Ways to Improve

Finally, don’t assume that your security measures are going to be up to the task indefinitely, but instead, aim to carry out periodic reviews and even take advantage of penetration testing to root out weak points so they can be fixed.

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