3 best burglary prevention options

There is a serial burglar stealing from businesses in Arlington, Va during business hours.  As a result, businesses owners across the Washington DC Metropolitan Area find themselves asking… “how can I prevent my office from this type of burglary?”

Below are a few options that business can implement to protect their businesses from burglary.

The current burglar in Arlington has been entering building early in the morning just as employees arrive or at the end of the day when there are only a few employees left.  Many companies in Washington DC and its suburbs are of a size that many employees do not know each other.  As a result, an employee can encounter a thief and mistake them for a fellow employee.  Creating employee ids and requiring them to be worn around the neck on lanyards can prevent this from happening.   Employees will be able to see the person does not belong there.  In such incidents it is important to advise your employees to contact the police rather than challenging the suspect on their own.  There is no need to try to be a hero.  Let the police handle it.  Employee identification systems are relatively low cost that is a great start to providing a secure office environment.

There many types of access control systems . Each of them has different features and functions.  The most important feature is selecting a system that requires an employee to swipe some type of fob, card or tag in order to be granted access to the office or building.  This type of system is a very effective tool.  Access control systems provide the added benefit of helping to prevent unwanted previous employees from returning to the office.  These systems work well but can be compromised by criminals entering the building by following behind someone who uses a fob.  Many businesses choose to combine access control systems with a uniformed security guard.

There is no electronic system that compares to the effectiveness of a professional security guard screening employees and processing guests entering a location.  Security guards can screen every person entering the location and ensure that only authorized persons enter the site.  Their presences is a strong crime deterrent.  Hiring security guards can be a costly endeavor so it is important to balance the cost with the threat level.  Many businesses consider the increased productivity of their staff by preventing unauthorized guests and vendor visits in their cost evaluation.  Security companies can provide staff that can manager the use of the other security systems that are in use such as video surveillance and access control systems.  It is essential to hire a security company that provides security guards that  have observation skills.   Some businesses consider hiring their own internal security team rather than hiring a security company.

Many business hire security guards to protect their location overnight.  If this is the case, it is important to start the security guards shift at least 1 hour prior to the end of business and end at least 30 minutes after your typical start of business.  Doing so prevents criminals from taking advantage of periods where there are fewer people in the office.  Alexandria Police have reported that the serial officer burglar has been stealing from businesses during this time frame.  For this same reason, if you choose to have day time security guards, be sure that the shift starts a minimum of 1 hour prior to the typical start of business and 1 hour after the end of business.

Ultimately, the goal is presenting criminals with a hard target.  This is done in the hope that criminals will choose other targets that do not take security as seriously.  Employee identification systems are a great low cost start.  Access control systems are effective and can in some cases negate the need for security staff.  However, access control systems can be compromised by smart criminals who wait and follow a person in.  Security guards are the most effective option, but the best protection comes with a higher cost.  There are many factors to take in consideration when choosing which option is best for your location.  Each office is unique.  In most cases a combination of different systems or all tree are needed.  If you would like to look into which option is best for your location you may want to contact an account manger from a security services company like this one  to perform an security evaluation.