Beyond Traditional Locks: Access Control for Business
There are 2.5 million burglaries annually in the United States. Even more shocking is that roughly half of those burglaries happen through an unlocked door – meaning half of all burglaries in the US can be prevented with a key or passcode. Thirty-four percent of the burglaries that happen each year affect small businesses.
Let’s step into the shoes of a business owner who just had a relaxing weekend away from work. You pull up to the office on Monday morning, but instead of being greeted by a warm smile and friendly voice, you’re greeted by police officers – and they don’t have good news. Computers. Laptops. Tablets. Cash. Data. Anything they could easily carry out of the office is now gone.
How to avoid this in the future? Let’s start with access control.
Access Control: Your Key to a More Secure Office
Access control uses authentication and authorization protocols to allow or restrict certain people from entering certain areas of your building.
Physical data, logical data, valuable belongings – access control allows business owners to control who has access to their company’s most vulnerable information.
Technology is only improving, and access control systems continue to evolve with it – leaving business owners with a slew of options, features, benefits, and more to choose from. When thinking about access control systems, many would picture the traditional key or access card swiped through a scanner, much like a credit card before the chip era. Times have changed, and let’s explore your options today.
Critical Features of Access Control Systems Today
One of the coolest things about access control is there are no real limitations as to what a business owner can do. You control who has access, what they have access to, what times of the day they have access to it, and under what conditions they gain access to it. At a minimum, you should be able to:
Control your system from anywhere – even on a mobile device
Pick who has access to what in real-time
Customize what identifiers and credentials are used
Introduce a two-step verification process
Integrate your access control system with video surveillance cameras (We recently wrote about security cameras that touch on the different options out there)
If your business is serious about protecting its data, goods, and people from theft and harm (as it should be), then access control is a must.
Different Types of Access Control Systems
In general, access control systems are broken down into one of the two categories:
On-premise systems – also known as on-site access control, these systems are hosted, installed, and managed on your business’s local, on-site infrastructure and servers.
Cloud-based systems – also known as ACaaS (Access Control as a Service), these systems are hosted on a remote server and accessed via the Internet.
Every office is different, so what works best for one office might not work best for another – in fact, many businesses opt for a hybrid solution that provides the best of both worlds.
Best Ways to Operate Access Control Systems
Once you’ve determined how the system is powered, it’s time to consider how your system operates. This is where business owners get to customize the features to meet their exact needs.
Here are the four primary types of access control systems:
Discretionary access control (DAC). Multiple administrators are given control of granting access to authorized personnel – it’s the least restrictive access control model available today.
Mandatory access control (MAC). A central authority is given control of granting access to authorized personnel – usually based on security levels, like in a government or military building.
Role-based access control (RBAC). Instead of granting access based on identity, these systems grant access based on their role, assignment, and function within the company.
Attribute-based access control (ABAC). Access isn’t necessarily dependent on who, but what – such as the time of day or location. This gives your business even more granular control over access points.
To sum up
Securing your building is all about access control – it's the power move of controlling who gets in and when. From basic locks to next-level gear like video intercoms, eyeball scanners, and metal detectors, access control puts you in the driver's seat. You call the shots on who enters and when they can enter those doors.
Have questions or ready to start? Reach out.
Read next
