.svg "logo")
Workplace security is an issue that is and always will be relevant for businesses. Its importance, however, is sometimes neglected. Employees and business owners alike must take responsibility in ensuring security in the office. From making sure to turn off your computer when leaving the desk, to securing company data, or upholding confidentiality - there are a variety of tasks you can perform to provide workplace safety. Among the threats your business encounters are employee negligence, data breach, and external threats. That is why you need to make protecting your property, your data, and your employees a top priority.
Using modern Visitor Management system improves office security. Many office buildings still use a paper visitor sign-in sheets or badges to restrict access to sensitive areas of the building. However, these security measures can be easy to overcome. Moreover, the workplace environment is evolving rapidly - companies incorporate hybrid and agile workspaces, making the office modern and adaptable to employees' needs. Keeping up to date with workplace trends and ensuring security should not be a difficult task to accomplish. By having the right technology at hand - i.e. a Visitor Management system - you can establish a safe work environment, while providing a hospitable and welcoming experience for all visitors and employees.
In today's world, there are dozens of daily threats to your company’s safety. Here we will guide you through the top workplace security threats, as well as why a more modern solution like visitor management software may be just what you need to keep your business and its workers safe.
Biggest Office Security Threats
Awareness plays a key role in ensuring security and safety at the workplace. No matter your position in the company - employee, manager or CEO, you should be mindful of the ways security could be compromised. Workplace security risks can lead to severe consequences for the business and its employees. To guarantee that does not happen, everyone should prioritize safety and incorporate it in their daily work routine.
Unauthorized Access And Unaccounted Visitors
Enhancing your physical security and educating your employees on safety measures are one of the good ways to prevent unaccounted visitors gaining access to your office building. A threat like that could be easily underestimated, however, not everyone is aware of how easy it could be for outside people to enter a building undetected. A great way to prevent all this from happening is to invest in a modern Visitor Management system, that not only creates a frictionless and easy work environment, but ensures that no unidentified personas threaten your security.
Unauthorized access occurs when an outsider or employee gains access to an area they are not explicitly permitted to enter. For example, an unauthorized person enters the server room or an employee logs onto another worker's computer. Unauthorized access can be the result of a well-meaning employee holding the door for a friend, accidentally leaving a door unlocked, even a stolen key card can be a risk. However innocent the cause, unauthorized access is a major reason for dangerous data leaks and costly security breaches.
In order to provide employee safety, regulatory compliance, and asset protection you should consider having an exact record of onsite visitors at all times. This could be achieved easily with a Visitor Management system that stores all visitor and registered employee data for easy access at any time. In case of emergency knowing who is onsite could be crucial. Moreover, the system can notify the employees instantly and provide guidance and instructions.
If you think your current information security solution is enough, consider these facts:
- 47 percent of senior executives and business leaders said employee negligence was the root cause of their most recent data security incident.
- 25 percent of United States workers admit to leaving their computer on and unlocked when they go home at the end of the day.
Automating these systems can improve cyber security because you are no longer relying on humans who forget and make mistakes.
Employee Negligence And Inconsistent Security Training
Educating employees on potential cyber threats is a key task that, unfortunately, gets ignored or under-prioritized by a lot of companies. Especially nowadays data security risks are growing rapidly with the advance of technology. The 'cyber criminals' attempt to stay one step ahead of IT practitioners, and hinder all security tactics. Regretfully, employees either only receive security education once or not at all.
Research by nVisium - an american software security company - shows that 65% of companies leaders stated that providing employee cyber security training about best practices is not their top priority. A lot of employees are unaware of data security risks. For example, research made in 2020 by Mediapro shows that only 39% of employees believed that leaving a computer unlocked and unattended could lead to a malware infection. Therefore, conducting cyber security education often should become top priority for all companies.
Office Theft
Among the biggest workplace safety risks is employee theft, which costs U.S. businesses $50 billion annually. That is enough stolen property to give every person in the world $150 every year. And workplace theft is on the rise according to an article in the Atlantic. Office theft can occur due to improper disposal of documents, unattended items left in a personal vehicle, or due to outside people gaining access to your business. With visitor management software, companies may be able to track, for example, whether a certain employee or contractor regularly enters the building after hours.
Office Equipment
Many employees use printers, scanners and other office equipment on a daily basis, to the point that they do not consider potential security risks that could occur. A survey, made by Trend Micro, shows that 90% of IT managers in the US believe that the companies compromise on cyber security. And only 38% of US companies make document security a priority.
Often, businesses neglect the fact that nowadays the technical devices are connected to the Internet. Thereby, office equipment could also be exposed to outside threats like hacking. Business leaders should be made aware of the amount of confidential and vulnerable information that these machines handle, and consequently emphasize the importance of workplace security to their employees.
Mobile Device Security
An escalating amount of employees are doing their work on mobile devices, some of which bring their personal appliances to the workplace. A survey conducted in 2020 shows that 55% of IT department employees stated that their organizations allow the use of personal devices in the office. Furthermore, about 45% employees reported that they rely on devices brought from home. Unfortunately, more than half of the IT experts claimed that their workplaces did not adopt the required measures to protect the company data stored on mobile devices.
For example, half of the employees do not use two-factor authentication to access work-related content. Underestimating the potential security risk by using personal mobile devices incorrectly at work could potentially result in severe safety hazards. Adopting measures, such as fixing vulnerabilities and monitoring device usage, could strengthen company security and create a safer work environment.
What Actions To Take?
Workplace security threats are, unfortunately, a common obstacle for businesses, and their number is only growing. Nevertheless, being aware of the risks and taking action to prevent them from happening is how organizations can provide a safer environment for their employees and ensure the data is protected. Implementing a modern solution, like a Visitor Management system can be the right step towards a secure work environment.
Protect Your Office, Your Employees, And Your Data With Visitor Management Software
If improving information security at your office is a top priority, you may have considered a Visitor Management System — a technological solution that tracks everyone who enters your building, monitors where they go, and notes when they leave. Here are the key tasks you want to make sure it can perform to protect the people and data that matter most.
Verify Visitor Identity
Visitor Management Software is a safe and simple solution to manage visitors, confirm their identity and provide a secure environment for employees and customers. In other words - it helps track who enters your office. All data is gathered, and stored and could be accessed easily. Visitor management software creates a log of everyone who enters the building, not just an ineligible signature on a paper sign-in sheet, which makes the process even easier for receptionists and guests.
Minimize Security Breaches
Visitor management software makes it easier to know who is in your building, when they arrived, and when they leave, which can minimize data security breaches. In addition to identifying visitors, the system can turn away unauthorized people. Customizable rules and notifications can reduce workplace security threats by notifying employees of an arriving guest, which can prevent a visitor from being able to wander into unauthorized areas.
Manage Contractor Access
If a visitor arrives at your front desk claiming to be there to fix a server issue, would your staff know what to do? If presented with enough information to seem legitimate, even the most security-conscious front desk employee may grant access to an unauthorized guest—risking data and employee safety. Visitor management software allows guests to be pre-registered, which speeds up the sign-in process, and verifies visitors. Some systems can also be used to restrict access. For example, it might prevent a visiting social media consultant from accessing the server room.
Verify Employee Location in Emergencies
If a fire breaks out in your office, how will you know if everyone made it out safely? Did the IT team make it out of the server room? Was the plumbing contractor fixing the office kitchen sink able to make it out?
If you are unable to tell emergency responders whether there are people in the building. By using a visitor management system, your team will know exactly who entered or exited the building and where they were planning to spend their time while inside.
Provide Security and Safety to Your Business
The first step to workplace security and safety is training employees on visitor management procedures and to question anything or anyone that looks suspicious. Establish a reporting process for employees to report anyone who seems out of place—especially if that person is in areas where sensitive data is stored. And the next step is investing in visitor management software. Make a positive first impression, increase the efficiency of your front desk, and give guests a quality experience with a modern visitor management system.
