Top Tips Revealed on Reviewing Your Physical Home Security

Physical Security

Physical security is about measures that deter or prevent intruders from accessing your property and is very important as the first line of defence against an intruder. You will want to do everything you can to prevent physical access to, or theft from your property and belongings. This can be as simple as having secure locks on all of your outside facing doors/windows to metal shutters or high security gates.

There are several layers or tiers of physical security that should be considered when reviewing your home security. They could include things like obstacles that are designed to delay intruders breaking into your property, alarm systems, external lighting or CCTV. The 4 layers of physical security are:

• Environmental Design

• Mechanical Security

• Intrusion Detection

• Visual Monitoring

Environmental Design

Environmental design is the initial layer of physical security for a property and is generally more for commercial properties but could be employed in a residential dwelling. These can include deterrents such as barbed wire, spikes installed on top of walls, concrete bollards, metal barriers and warning signs etc…

Mechanical Security

This layer is concerned with mechanical aspects of security. These include doors, gates, locks, windows etc… Valid access through a gate or door can be either via a physical metal key or via a electronic key or keycard. In a large establishment, door access can be managed easier with use of an electronic key rather than keeping track of keys. Another area gaining interest in the realm of physical security is biometric access control, such as thumbprint readers.

Intrusion Detection

Intrusion detection systems or alarms are really more of a response measure as opposed to a preventative measure; however they could be regarded as a deterrent. Alarm security systems are often the second layer to be employed in a residential dwelling after mechanical security.

Visual Monitoring

The last layer is visual monitoring surveillance systems. These can be either simple CCTV cameras that record to a video tape to a sophisticated digital monitoring system that employs a network of cameras, computers and digital storage of images. The primary focus of visual monitoring is an aid the detection of intrusion and to gather evidence of the offence. It could also be deemed as a deterrent if appropriate signage is in place or the cameras are actually visible. Bear in mind, however, there could be legal issues to consider before installing surveillance equipment — especially if you expect to record and archive activities.