The security of a business is essential, regardless of that business’ size and industry that it falls under. Ensuring that a business is protected is crucial as it will guarantee that the business’ expensive equipment and confidential information is kept safe. Access control systems are the answer to ensuring that businesses are secure, and we will discuss some of its benefits.
Access control is a security method used to regulate who can use or view specific resources in an environment. It ensures that businesses minimise the risk that a company has, allowing them to keep employees and the workplace secure. Two types of access control exist, which are logical and physical. Physical access control assists in limiting access to rooms, buildings and physical IT assets. Logical access control restricts and limits connections to system files, data and computer networks.
To secure their facilities, businesses can use electronic access control systems that use access card readers, user credentials, and audits and reports to track employee access to restricted business locations. Access control systems work by performing identification authentication and authorisation of users by checking the required login credentials, such as PINs, passwords, security tokens or biometric scans.
Access control benefits
Access control gives businesses the ability to monitor and manage access throughout their property easily. Below are some of the benefits that they can expect.
- Restricts unauthorised entry
Access control enables businesses to restrict entry to their building or specific rooms and areas to the authorised personnel. The access credentials can be established at an individual or group level, and businesses can also customise them for certain periods. This ensures that only the authorised people who can enter certain areas can access those areas whenever they want to. They can also give clearance temporarily, which is useful when certain people, such as visitors and delivery personnel, need to be granted access to specific areas for a limited amount of time.
- Contactless entry
When businesses have to navigate COVID-19 restrictions, it has become vital that they find ways to limit the spread of germs in their offices. Though companies follow COVID-19 protocols such as regular handwashing and wearing masks, access control supports these efforts that businesses already have in place. Firstly, access control minimises the spread of the virus as it ensures that fewer people touch shared surfaces such as elevator buttons and doorknobs. Access control can also grant temporary remote access to visitors and delivery personnel, reducing the need for having an employee to greet them.
- Logs historical entry
Access control systems can log all the activity that occurs, and the information collected can be helpful to the security team, especially if a problem were to arise. In the event of inventory going missing, the business can review access control records to determine which employees accessed the area during the time when the stock might have gone missing. The access control system activity logs can also track employee attendance, such as when an employee arrives at work and when they leave the office. In a time of the COVID-19 pandemic, the activity log can be helpful in contact tracing as this data will be used to see the people an infected person came in contact with at work.
- Reduces the need to re-key
Businesses often have to re-key their offices for a number of reasons, and one of them is not wanting any ex-employees to have access to their offices after termination. Though re-key is done to improve the security of a business, it can also be time-consuming and costly. Access control makes it easier to manage personnel changes as key fobs, key cards and PINs can easily be created and cancelled by the management team. This makes it easier to grant, change and revoke access permissions for individuals whenever needed, such as when there is a change of their status with the company. Access control also removes the security risks that keys pose, as employees can easily copy and distribute their keys to people outside the organisation.
- Greater Convenience
Physically carrying keys around can be incredibly inconvenient for employees, so biometric access control solutions add more convenience for employees as they won’t need to carry around keys, cards or remember their unique PIN. With biometric solutions, the person’s physical attributes, such as facial recognition, fingerprint or voice recognition, become their key. With biometric solutions, a person only needs to show up in order for them to gain access. Biometric solutions are also a more secure option as employees cannot share their unique access credentials with people who are not authorised to enter certain areas.
- Integration with the security system
The most significant benefit that most access control systems offer is the ability to work with your existing security system. Having easier integration with your security system makes it easier to secure and control all the aspects of your business.
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