Security Articles/Blogs From Our Members

We welcome comments to any of our blog entries by any visitor to the website.

Posts in Biotech & Pharma

If you believe your organization needs a qualified Security Manager, but your budget cannot support another salary, consider this alternative. Security Management Services International, Inc. (SMSI Inc.) is offering security management support services as an exclusive and unique service primarily to those clients who have availed themselves of a SMSI Inc. Security Assessment. SMSI fully understands that many enterprises cannot cost justify the hiring of a fulltime, qualified, security manager. Nevertheless this fact does not mean that most business enterprises do not need the expertise of a qualified security manager. Most enterprises need security expertise throughout the course of the year, but albeit, not on a daily bases. The validity assumption is supported by our extensive security litigation experience. The potential for liability claims against an organization that does not have security management expertise managing their security programs is greater than those organizations that maintain full time security management presence.

Alternatively, we will also offer this service to clients who have not contracted for a SMSI Security Review and Assessment. For those clients who wish to participate in our Security Management Support Program (SMSP) for at least one year, Security Management Services International, Inc. will perform an initial assessment at a 20% discounted fee.

Effective security programs must have two pervasive missions: the protection of property and the protection of people. The degree that any enterprise has a responsibility to protect property or people from a liability perspective varies from one industry to another. For example, those companies that provide third party warehousing in support of supply chain operations, bare responsibility when product go missing. The same logic applies to freight companies such as rail and trucking operations Businesses the serve the public such as shopping malls, parking structures, hospitals, daycare centers, hotels and schools (public & private) are all expected to maintain dynamic security operations.

Anecdotally, the odds of being sued for an inadequate security program are much higher for schools and those business enterprises such as hospitals, malls and high-rise buildings when there is an absence of in-house security management. However it is understandable that many business enterprises cannot justify the $100k to $200K+ salary that a well-qualified in-house security manger would demand. Our SMSP offers an effective alternative. The SMSI Inc. Security Management Support Program will protect your interests when dealing with those who provide security products and service such as contract security services. Additionally, our SMSP will continually monitor those security vendors by ensuring they live up to their commitments.

Many enterprises may not need a security manager on a daily basis, but a security professional will be needed several times throughout the year. Remember security is a situational discipline, meaning one size does not fit all. Additionally, security is a proactive discipline aimed at deterrence and prevention. This means that security programs are not amenable to universal solutions. Security programs must be promulgated on the basis of need, and that need may not be static. This means that security programs must be nimble by constantly adjusting to emerging changes in the threat environment. It is especially important that security programs achieve a reasonable standard of care for environments such as schools and healthcare facilities because of vulnerability exposure of the clients being served, patients and children. Adverse security events in schools and medical facilities are likely to be played on the six o’clock news nationwide.

SMSI, through its Security Management Support Program (SMSP) program is able to fill this void. This program will be customized to meet the needs of each client we serve. In many cases, a comprehensive security assessment may be required prior to the provision of Security Management Support services. If a security assessment is deemed advisable, SMSI Inc. will perform these services at a preferred rate for those clients who commit to a SMSP Contract.

If your organization presently has and in-house security manager who is light on experience, the SMSP will support that manager until such time he/she can function independently.

Security Management Support Services may include, but are not limited to:

• Security vendor selection & oversight
• Security design and project management
• Security Incident tracking and trend analysis (Remote monitoring & analysis)
• Professional guidance in the selection and application of security systems
  • Access management systems
  • Video surveillance systems
  • Lighting
  • The application of CPTED (Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design)
    • Lighting
    • Natural barrier usage
    • Signage
    • Landscape application
    • Housekeeping & Maintenance
    • Graffiti eradication programs
• Visitor control
• Management of Aggressive Behavior (MOAB®) training.
• Hiring and background checking protocols
• Asset protection programs
  • Inventory control audits
• Student, patient, guest & employee safety programs
• Crimecast data & reports
  • UCR Reports
• Staff crime prevention strategies
• Police liaison services
  • Community relations/crime prevention officer involvement
• Employment Bullying Mitigation
• Sexual deviancy awareness
• Overnight Building security
  • Alarm system design and supervision
  • Security lighting
  • Locking systems
  • Surveillance system
• Neighborhood Watch
• Gang sensitivity awareness
  • Graffiti awareness
• Workplace Drug detection and prevention
• Staff security awareness training
• Year round security awareness program
• In-persons visits to be determined on a need basis by SMSI security professionals
• Unrestricted Remote Management Support
  • Problem solving
  • Crisis management support
• Neighborhood outreach

Terms & Conditions

1. Four visits per year included in annual contract (Extra visits on per diem basis)
2. Reimbursement for reasonable and documented expenses
3. Unlimited remote support
4. Minimum of one year contract
   1. Initial retainer
   2. Monthly billing of balance
   3. Flat rate billing for visits in excess of four

All SMSI Inc. personnel will be Board Certified Protection Professionals and/or will be former law enforcement veterans. These professionals may also be Spanish bilingual. Remember, the cost of reaction is always three to four times the cost of mitigation.

For information, contact Bill Nesbitt, CPP: bill@smsiinc.com or call 805-499-3800.

I recently took the occasion to peruse some security assessments we did some 25 years ago for a number of varied and diverse clients. I was struck how far we have come, in so many ways, over that passage of time. I thought it might be useful to focus on four factors that have had a profound impact on how we all do our job, assessing the efficacy of our security programs today as compared to 25 years ago.

First, no matter what segment of the security industry you are in, the 9/11/01 attack on the World Trade center in New York in the wake of the attack on the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building by Timothy McVeigh, April 19th, 1995 has impacted every aspect of the of our industry worldwide. It has redefined physical security, established new reasonable standards of care and spawned and further legitimized emerging disciplines such as CPTED (Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design). These events have sharpened the anticipatory aspects of our professional focus. Proactive mitigation is now more critical than ever.  We can no longer afford to wait for a breach to happen and then act.

Second, but not unrelated to the first, is the exponential advancement of technology. Technological advances are moving with wrap speed and those security professionals who do not keep pace will lose their professional edge. Just look at the changes in the use of video and systems integration. Concepts such as "virtual patrol” were nonexistent just a few years ago. The application of computer technology and electronic system has made security systems more responsive, and much more cost effective. In many cases, it has reduced the level of the manpower requirement, while at the same time making remaining security personnel much more effective.

Third, security professionals are now required to become intimately conversant with the views, values and goals of those who occupy the C-Suite. They must understand the persona of the corporations they serve (both for profit & not for profit). Their decisions and recommendations must be driven by ROI and should endeavor to have a five year shelf life. In many cases, security managers need much more business acumen today than was required 25 years ago. The ASIS International Security Management course in conjunction with the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania is one program that enables security managers to meet these kinds of objectives, and a program I wholeheartedly recommend.

Fourth, but not least, is the rise of security derived litigation, mostly in the United States. Security lawsuits are filed against businesses for what they do and for what they don’t do. When suits are filed for intentional torts, they may include assertion of false arrest, excessive use of force, false imprisonment and/or invasion of privacy. When businesses are sued for an omission, they often include the assertion of inadequate security. The majority of both of these categories of litigation, more likely than not, affect enterprises that affords public access (Hospitals, Shopping Malls, Apartment Complexes, HOAs, the Lodging Industry, Entertainment Venues, etc.). Although most of the aforementioned examples are largely personal injury cases, we are seeing number of similar lawsuits resulting from property losses against trucking companies, supply chain facilities, etc. More and more, security managers are finding they need to be conversant with litigation trends within their respective industries, and within their respective geographies.

The challenge is to stay current. We can never stop learning. When must never rest on past laurels. We must continually seek divergent sources of information. It is incumbent on each of us to determine the legitimacy of the information we acquire. Finally, we must continue to talk with one another.

William H. Nesbitt, CPP
President
Security Management Services International, Inc.

There are a number of security consultants listed on this Website. Most of the security consultants that are members of Security Source Online are competent, well experienced and maintain a high degree of integrity. They bring a wide range of expertise to the clients they serve whether on the factory floor, a hospital, shopping center or in the courtroom.

The value of Security Consultants is that they are able to bring an objective point of view to the clients they serve. In order for them to bring objectivity to the table, security consultants should be independent professionals without ties to the vendor side of the industry. For those of you outside the security consulting world, you may be surprised to know there is a good deal of friendship and mutual respect among these professionals. You will find that most have several years of multifaceted experience prior to hanging out their shingle. Most security consultants hold the CPP designation, along with other certifications.

What benefits are derived through the use of Security Consultants?

As mentioned, the first benefit is objectivity. Many of the organizations we work with have experienced security professionals running their security programs, yet they avail themselves. One may question why an experienced security manager would go outside and hire a consultant. In almost all cases, the reason given is they are seeking a fresh objective perspective. Because experienced security consultants have worked for a variety of diverse clientele, they have a wide range of experience to call upon. They understand many vertical industries and they understand the need to ensure that each security programs is responsive to the situational environment at hand. This objectivity is also useful in helping clients choosing security vendors. Not all vendors are created equally and some vendors who may be strong in Peoria may not be so strong in Sacramento.

Because of their breadth of experience, security consultants have a good understanding what works and what doesn’t work. Their perspective is also buttressed by the fact they frequently communicate with one-another. This knowledge helps ensure to that scarce resources produce will optimal ROI for the clients they serve. They understand that most security programs most meet the corporate goal of management. Security consultants understand the need to ensure that each security program fits within the framework of the organization as determined by the C-Suite.

Finally, our role as security consultants is a positive one. The best security consultants do not come into an organization with the preconceived notion to find fault and with the intent to rebuild the security program in their own image. Rather our role is to come into an organization to discover what is right and what is working, and then determine how to make it better. This concept is generally referred to as positive consulting as opposed to coming to a project with the predisposition to find fault.

As we said at the onset, there are numerous security consultants here at Security Source Online. Most security consultants are driven, to one degree or another, by a certain sense of altruism. If you doubt this, contact some of the consultants on this website. You will find them forthcoming and willing to have a discussion on a wide range of concerns you may have. You will also find that of you raise an issue outside the realm of their expertise; they will refer you to one or more of their colleagues.

Security consultants provide comprehensive security assessment, provide security management support, develop security system RFPs, provide security designs as well as project management support. Many security consultants are active in the forensic area as court qualified expert witnesses.

I hope this topic evokes some discussion form our members and other interested parties. I hope we can elicit differing points of views from other consultants and well as the pros and cons from those who have used security consultants. All security professionals strive for excellence and forums like this advance that cause.

Any security professional that has worked in the healthcare environment for the first time, especially hospitals, quickly realizes the uniqueness of this environment. The security challenges of providing adequate security to a hospital, whether large or small, whether urban or rural, are unlike any other environment. Because most patients are totally reliant on the hospital for their person safety and security, the reasonable standard of care for adequacy is very high. Add to that reality that most hospitals are, intentionally, very accessible faculties; the challenge becomes even more daunting. The question becomes: How do we maintain a warm and welcoming milieu and at the same time, provide adequate and sufficient security for patients, visitor and staff.

Security providers are now addressing these challenges head on. They are beginning to understand that hospitals have their own lingo and value systems. If the security provider does not thoroughly understand this nomenclature and value system, they generally will not get very far.


In response to this unique vertical security market, security providers are taking the time to understand the unique needs of the healthcare environment. For example, there are a number of consultants that are well informed as to the special security needs of hospitals. These consultants have taken the time and energy to join and participate in such organizations as IAHSS, ASHES, ACHE and ASHRM (If you don’t know these organizations, look them up.)

We are also seeing that major security companies, such as Securitas and G4S, developing security program offerings specifically for hospitals. These companies are bringing well experienced former hospital security executives into their security organizations to ensure they get it right. The critical challenge for contract security agencies, especially when working in the hospital environment, is to control turnover. The negative impact of turnover in the hospital environment is much greater that the same turnover in other commercial venues. In a hospital setting, security officers are required to make judgment calls several times a day. This means that they must have complete familiarity with the hospital they are assigned to. Turnover diminishes this ability.

Finally, we are also seeing technology companies emerging within the healthcare vertical. For example ADT, probably the one of the oldest security and fire protection companies in the world, has jumped into the healthcare vertical with both feet. They are able to integrate exiting disparate stems, and provide a variety of state of the art enhancements if needs dictate. This allows hospitals to enhance security efficiency while reducing reliance on additional FTEs and significantly reduce exposure to liability claims. One lawsuit avoided will buy a lot of security. Reliance on FTEs can be lessened through the application of virtual video tours and/or virtual video escorts.

The lessons learned in the hospital environment should be applied to many other industries. You will see that the companies mentioned here and others have devoted space on their respective website to the hospital vertical market.  Vertical niche market works!

There is an evolving trend toward a middle ground between having no Security Manager and employing a fulltime Security Manager/Director. Every business or organization either cannot justify a fulltime security management position or they believe they cannot afford the cost of employing a fully qualified Security Manager. Some companies that use contract security services will pay extra for and onsite security supervisor as part of the total package being provided by the contracting guard company. To the extent this site manager is qualified to take on the role beyond that of supervising contract security officers is questionable and may present a conflict of interest. Yet, in the real world, when one inquiries "who is in charge of security?” the onsite supervisor is often named.
 
Stepping into this void is a number of fully qualified and certified security professionals who assume the role of Security Management Support. These professionals operate under contract to oversee and monitor all aspects of the security operations including oversight of guard force operations, physical security vendors and investigative services. They often write and oversee a wide range of RFPs and participate in the vendor selection process. The expertise provided by these professionals is at least equal to that of a fulltime security manager minus the expense of payroll, taxes and fringe benefits. Every enterprise does not require a fulltime security manager, but most enterprises require some security management expertise.
 
What is your opinion on this matter? Does this approach have merit? What are the pitfalls? What are the advantages? Are you familiar with this alternative approach?

One of the most difficult environments to secure is medical centers and hospital facilities. That being said, we all understand the rigors of securing a DOD manufacturing plant, a nuclear power plant, and/or a biotech research center. However, with the three previous examples security is, in part, predicated on a go and no-go basis. Those that have accredited credentials are allowed entry, those that do not, are denied access. Exceptions are generally not allowed and access is not predicated on the judgment of the security officer.

 

Parenthetically, every day of the week hospitals allow access to individuals who, if they had their druthers, they would rather deny. Most hospital administrators want to portray a welcoming sense of openness to all who come to their hospital. Therefore, to use a football analogy, hospitals must endeavor to provide a bend, but don’t break defense. In other words, it’s a given that folks are going to enter the hospital that shouldn’t be there. How does a hospital maintain a sense off welcoming openness and still remain secure? This means that the hospital as a secondary line of defense must try to control where these people go and they must limit what they can do to a reasonable acceptable level. This also means hospital security officers are required to make numerous judgment calls on a daily basis.

 

Consider these realities against the background of recent hospital shootings, assaults, including sexual assaults, robberies and infant abductions. Whenever an event such as those mentioned here occurs, you can rest assured it will be on the six o’clock news across the country. These events and many more are also almost certain to induce lawsuits. Once a major incident occurs, you cannot un-ring the bell. When an incident, such as a sexual assault on a patient happens, the clock stops and everything that was done and sometimes more importantly, not done will be scrutinized by the plaintiff’s attorney. The antidote, scrutinize your security program now! If hospital security programs are not periodically fully reviewed, and subsequently something goes wrong, there is a high likelihood that the plaintiff’s security expert will do the review of the hospital security program after the horse has left the gate.

 

Among those enterprises that cater to the public such as shopping malls, hotels and entertainment venues, hospitals are always held to the highest standard of care when things go wrong. For example, the damages that are likely to be awarded to the victim of a sexual assault while a patient in a hospital, will be several times higher than those awarded to the same victim had the assault occurred in the parking structure of a major shopping mall. This is especially true when victims are patients. Because patients are generally deemed helpless and fully dependant on the hospital for their care and well being, hospitals therefore have a higher duty to maintain adequate security.

 

Lawsuits that assert negligence are generally filed for two broad based reasons. Hospitals can be sued to what they didn’t do and they can be sued for what they did do (intentional torts). Most security driven lawsuits, including security lawsuits against hospitals, assert a claim of inadequate security under the theory of premises liability. This is a, should have, would have, could have lawsuit. Typically, plaintiff attorneys, through the prism of 20/20 hindsight will try to reverse engineer the security program looking for inherent weaknesses they can sell to a jury.

 

Examples of this category of claims often assert there were insufficient numbers of security officers, inadequate visitor control, inadequate lighting and inadequate locking control. Intentional torts are most commonly represented claims of false arrest and use of excessive force. Another of disturbing trends over the last 10 years is an increase of sexual assaults and simple assaults committed by clinical personnel against patients, sometimes coupled with elder abuse. Most complaints filed by the plaintiff’s bar almost always include claims lodged against the defendant of inadequate training, inadequate screening of employees (including temporary employees) and inadequate supervision. The point we are trying to make is, once an incident occurs, the clock stops and the various parties to the litigation look backwards as they evaluate the adequacy and efficacy of the security program in question. It is for this reason and others that security managers must always look forward and anticipate. Security is and must remain an anticipatory discipline.

 

In order to prove negligence in a personal injury case, the plaintiff must usually show that the incident in question was reasonably foreseeable. The practical definition of foreseeability, largely predicated on case law, varies somewhat from one state to another. An example of foreseeability could be, if a visitor is assaulted in your parking structure, should the owner/manager of that parking structure reasonably have foreseen that an assault was more likely than not, to have occurred and did they try to mitigate the breech? From a practical standpoint, one could reason that concept of foreseeability means you get one bite at the apple. This means that those incidents that cause patients or visitors to become victims of criminal acts must be reasonably mitigated through the implementation of corrective action. As a matter of best practices, security incidents should always produce corrective actions. Incidents that are ignored will often come back and bite you.

 

Healthcare security requires a broad definition.

Many hospital organizations perceive the security program a compilation of security guards, video, surveillance, access control systems and infant protection systems. Contrary to this perception, experience has taught us that a significant number of security driven lawsuits against hospitals involve circumstances that are largely controlled by clinical personnel. For example, the decisions to place a patent on a 72 hour behavioral health hold, or not, is not a security department decision. Yet when things go wrong, the complaint (a legal filing) implies inadequate security. When sexual assaults are committed against patients by staff persons or by registry personnel, the complaint implies the security organization was lax and should have prevented the assault. We have found through the use of employee attitude surveys, in a number of hospitals over the past 7 years, that many, if not most employees, believe security is the job of security personnel. This “we” versus “them” perception often results in rank and file employees turning a blind eye to serious threats.

 

We have all heard the athletic expression, there is no “I” in team. Security must be a team effort. Security must be the job of every employee including clinical personnel, facilities employees, housekeepers and even volunteers. The more sets of eyes and ears we can involve in keeping the hospital safer, the better.

 

Hospital security programs do not always fit the usual cost/benefit paradigm. For example, hospitals devote significant resources to protection infants even though the risk of an infant abduction is fraction of 1%. When addressing concerns for a terrorist attack and the need to protect the country, President Bush once stated, “The terrorist only needs to be right once. We need to right every time. “ The impact of a patient being victimized by is significantly amplified is a hospital setting as opposed to that same person being victimized in a hotel room. It is very difficult to assign the notion of contributory negligence to a helpless patient.

 

Hospital security programs must therefore be synergistic as well as dynamic and nimble enough to adjust to the ever changing environment. Hospital security directors are well served by forming a number of strategic alliances. As hospital security programs evolve, the security director would be well served in teaming up with the hospital’s risk management team as they develop security policies and protocols. Obviously the development of symbiotic relations between the security operation and local law enforcement can produce significant benefit, Contingency planning with local police agencies will help clarify the respective roles of all involved parties.

 

Security managers and the programs they manage will reap benefits from developing open lines of communication with department managers, especially with the emergency department, behavioral health and facilities. Security managers should also keep open lines of communication with human resources, especially in matters of pre-employment screening, workplace violence prevention employee discipline. The human resources department can also be helpful in keeping the security department tuned in to issues that may crop up related to various bargaining units within some hospitals.

 

It is also important to train security personnel, before the fact, about the perils of security litigation. When security officers understand how and why errors can either cause security litigation or potentially exacerbate the impact of security litigation, they are more likely to buy in with the goal of preventing, or at the least, minimizing the impact of security lawsuits. For example, when security officers realize that the incident report they write today, may be entered into evidence in a courtroom tomorrow of subpoenaed by plaintiff’s counsel, they tend to be more careful and thorough.

 

Last, but certainly not least, no security program will ever come close to reaching its potential without employee engagement. An effective Security Awareness Program (SAP) will multiple the impact of all other security procedures and systems. SAPs must be formally structured programs. They require continual reinforcement and adjustment to ever changing needs. Most hospitals do a terrific job extolling the value the safety is job one for all employees. The same vigor must be applied to security programs.

www.SecuritySourceOline.com (SSO) is open for business. This marketing/informational site is unique because the site is managed and overseen by seasoned security professionals, not marketeers. Security Source Online provides the vehicle for the marketing of a wide range of security services and products on one hand, and on the other hand a source for practical information aimed at the mitigation of security threats. The SSO advisory board consists of security professionals representing the breadth and width of the United States and can be found on the website.

This website is unique because it serves two purposes. First it is a resource for security information. The site contains an ever growing number of blogs that address variety of security subject matter. SSO blogs are responsive to problems and questions posed by those seeking answers to difficult problems. No legitimate security topics are ignored. The site also provides links to a number of current security news stories. All blog postings are screened to ensure they are truly informational as opposed to being thinly veiled advertisements. The best way to advertise is to provide usable information for those looking for answers. We want visitors to the site to return again and again, not only to locate problem solvers and security equipment when needed, but to also find ideas for mitigation security threats.

Second, as mentioned this site is intended to be a resource for those truly need professional security problem solvers. As our membership grows SecuritySourceOnline.com will become the place to go when security expertise is needed. SSO members will consist of security integrators, security consultants, forensic security experts, alarm companies, security equipment providers, contract security providers, fraud investigators and information security experts. As this site grows, you will find security expertise representatives from all over the world. SSO members represent such disciplines as hospitality security, healthcare security, retail security, information security, supply chain security and many other security disciplines.

The Security Source Online Group had been on LinkedIn for only about a year and has more than 1300 members. Within this group there have been numerous and diverse discussions. SSO on LinkedIn is testimony to the wide range on interest in this unique approach. The Security Source Online Group on LinkedIn continues to attract a diversified group of international security expertise, as well as those seeking answers to difficult challenges, and will continue to do so. On LinkedIn about half of the members of Security Source Online Group members are security providers with the other half being security services users. One of the goals of the SSO LinkedIn group is to encourage thoughtful interaction between users and providers with a minimal amount of commercialism. SSO will provide access to regional providers as members with both a national and international presence as well as those providers who serve local markets.

Our security provider members are encouraged to address the issues of the day by posting topical and thoughtful articles on our blog. We want visitors to SSO to consider the site to be a resource of current security management and security program development information. Those seeking security products or services will be afforded direct access to any of our members with no middle-man interference. Any member who does not maintain high ethical standards will be removed from the site immediately.

The site also hosts a Speaker’s Bureau for those members who provide special insights within the ever-changing world of security services and security technology my making educational public presentations. The SSO Speaker’s Bureau consists of individuals who regularly making presentations of ASIS Internationals and other prestigious trade organizations. Those members of the SSO Speaker’s Bureau understand that our role is to inform as opposed to making forty five minute sale pitches.

Finally, the Security Source Online Roundtable is comprised of individuals who hold widely recognized professional certifications in the various security discipline members. A condition of Roundtable membership is a willingness to form strategic partnerships other Security Source Online Members, in order to meet the synergistic needs of clients they serve. These partnerships will afford SSO member clients with a single point of contact as well as the capability to serve many geographic locals in a coordinated and cohesive manner.

Those interested in becoming a member of the Security Source Online family are now able to do so at a very low annual fee. These low introductory sign up fees will be available on a very limited time basis only. Our goal is to provide an international security resource for those individuals and organizations seeking security information and providers of security related services.

Over the past three or four years, Security Management Services International, Inc. has been using a Likert style Security Questionnaire which we have developed. We generally use this questionnaire as a precursor to providing our clients with a complete security assessment. Over these past few years we have recorded responses from thousands of respondents across the country. The security questionnaire is posted online with a unique username and password for each client. The respondents are all afforded anonymity. They are also invited to make any comments they wish. Clearly this questionnaire measures perception and hopefully reality. Typically this Questionnaire is posted well in advance of the assessment process and remains available through the assessment process.

The point we are trying to make in this very brief presentation is that effective security programs must be cognizant as to how they are actually impacting behavior. Behaviors are often driven more by perception than reality. Security is all about behavior modification. Clearly a discipline that understands this concept is CPTED (Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design). Perception has everything to do with deterrence. Think about it. The deterrent value of a security officer, a camera or a fence is clearly the product of the collective perceptions of those whom these methodologies are intended to affect. If everyone perceives that no one is paying attention to the images produced by the cameras watching the parking lot, how much deterrent value do those cameras have?

Finally:  It is not what you say, but what is heard.
             It is not what you show, but what is seen.
             It is not what you mean, but what is understood.
             Perception is indeed, reality.

William H. Nesbitt, CPP
President
Security Management Services International, Inc