Beyond the Digital Frontier: My Journey into the World of Physical Access Controls
In today’s digital age, we often hear about the importance of protecting systems from unauthorized access by bad actors. But have you ever considered the risks of physical security breaches, such as break-ins or stolen laptops, and the impact they can have on your company’s sensitive information and personnel?
As a cybersecurity enthusiast, I understand the importance of safeguarding not only digital assets, but also the physical assets of a company, including its people. That’s why I set out on a journey to explore and compare the most common physical access controls used by organizations to secure their buildings, property, and personnel.
Physical access controls are implemented through tangible mechanisms such as walls, fences, guards, locks, and more. In today’s modern organizations, these physical control systems are often linked to technical and logical systems such as badge readers connected to door locks. These controls are essential to protect a company’s most important asset — its people — followed by securing other physical assets.
Physical controls not only protect physical assets, such as computers from being stolen, but also ensure the health and safety of personnel inside the building. Some common physical access controls include badge systems, gate entry, and biometrics.
As I delved deeper into my exploration, I learned about the importance of monitoring or auditing all physical events. Monitoring is achieved by using physical access controls to log and track personnel movement thereby knowing who was, who is, and why. Examples of monitoring include the use of alarm systems, security guards, logs, and cameras.
As cybersecurity professionals, we have a responsibility to ensure the overall security of the company. It is essential that we implement physical controls that meet certain standards to protect the assets of the company and its personnel.
Thank you for taking the time to read about my journey exploring physical access controls. I look forward to sharing more of my cybersecurity journey in the future. Please stay safe from cyber attacks and leave a review of this blog to let me know your thoughts.
