Physical security incidents increase during the pandemic

February 3, 2022

Companies continued to experience a rise in physical security incidents in 2021, and they’re expecting these incidents to grow in 2022. Most security leaders have not made changes to their security strategies to mitigate these steadily escalating risks.

In its research report, “The State of Physical Security,” Pro-Vigil reveals the impact of evolving physical security challenges amid the ongoing pandemic.

Incidents are up while security strategies lag, the survey reveals, with 28% of respondents seeing an increase in physical security incidents in 2021, up from just 20% of respondents in 2020 (detailed in Pro-Vigil’s first research survey.) Nearly 27% said they anticipate a continued rise in incidents in 2022. Yet, the majority (nearly 57%) said they had not updated their security strategies in the face of these growing threats.

In addition, supply chain problems due to the pandemic, such as increased material costs and shortages, as well as delivery delays, topped the list of drivers for increased security incidents, with nearly 39% of respondents citing this as the primary factor. Respondents cited key reasons for other pandemic-related factors like reduced business hours (nearly 23%) and security guard shortages (10%).

Businesses continued to adopt intelligent remote video monitoring (RVM), with nearly 40% of respondents stating they are using it instead of simply recording and storing video cameras. But many respondents (43%) said they don’t use RVM for any other purpose beyond security surveillance, such as monitoring employee performance, worksite conditions and customer traffic flow, or identifying marketing opportunities.

In particular, dealerships stood out among the respondent pool as an industry maximizing video camera usage and ROI. The overwhelming majority (96%) are using some form of video monitoring, and many are using the full capabilities of intelligent RVM to monitor worksite conditions, foot traffic and employee performance, with only about 23% of respondents stating they don’t use it for anything other than security monitoring.

To download Pro-Vigil’s research report, “The State of Physical Security Entering 2022,” please visit: https://pro-vigil.com/resources/2022-security-survey-report/.

Ransomware and the propulsion of the extortion economy has rapidly eclipsed into a national priority. Recently, we observed the catastrophic impact of a widescale ransomware attack impacting gas pipelines and raising national gas prices overnight.