Government security has improved in knowing its threats and creating ways to protect its facilities.
Government security is a broad and complex topic. With thousands of government facilities to manage daily, the security system for each building is customized. The ISC (Interagency Security Committee) has a security standard for all government buildings, yet it is always crucial for government facilities, employees, and the visiting public to be aware of the threats and means of security.
History
Before 1995, the year an attack came upon the Alfred P. Murrah Building in Oklahoma City, there was no minimum security standard for federal buildings. Although facilities bulked up on security measures, the September 11 attacks, the September 2013 shootings at the Washington Navy Yard, and April 2014 Fort Hood shootings continued to increase attention on creating better security tactics. Besides these major attacks, the media reported 67 threats or incidents between 2005 and 2017. This is not a total list of the threats or incidents that have happened between that time. According to Fedweek, all in the government, from the three branches to the federal departments and agencies, are responsible for the security of federal facilities.
Threats
Although natural and accidental threats occur and are the concern of residential and commercial buildings, the man-made threats are the big focus of federal facilities. Common threats include homicide, physical (and verbal) assault, weapon and explosive possession, sexual assault, robbery, arson, and demonstrations. Federal facilities must look out for all criminals, terrorists, protestors, etc., as well as be aware of their objectives.
According to “Best Practices for Planning and Managing Physical Security Resources: An Interagency Security Committee Guide,” these objectives are mainly: 1) instilling fear in victims, 2) inflicting injury or death, 3) destroying or damaging facilities, property, equipment, or resources, 4) stealing equipment, material, or information, and 5) creating adverse publicity.
What Can Be Done
One of the improvements that government buildings have made for their security is the ISC security standard, which categories federal facilities by size. Another improvement that they have is specialized security systems. For example, S&B Pro Security is certified to install UL 2050 security alarms and LKM10K security locks. While government security is much tighter since 1995, facilities’ emergency plans still face the challenges of participant apathy, accounting for employees, and getting updated emergency contact information of employees.
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