12/21/23, 10:11 PM Understanding the Top External Physical Security Threats within Financial Institutions

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Understanding the Top External Physical

Security Threats within Financial Institutions
Banks, credit unions, and savings and loans will face
unprecedented security threats in today’s increasingly mobile
environment. Customers want account access through multiple
channels, all of which the financial institution must secure. Add a
decade of stricter regulations and banking security departments
are spread thin.

With most of the focus on cybersecurity, including new

vulnerabilities found in mobile banking, physical security can
become the weakest link. Here are the top physical security
vulnerabilities within a financial institution, and how to protect
your assets.

Bank Robberies, Burglaries, and Larceny

When you think of physical security within a bank, protecting

against bank robbery tops the list of external threats. Thieves
Help
gravitate to banks because of the perceived notion that they will
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12/21/23, 10:11 PM Understanding the Top External Physical Security Threats within Financial Institutions

gain access to large amounts of cash. As a business, your job is

not only to protect the assets entrusted to you but also to protect Tweets from
Menu
personnel and customers. As a result, training calls for @SenseonSec
employees to cooperate with a bank robber, making financial
institutions appear to be an easy target.

Financial institutions implement procedures and protocols to

mitigate losses, increase the capture rate for law enforcement,
and discourage future thieves.

FBI records reveal a plateau in the number of robberies Nothin

committed annually against financial institutions, ranging from
four to five thousand attacks and losses of around $33 million
to see
per year. Between 2012 and 2016, the number of robberies here -
averaged 4,201, with a 9.6% increase between 2015 and 2016, the
latest statistics available.
yet
When they Twee
their Tweets will
The Problem:
show up here.

Employee Implementation Failures Compromise Security

Protocols View on T

Banks, credit unions, and savings and loans must put policies
and procedures in place that will mitigate and minimize losses
due to external theft in the form of robbery, burglary, or larceny.
According to FBI records, threats occur in both high traffic and Recent Posts
remote locations, due to the perceived availability of money,
proprietary information, or customer data.  Dispensaries
Have a Dire
All banks have protocols in place to deter and protect against Problem:
external physical breaches. However, in many cases, security Turnover
gaps exist when controls are not tailored to the specific needs of
each location. Companywide policies often fail to mitigate risks  Amplifying
effectively at individual financial branches. Healthcare
Security: 5
Questions that can help you identify gaps in current security Ways Cabinet
protocols include: Access Control
Makes a Safer
Are the existing policies and procedures adequate for the & More Efficient
risk of each location? Medical
Can you effectively reduce losses by implementing new Environment
technologies?
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12/21/23, 10:11 PM Understanding the Top External Physical Security Threats within Financial Institutions

How meticulously do employees follow current policies and

 5 Expert Tips
procedures?
When Menu
How do you follow up on lapses in implementation?
Designing Your
Is current training adequate to ensure compliance?
Dispensary
Do you meet compliance requirements with existing
protocols?

Based on a 2016 FBI report addressing bank robberies, burglary, Monthly Archives
and larceny, institutions impacted often had extensive security
measures in place at the time of the attack. However, a high Select Month
failure rate also existed, which impacted both losses and the
ability to recover from both a public relations and financial
perspective.

For example, 595 affected institutions had tracking devices in

place, yet only 266 functioned at the time of the security breach,
producing a 56% failure rate. Other areas including alarms, video
surveillance, and access controls faced a gap between having
protocols or security measures in place and performance.

The Solution:

Improve Security Checks and Implement Automated Access

Controls to Reduce Failures

Investigate the success or failure of existing protocols to identify

design and procedural gaps, which can reduce the failure rate of
current systems. When employees do not properly follow
company procedures and checks are not in place to identify
these failures, the company is at risk of experiencing greater
losses in the event of a physical security breach.

Implementing new technologies and upgrading company

protocols can improve both the use and function rate of existing
security measures and reduce financial losses due to the
implementation or operational errors.

For example, when converting keyed teller drawers, office

drawers, and file cabinets to Senseon keyless technologies, the
auto relocking feature will eliminate security failures due to
employees forgetting to relock a drawer containing cash or
sensitive data. The low-profile locks built to commercial-grade

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12/21/23, 10:11 PM Understanding the Top External Physical Security Threats within Financial Institutions

strength will seamlessly integrate into existing systems,

improving overall security and saving money on rekeying costs. Menu

Extend your access control to the cabinet-

level with Senseon Core

The Problem:

Financial Regulations Require You to Secure Data Housed with

Third-Party Partners

It is common practice for financial institutions to work with third-

party vendors. The practice can lower the cost of compliance,
improve operations, and streamline processes. However, when
doing so, you open the door to compliance failures, should the
third party experience a security breach. Current regulations
require the financial institution to maintain oversight of vendor
compliance measures to ensure the safety and security of all
customer data.

Whether the partner company experiences a cyber or physical

breach, the financial institution may be held liable, from a
compliance perspective, when a breach occurs through a third-
party vendor, putting the bank’s customer information at risk.
Such exposure to liability can offset the benefits or working with
an outside vendor when a financial institution fails to take
appropriate actions to oversee the security measures in place
with the third-party vendor.

A Barack Ferrazzano Client Alert on September 26, 2107,

reminded financial institution leadership of this responsibility
when it wrote, “If your bank has contracted with the affected
credit bureau (Equifax), or if one of your vendors has, some of
those millions of consumers could be your customers, for which
your bank is ultimately responsible in the eyes of the regulators.”

Regulators require banks to secure customer data and other

sensitive information on all physical and cyber locations,
including third-party vendors. A bank must protect data found in
their personal databases, stored on cloud servers, and found in
physical offices. Even cloud storage facilities have a physical
 where the company stores the technology and maintain
location
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12/21/23, 10:11 PM Understanding the Top External Physical Security Threats within Financial Institutions

its databases, making the security of physical locations as

important as cybersecurity. Menu

The Solution:

Automate Security Procedures at Third-Party Vendors to

Eliminate Failures and Ensure Compliance

The two most effective ways to ensure compliance is to

automate processes and put checks and balances in place,
where automation is not possible. You cannot control the training
or quality of the implementation of written policies and
procedures at a partner company. However, automated
processes, which operate seamlessly, will reduce your risk of
being held responsible for the failure to meet regulatory
requirements at the site of a third-party vendor.

For example, video surveillance is only good if the feed is in

operation at the time of the security breach. Automating the
video process ensures it is in operation at all times. Likewise,
Senseon’s auto relocking devices, used on drawers, desks, and
file cabinets containing sensitive data, will ensure regulatory
compliance and could reduce losses and the financial
institution’s liability in the event of a security breach.

Conclusion

External security threats to physical locations often take the back

burner to cybersecurity threats, because of the volume of losses
and bad publicity a cyber breach creates. However, it is often
possible to increase physical security and reduce losses due to a
security breach at branches and offices without dramatically
increasing the existing budget. Closing the gap between putting
appropriate policies and procedures in place and ensuring they
operate and function at top capacity can reduce losses. Including
a more active role in third-party vendor security, which includes
verifying the use of proper security measures that align with the
standards required by financial institutions, can ensure you
remain compliant while reducing the loss of sensitive customer
data.

For more on how improved technology can seamlessly integrate

existing systems to save you money, download our
into
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12/21/23, 10:11 PM Understanding the Top External Physical Security Threats within Financial Institutions

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July 25th, 2018 | Industry

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