Physical security information management (PSIM) is a valuable tool for today’s corporations, enabling the proactive monitoring and resolution of potential threats and other events through a cohesive interface. PSIM streamlines reporting and allows companies to take complete control over the various security systems in place for comprehensive monitoring. There are a number of factors to consider in preparation for PSIM.
Communication Preparation is Critical
One of the primary benefits of PSIM is that it provides a foundation or collaboration between departments who may each be dealing with separate information channels. Who within your organization’s operational change are the critical influencers in decision-making? These are the people who must be in the notification loop when situations arise, so that a collaborative and rapid solution can be determined and acted upon.
When you’re using PSIM, it’s possible to have a dedicated security monitoring team to assess events as they arise, prioritizing risks and initiating the communication through the chain of command. It’s these pre-defined processes that make it possible to block potentially devastating security events through rapid responses.
Thorough Assessment of Vulnerabilities and Needs
Before implementing PSIM, it’s important to conduct a thorough assessment of your organization’s needs and vulnerabilities. Armed with this knowledge, you can create a comprehensive oversight system that will reduce costs, improve security and increase situation awareness and overall organizational intelligence.
A thorough assessment of your organization’s needs and vulnerabilities is the framework for setting rules and triggered actions available with the most comprehensive and advanced PSIM solutions, saving valuable time and reducing critical losses due to sluggish response times.
Protocols for Routine and Emergency Security Situations
In addition to defining lines of communication, creating protocols for routine and emergency security situations also reduces response times and improves the likelihood that threats can be successfully blocked. PSIM solutions with synchronized operations and task automation make this far simpler than manual responses, brought about by disorganized communication and differing opinions on how situations should be addressed.
An effective automated response system includes features such as rule-based task activation as well as time-triggered and event-triggered activation. This strategy alleviates the typical hazards of lengthy decision-making and situation analysis, by pre-defining actions that should occur should an event meet specified criteria. Detailed incident reporting leads to improvements in protocols and methodologies that can make your organization even more secure over time, customizing solutions that meet the unique needs of your company.
Integration of Essential Security Information Sources
In addition to gaining a thorough understanding of your needs and vulnerabilities, organizations must be equipped with the various information sources they want to integrate as a cohesive PSIM solution. That means making an assessment of the existing security tools and software you’re already utilizing—which also means you can eliminate extraneous assets that are unnecessarily draining your resources through the unification process.
PSIM enables today’s enterprises to take complete control over their security, streamlining and standardizing process, reducing costs and demands on resources. Organizations can realize significant cost reductions through unification of existing technologies and reducing the time needed to train security operators. These systems provide a comprehensive yet thorough picture of the many facets of an organization that can be vulnerable to security breaches or attacks. These benefits are multiplied when proper preparation provides a foundation for seamless implementation.