Marc Clavereau, managing director at Bodet asks, what are the benefits of an Access Control System? Controlling access to a business environment or information system is of huge importance to businesses today especially those dealing with financial, privacy, safety, or defence information. Access control is one of the best ways of monitoring and authorising the activities of legitimate users and monitoring any attempts by users to access specific resources. Access control, In addition to authentication mechanisms such as a password, focuses on how authorisations are structured. In some cases, authorisation looks at the structure of an organisation, while in others it may be based on the sensitivity level of information and the clearance level of the user accessing it. With the increase in invasion and data theft crimes access control and security is extremely important as criminals realise the value of sensitive data.

An access control solution can allow organisations to limit staff access to specific areas and information within the business, ensuring the utmost in security. There are many different types of access control systems, such as proximity card readers, which are one of the more popular. These systems utilise Radio Frequency Identification or RFID tags that carry data programmed into a small computer chip. The tag is activated by radio waves emitted from an RFID reader, which communicates wirelessly with the tag across what is known as the air-interface. Once activated, the tag sends data stored in its memory relating to the item back to the reader either allowing or declining access. The software controlling the system enables managers to track and manage which employees access specific areas at specific times and more.

Organisations looking to implement an access control system must consider and plan carefully what their access control policies, models, and mechanisms will include. An access control policy should list the requirements of a user to gain authorised access to different buildings and/or information. For example the policy could include staff access or usage of information based on need-to-know, competence, authority or obligation factors.

How to choose the most relevant access control system?
An access control mechanism is a very successful business security tool. The first step in choosing the right system is for an organisation to look honestly at its current access security levels, such as how many doors need to be secured, how many employees need access and does it need to monitor staff exits as well as entrances? These questions can help determine the capacity of an access control system for example an organisation only needing to control a single door can utilise a simple keypad entry tool. Larger corporations should consider a number of access control system providers focusing not only on cost, but also how well it addresses the organisation’s needs. The most relevant access control security system should be easy to use, maintain and monitor. It should integrate current security features and provide an adequate level of security without being excessive, or difficult for employees to use.

The majority of access control tools are linked to passwords, user IDs, identification cards and PINs (personal identification numbers). However passwords and PINs can be guessed, stolen or illegally obtained by covert observation. Passwords can also be shared where a member of staff logs into a building or IT system on behalf of another colleague meaning there is no way for the system to know who the actual user is, causing problems when monitoring staff time and attendance.

One solution to these problems is biometric technology as it is almost impossible to forge and can be very useful as a replacement for a PIN, or signature (which is also a biometric). According to Gartner biometric technology is proving very useful for access control in business. It stated that in 2008 less than 20% of organisations worldwide had adopted biometrics but by 2011 this should have increased by nearly a third. The Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) however has said that the slow adoption of this technology is mainly due to concerns about security, health and safety and ‘Big Brother’ fears.

Where do biometrics excel?
There are a variety of different biometrics solutions available such as hand geometry, fingerprints, iris scans, DNA, typing patterns, signature geometry (not just the look of the signature, but the pen pressure, signature speed, etc.). Biometric technology eliminates the possibility of lost, stolen or duplicated keys, which can result in organisations having to change locks and can be a very expensive mistake.

Biometrics also allows organisations to avoid uncomfortable situations with former employees as there is no need to recover keys. They allow organisations to accurately manage and monitor employee time and attendance and access by having solid data on the entry times of each user and the ability to track his or her whereabouts. Thousands of users can be registered onto a biometric system, enabling an organisation to develop thousands of user groups and assign access authorisation per user group for effective and flexible tier-based access management.

Many organisations are still reluctant to implement a purely Biometric system due to the potential problems caused if the system fails, however Bodet has considered all of these factors very carefully in developing its Biometric services and has found that offering a combination of Proxy + Bio technologies is more acceptable to businesses as it ensures that, should the biometric reader ever fail, staff can still use some form of badge to access buildings and information.

Also Bodet offers a hand geometry terminal that takes a 3D picture of a user’s hand instead of a finger print scan, where cuts, hand creams, swollen fingers etc. can affect the results. The hand geometry terminal uses two factor authentications by scanning the user’s hand and using a PIN along with the image. The process only takes two to three seconds and saves time for staff entering a building.

The hand scanning option is popular in a number of industries due to the fact it is so accurate, with an increase in the use of antibacterial gels many finger scanners cannot identify users that have the gel on their fingers. Hand scanning can also be used in industries such as manufacturing where the environment is often very dirty, a hand geometry terminal can still identify a user whereas finger scanning needs the user to ensure their fingers are clean to gain access to a building or information.

Organisations must assess their access control and security needs carefully, only then can they decide which access control solution will be most suitable. Taking the time to research various options early on in the process will eliminate the need to adapt and even replace integral security systems and access control mechanisms at a later date.