Exterior Patrolling

 

Exterior (outside) patrolling in my opinion is just as important as doing an interior (inside) patrolling. Conducting an exterior patrol has a lot of benefits when it comes to identifying the following:

Hazards: Security Professional should look for anything that might pose as a safety hazard such as potential

o   Slip & Falls: Cam hold a company liable for injury that may be cost. Can cost a business thousands of dollars in legal fees

o   Fire Hazards: Can cause the fire marshal/commissioner to come onto the property to cite the business owner for Fire Code violations

o   Broken infrastructure: Such as cracks in concrete or wooden structures that could cause a structure to collapse  

o   Broken equipment: some sites such as construction sites or any sites that may use heavy machinery could be broken or malfunctioning

o   Unsafe walkways/pathways: debris can be in the way of establishing a clear path to travel onto

 

Safety: Try to identify anything that may seem unsafe to the general public/employees that come onto the property

o   Inadequate lighting: can bring unwanted criminal activity

o   Propped Open Doors: can invite unwanted/unauthorized persons onto the property

o   Unsecured Doors: doors that are found to not lock properly or be secured can invite unwanted/unauthorized persons onto the property

o   Areas of concealment: back areas of businesses especially stand-alone structures, alleyways, loading docks, and vegetation

o    Blind Spots: areas of a building/property in which there are no cameras around.

§  These types of areas attract unwanted/unauthorized persons to loiter, hang out, and conceal themselves from personnel. Presents an opportunity for criminal activity. A lot of criminals like to use concealment to conduct criminal activities

 

Visual Presence

o   Ominous Presence: frequently conducting an exterior patrol shows a presence that the property is being constantly monitored and that there are security personnel in the area. This type of presence gives a person an illusion that security is everywhere

o   Visual Deterrence: by just patrolling the exterior of the property and being visual seen can deter criminal activity from occurring on the property or around the property

o   Sense of Safety: the employees or customers that utilize the business may feel safe knowing that there are security personnel on property and know it would be easier to find security if an emergency or a situation arises where security is needed

 

Be on the Look Out: BOLO

o   Trespassers: a person or a group of people who are unlawfully present on property. These types of people have been issued either a verbal or a written trespass warning to not be on property. Depending on your state laws issuing trespasses various on how the method is deployed. A person may be asked to leave and not come back for various reasons such as, engaging in criminal activity

·       Verbal: Simply telling the person that they are not allowed on property. A person may be asked to leave and not come back for various reasons. A security professional, business owner, and even law enforcement can give the verbal warning

·       Written: This type of warning is usually done by law enforcement personnel in which they can write a citation or a warning to the person to not come back to the property. If the person chooses to ignore the written warning or violate it, they may be subjected to an arrest or pay a fine

o   Dangerous Persons: Any person that may pose an immediate danger to themselves or others

o   Terminated/Disgruntled Employees: An ex-employee who was let go and poses a risk of retaliating against their former employer by whether making direct threats, and intentions of following through. This type of person may try to gain access onto the property by using deception and knowledge of where everything is at

Suspicious Persons

o   Anyone that could be acting abnormal or doing something that does not seem normal in a particular environment

§  A person casing (looking around) the property

§  A person trying to gain unauthorized entry such as going through the back door or the loading dock

§  A person exhibiting strange behavior that does not align with social norms

§  A person that may be under the influence of alcohol or drugs

§  A person to be found loitering or staying in one spot for a long time

 

Exterior Patrol Matrix

Hazards	Safety	Visual	BOLO	Suspicious
Slip & Falls	Inadequate lighting	Ominous Presence	Trespassers	Casing/Scoping Around
Fire Hazards	Propped Doors	Visual Deterrence	Dangerous Persons	Gain Unauthorized Entry
Broken Infrastructure	Unsecured Doors	Sense of Safety	Terminated/Disgruntled Employees	Abnormal behaviors
Broken Equipment	Areas of Concealment			Under the Influence of Alcohol or Drugs
Unsafe Passageways	Blind Spots			Loitering

Questions to ask yourself when conducting an exterior patrol

1.    Is there any type of hazards that are on the property that could either cause?

a.    Slip & Falls

b.    Fire Code violations

c.     Unsafe walkways

d.    Broken equipment

2.    Who is authorized to be on property?

a.    Employees

b.    Customers

c.     Patrons

d.    General Public

3.    What are the blind spots of the property?

a.    Entry ways

b.    Employee picnic areas

c.     Break areas

d.    Behind the dumpsters

e.    Backdoors

f.      Areas that have a lot of vegetation such as shrubs, bushes, tress

4.    Is there an entrance and exit to the property?

a.    Identifying the entrances and their locations

b.    Identifying the exits and their locations

·       ALWAYS remember to bring a notebook, a pen, radio/cellphone and good flashlight when going on an exterior patrol