University Business - November 2012 - (Page 34)

Security: Show and Tell? alert system should be as widely known as possible, but that it also may be best to keep procedures for handling alerts in the background. For example, the process followed by those charged with handling campus emergencies should not be known to someone who potentially might seek to stymie them. Similarly, discussions among staff about options for responding to an in-progress emergency should be private. “Details related to command-and-control elements and capabilities should remain somewhat protected,” Trumbo says. “It makes sense that a potential assailant not know the extent of the tools and systems the institution may have at its disposal.” Much of the work put into emergency and security planning, in fact, should be available only to designated institutional leaders and security staff. “In practical terms, there are clearly some sensitive materials that should be some eyes only or on a need-to-know basis,” says Scott McGrath, director of product and client services at Rave Mobile Safety. These would include disaster response plans AlliedBArton Security ServiceS When the security force has a strong presence on campus, those who study and work at the institution are more likely to share a potential security concern. The Campus Grapevine: A Cautionary Tale Situations promoting campus alerts can be disruptive, but also informative. The University at Buffalo’s Joseph Brennan recalls an incident where a student reported seeing a man enter the campus library while carrying what appeared to be a rifle. Immediately upon hearing the report, officials issued an alert using the university’s system from Rave Mobile Safety. Recipients of the message were advised to stay away from the area, and the building was searched. “No one with a gun was ever found,” he says, “but that didn’t stop the rumors.” They included a story from one student whose friend routinely studied in the library at a time corresponding with the alleged sighting. Since his friend hadn’t been in touch, the alarmist assumed his friend was being held hostage—a sentiment he didn’t keep to himself. Misinformation such as that spread quickly across campus. “In this rapid communications world, the grapevine is on steroids,” Brennan says. “At the same time, from the administrative side, it can be very difficult to know what you’re dealing with.” Fortunately, in this case, the concerns proved baseless, and the incident proved to be a learning experience. While providing a real-life demonstration that the system worked, follow-up analysis showed that only 37 percent of students were enrolled in the notification system at that time. Those results prompted campus leaders to promote the system more intensively in the following months. containing especially sensitive materials, cooperative agreements with neighboring agencies, and most obviously, vulnerability assessments that would put the community at risk if publicized. Glenn Rosenberg, vice president of higher education at AlliedBarton Security Services, says security systems designed to aid loss prevention and support investigation should be difficult to detect. He also notes that in some instances, the presence of uniformed security personnel alone can actually be detrimental to criminals. Sensitive materials such as disaster response plans, cooperative agreements with neighboring law enforcement agencies, and vulnerability assessments that expose risks should always be on a need-to-see basis. “The physical presence of security officers or police may vary,” he says. “It might be based on perceived risk as in response to current threats, neighborhood violence, campus protests or construction.” Even when openness is the general practice, some cases require special consideration. “While we believe we should err on the side of transparency, this requires us to coordinate a delicate balance between an open institution and privacy issues,” Nickle says of UD. “For example, we have laboratories on campus with significant security based on the kind of research conducted within their borders. We would not want to publicize these security measures lest we make ourselves vulnerable.” Another example is the placement of duress alarms in selected offices. “These alarms are concealed from public view and can be used as an alternative to calling 911 in the case of an emergency,” Nickle says. “For the same reason that these silent alarms work universitybusiness.com 34 | November 2012 http://www.universitybusiness.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of University Business - November 2012

University Business - November 2012
Contents
Editor’s Note
College Index
Ad Index
Behind the News
Financial Aid
Viewpoint
Internet Technology
Security: Show and Tell?
P byo Dasvidt Gieenr g a Threat
Inside Look: Residence Halls
Education Innovators
12 Options for IT Project Funding
What’s New
End Note

University Business - November 2012