Patrol Procedures, Access Control, and Loss Prevention
Patrol Procedures
Purpose of patrol
Prevent, deter, detect, delay, deny, respond, reassure and report. Visible, unpredictable patrol makes a site a less attractive target, and the records you create become the site's history and its evidence.
Preparing
Read the post orders and the previous shift's log, take a briefing, check equipment (radio, flashlight, keys, notebook, PPE), verify key counts, and plan your route and timing. Know what 'normal' looks like at your site - the baseline - so you can recognize what does not belong.
On patrol
Use your senses: look for unlocked doors, damaged windows, water, smoke, burnt smells, tampered locks, loitering persons, hazards and safety defects. Vary routes and timings so nobody can predict you, and use checkpoints or tour-verification devices honestly. Foot patrol gives observation quality; vehicle patrol gives coverage and speed; both need a safety plan for contact with unknown persons. Handle lock and unlock duties strictly: verify identity, follow the key register, use two-person control for sensitive areas, and never leave keys unattended or write down access codes carelessly.
Recording
Log every checkpoint, patrol, unlock/lock, alarm and noteworthy event with times. 'Nothing unusual found' is a legitimate and necessary entry - it proves the patrol happened. When you find an incident, observe, secure and preserve the scene, do not disturb evidence, request police and medical help as needed, and write a report promptly.
Trap: letting your pattern become predictable; skipping checkpoints when busy; recording 'all secure' without saying what you checked; and confronting unknown persons instead of keeping distance, observing and reporting.
Rule of thumb: patrol so nobody can predict you, and record so everybody can follow you.
Access Control
The four questions
Access control answers: who are you (identification), can you prove it (authentication), are you allowed here (authorization), and what did you do (accountability). Every entry point should have a rule, a credential and a record.
Tools and layers
Layered control uses the perimeter, entrances, interior zones and high-security areas. Credentials include photo ID badges, key fobs, cards, PINs, biometrics and physical keys. Key control means a register, controlled issue, no unattended master keys, rekeying after loss, and two-person rules for sensitive spaces. Electronic systems log entries and alarms, but they must never compromise life safety - an access-controlled door on an exit route must still release on fire alarm and allow egress, and maglocks must fail safe where required by the fire code.
People, not just hardware
The most common failure is a friendly human bypass. Prevent tailgating (following a credentialed person through) and piggybacking (following with permission) with the challenge protocol: politely intercept, ask who they are visiting and see the credential - 'Can I help you?' before 'Do you have ID?'. Run visitor management properly: pre-registration, ID verification, visitor badge with expiry and zones, escort where required, sign-out, and contractor and delivery control. Check removals on exit, not just entries.
Documentation
Record access denials, visitor entries, key issues, equipment removal and anomalies. Reconcile logs, spot-audit credentials, and report anything that looks like credential sharing or door propping.
Trap: assuming a badge proves authorization rather than identity; holding or propping doors for politeness; letting contractors in without a scope of work; and failing to log refusals - refusals are often the most valuable entries in an investigation.
Rule of thumb: every entry leaves a record, and every record gets checked.
Loss Prevention
What shrinkage is
Loss comes from external theft, internal theft, vendor and delivery fraud, administrative error and paperwork failure. Prevention targets the cause, not just the symptom, so policies, audits, inventory controls, cash handling, key control and exception reporting matter more than any single apprehension.
Deterrence environment
Use visible presence and good customer service (greeting, eye contact, offers of help), lighting and sightlines, layout that reduces blind spots, product placement, signage and CCTV. Environment design principles - natural surveillance, natural access control, territorial reinforcement and maintenance - reduce opportunity before a person ever acts.
Observing a shoplifting incident
To act with confidence you need continuous observation of the person, the selection of the item, concealment or conversion, and the failure to pay while passing the last point of sale. You must be able to identify the person and the property afterwards. If any element is missing, report and let the evidence speak.
Apprehension is optional
The Criminal Code s.494 power of citizen's arrest exists, but policy in most organizations ranks safety above recovery. Do not pursue, do not fight, do not chase into traffic; call police and preserve CCTV. Any detention must be based on proper grounds and end promptly with police involvement, and any search of a person or bag must be consented to or authorized by policy - a guard has no automatic right to search.
Investigations and information
Employee and internal investigations involve personal information: PIPA governs collection, use and disclosure, and covert surveillance must be justified by policy and law. Interview subjects voluntarily, without threats or promises, and never allege theft you cannot prove.
Trap: treating concealment alone as grounds to detain; searching a bag without consent; following a shoplifter into another store or an unsafe area.
Rule of thumb: if you cannot describe the person, the item and the exact moment they passed the last point of sale without paying, do not detain.