PSP key terms

The process of identifying assets and threats, analyzing the likelihood and consequences of loss, and evaluating which risks need treatment so that protective resources can be prioritized.

A structured review of the adversaries who might attack an organization - their intent, capability, resources, and past behavior - used to estimate how likely and how severe an attack would be.

An examination of a facility's physical, procedural, and technical weaknesses that a threat could exploit, resulting in a prioritized list of deficiencies and recommended corrective actions.

A documented description of the adversary - numbers, weapons, tools, tactics, and skill - that a security system must be able to detect, delay, and respond to; it sets the performance target for design.

The relative importance of a building, system, information, or person to the organization's mission, used to rank assets so that limited protection resources go where loss would hurt most.

A study that estimates the operational and financial impact of losing or disrupting specific assets over time, producing the maximum tolerable downtime and recovery priorities used to justify protection.

An estimate of how probable or how frequent a specific threatening event is, based on adversary capability and intent and on how exposed the asset is.

The severity of harm - injury, death, property loss, business interruption, or reputational damage - that would follow if a threat successfully exploited a vulnerability.

The risk that remains after countermeasures have been applied; it must be documented and formally accepted by the asset owner rather than assumed to be zero.

Any device, system, procedure, or design change applied to reduce a vulnerability, lower the likelihood of attack, or lessen the consequences of a successful attack.

Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design: shaping the built environment through natural surveillance, access control, territorial reinforcement, and maintenance so that opportunistic offenders are discouraged.

A structured on-site inspection of a facility that documents assets, existing controls, conditions, and weaknesses, providing the evidence base for a vulnerability or risk assessment.

The deliberate arrangement of successive barriers, sensors, and response capabilities so an adversary must defeat several independent controls before reaching a protected asset.

A fence, wall, or other physical element that marks a site boundary and delays or channels intruders, giving detection and response forces time to act.

Exterior sensors - fence-mounted, buried, infrared, or microwave - that detect someone approaching or crossing the site boundary and report the event to the alarm system.

Sensors, a control panel, and annunciation that detect and report unauthorized entry into a protected interior area, alerting guards or monitoring staff to investigate.

An alarm caused by weather, animals, vibration, or equipment rather than an intruder; high nuisance rates erode guard confidence and waste response resources.

The step of checking an alarm with video, guards, or other means to decide whether it is a real intrusion before committing a response.

Hardware and software that identify people, decide whether they may pass through a given door, unlock it, and record the event for audit and investigation.

A card, fob, key, PIN, or biometric characteristic presented to an access control system as proof of identity when requesting entry.

Authentication based on measurable physical or behavioral traits such as fingerprint, iris pattern, face, or voice, which are difficult to share or counterfeit.

A small enclosed space with two interlocked doors, only one of which can open at a time, used to control passage one person at a time and prevent tailgating.

Fail-safe locks release when power is lost, protecting life safety and egress; fail-secure locks stay locked when power fails, protecting assets and requiring another means of escape.

Cameras, lenses, transmission, recording, and viewing equipment used to detect, assess, record, and investigate activity in and around a facility.

Purpose-built illumination that supports detection and assessment by cameras and guards and discourages intruders; performance depends on maintained illuminance and uniformity, not just brightness.

The process of testing, adjusting, and documenting installed systems to verify they operate as designed and as the contract requires before the owner takes them over.

Formal tests showing that equipment or a system meets specified performance; factory acceptance testing happens at the vendor's plant, site acceptance testing after installation.

A written list of defects, incomplete items, and corrections found during inspection that the contractor must fix before final acceptance and final payment.

Drawings revised after installation to show actual device locations, cable routes, and equipment installed, used for maintenance, troubleshooting, and future modifications.

A written narrative of how each system and component reacts to inputs such as alarms, valid credentials, and fire signals in normal and emergency conditions.

Connecting separate security subsystems - access control, video, intrusion detection, fire - so they share data and can act together, often through a common management platform.

A solicitation that states the buyer's requirements and asks vendors to propose solutions, schedule, and price; used when the buyer wants design input and will award on best value.

A contract document that defines the work to be performed, deliverables, schedule, acceptance criteria, and responsibilities of each party.

Screening of prospective bidders for licensing, financial strength, experience, and past performance before they are allowed to compete for the work.

An award method that weighs technical merit, past performance, and other qualitative factors along with price, rather than choosing the lowest bid automatically.

The total cost of a system over its useful life - acquisition, installation, operation, maintenance, upgrades, and disposal - used to compare alternatives on a fair basis.

A surety guarantee that the contractor will complete the work according to the contract; if the contractor defaults, the surety pays for completion up to the bond amount.

A contract provision that sets measurable service commitments such as response time, uptime, and repair time, with remedies when the vendor misses them.

A written, approved amendment to a contract that changes scope, price, or schedule after the agreement is signed; uncontrolled change orders erode budgets.