{"id":339834,"date":"2021-05-05T16:19:44","date_gmt":"2021-05-05T20:19:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/brivostaging.wpengine.com\/?p=339834"},"modified":"2026-07-17T16:36:01","modified_gmt":"2026-07-17T21:36:01","slug":"taking-access-control-to-the-bank","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.brivo.com\/de\/resources\/blog\/taking-access-control-to-the-bank\/","title":{"rendered":"Taking Access Control to the Bank"},"content":{"rendered":"

If you build it, they will come. <\/span><\/i>Everyone is familiar with that heart-tugging line from <\/span>Field of Dreams. <\/span><\/i>When it comes to access control in 2021, that James Earl Jones quote takes on new meaning. If you build it, and make it frictionless, integrated, convenient, and hygienic, they will come back to the office. At least we hope they will.<\/span><\/p>\n

Whether staff and customers will come back is a particularly intriguing question in the banking and financial services industry. Even community banks are beginning to offer mobile apps that let customers remotely deposit, transfer, and view funds. Cash withdrawals from banks and ATMs have plunged during the pandemic. Some people haven\u2019t used paper money in a year. Chains like Lululemon, Sweetgreen, and Nordstrom have largely eschewed cash.<\/span><\/p>\n

As offices reopen and branches return to normal hours and as the population gets vaccinated, physical security can\u2019t be forgotten. Mask requirements will remain in place for the foreseeable future, and many people might never shed them in public. What does it mean for robbery prevention when every customer is wearing a mask? For now, many branches either severely limit occupancy\u2014assuming that a robber won\u2019t be willing to cool his heels outside for 10 minutes\u2014or use security guards as social distance or access monitors. That\u2019s not cost effective in the long run, though.<\/span><\/p>\n

Lasting health protocols mean that customers will expect barriers between them and bank staff, which is good news. Bullet-resistant windows will make a branch look more like a health-conscious facility than an armed encampment.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In bank office facilities and in areas in branches that are off limits to the public, some financial institutions have retrofitted their access control systems with mobile apps, facial recognition, or fluid access. On-premises systems are giving way to cloud-based approaches, where upgrades, patches, and permission changes are centralized, removing responsibility from the bank\u2019s IT team. Privileges can be quickly assigned, changed, or revoked for staff needing to access sensitive areas such as server rooms, the accounting department, or human resources. Even some community banks are making the jump due to ease of administration, lower lifecycle costs, and almost boundless integrations, including integrated Covid tools such as health screening and contact reporting.<\/span><\/p>\n

Access control doesn\u2019t stop at physical spaces. Virtual doors to the network are every bit as important. The bigger money for criminals, and the lesser risk of capture, comes from plundering online accounts.<\/span><\/p>\n

Financial institutions are no stranger to cyber attacks. The cyber risk spectrum is broad and unprecedented, with <\/span>60 percent<\/span><\/a> of the customer records that were compromised coming from financial services firms. While banks have invested heavily in cyber security tools and infrastructure to protect their assets and meet regulatory requirements, physical access control can sometimes be overlooked.<\/span><\/p>\n

Now, as financial institutions are gearing up for a return to normal following a year of increased remote work, greatly reduced branch traffic, and managing distressed financial assets, here are four steps to ensure the physical security program is ready to get back to work with your financial institution.<\/span><\/p>\n

Four Steps to Prepare Physical Security Programs at Financial Services to Reopen:<\/b><\/h2>\n

Step 1:<\/strong> Understanding and Communication<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n