Definition
Asset covers:
- Something which does not rely on protective security measures from a perimeter or building, for example a gas valve or communications mast.
Principles
Deter
- Minimise the awareness of the asset within the organisation and the local area
- Dissuade adversaries from conducting an attack by emphasising the likelihood of failure and capture
- Project a sufficiently hostile view of the environment to an adversary so as to make an attack difficult or too unachievable to progress
Examples
- Ensure that only those who need to know have information on the location and purpose of the asset
- Use health and safety signage to dissuade adversaries from interacting with the asset, emphasising the likelihood of death or serious injury before an attack could be completed
Detect
- To identify threat or attack behaviours at every stage of an attack - planning, reconnaissance, deployment
- Initiate an appropriate response to a threat or attack as early in the attack timeline as possible
Examples
- Place intrusion detection systems outside the asset perimeter to ensure detection at the earliest opportunity
- Monitor the asset and the area beyond using CCTV to identify potential hostile reconnaissance
Delay
- Maximise delay through the use of approved security measures
- Limit the information on security measures and use multiple varied protective security measures
- Take measures to minimise the impact of an attack on the asset
Examples
- Approved security measures will provide quantifiable delay times and using multiple types will increase the tools required to successfully defeat them
- Shutting down assets might lessen the impact of any attack enabling a more rapid recovery from any attack
Mitigate
- Use of protective security measures to minimise the impact of any attack
- Ensure that protective security measures are commensurate around the asset
- Ensure that physical measures reduce the impact of a successful attack
Examples
- Ensure the building fabric, windows and doors all offer a similar level of delay to a forced entry
- Minimising the number of potential access points
- Vehicle security barriers provide sufficient standoff to prevent a VBIED from destroying key assets
Response
- Determine what response is required for the full range of threats faced by the asset and ensure measures are tied into response
- Where appropriate exercise response plans, with particular emphasis on the potential length of response times
Examples
- Ensure the efficiency of response has been maximised through integration of detection and deployment of response
- Use of CCTV to monitor approaches to an asset, allowing early detection of a possible intruder and efficient triggering of response plans
- Ensuring security staff have sufficient initial and ongoing training to effectively use all security apparatus during an incident
The following pages provide more information on the protective security measures which can be used to achieve the protective security principles above. Considering the impact a measure has on Deter, Detect and Delay is important to ensure the measures are complementary and all three Ds have been covered.