LESSON 3: Protective Doors, Windows, Locks, Key Control and Protective Cabinets

DOORS AS PHYSICAL SECURITY AUGMENTATION DEVICES

• The door is the equivalent of a caveman’s skin. The door provides a barrier at the
point of entry and exit. It offers the maximum delay time before penetration of the facility
proper. In maximum security, however the door must not be impenetrable by ordinary means
such as penetration by the use of hand carried tools and explosives. It is not however
necessary that all doors should be of maximum-security standard but only those that are
essential in the effective implementation of the total system. The parts of the doors that is
important to the security practitioner are the hinges and hardware.

• Doors have weak points that favor intrusions. Hollow core doors render complex lock
system useless as entry can be easy by applying sufficient force to break the barrier. Hard
core doors are stronger especially if made of solid wood (over 1 inch thick) with no fillers
wherein a steel sheet of 16-gauge, can be attached by a one-way screw.

• Aluminum doors when used are usually covered with glass is vulnerable to intrusion.
The best alternative would be an all-steel door. The hinges should be installed on the inside.
Hinges installed facing the outside invites, intrusion by just using a screwdriver and a
hammer to remove the pins and then the door could be lifted up. To add protection for
installed pins, they insert a pin or screw on the jamb side of the hinge, then drill a hole
opposite side just fronting the pin when the door is closed. This will prevent the door to fall
off even if the hinges are removed. Contact switches, vibration sensors pressure mats and
various types of motion detection devices can be installed for greater protection.

THINGS TO CONSIDER AND TO NOTE IN ASSESSING A DOOR

• Hinge pins exposed to the outside should be protected either by spot- welding or use
hinge bolts the door and doorframe. The frames should be anchored to the wall in such
manner that penetration is at least equal to that of the door itself.

• Long warehouse should be padlocked inside at both sides.

• Fire safety doors, should be opened by pushing a panic bar located on the secure
side as required by safety regulation, “this situation is generally undesirable to secure”
• Security should be enhanced at the fire doors using local audible alarms.
• Hollow cored door should be security enhanced.

AUGMENTING WINDOWS AS PART OF PHYSICAL SECURITY SYSTEMS

• When using windows as physical security devices, there are two basic types:
a. Bullet Resistant
b. Burglar Resistant
• Bullet resistant windows are classified into eight (8) protection levels:
a. Levels 1 to 3 rated against handgun caliber projectiles (9x19mm,
.45 ACP, .40 S&W etc.)
b. Levels 4 to 8 rated against rifle caliber projectiles (5.56x45mm, 7.62x51mm,
7.62x39mm, .308 Win Mag etc.)
• Protective windows are made of either glass or plastic or mixture of both. Laminated
glass absorbs a bullet as it passes through various glass layers. The advantages of glass
are it's easy to maintain, easy to clean and less likely to scratch than plastic. It is less
expensive per square meter than plastic, but heavier which requires more workers and
stronger frames. Glass has the tendency to SPALL (chip) when hit by a bullet, as per the
consensus of practitioners in the field of Ballistics, a glass holds up to three (3) shots before
it begins to shatter from subsequent shots.
• Two types of plastic used in windows are:
a. Acrylic
b. Polycarbonate, both vary on thickness and are lighter and more easily scratched than
glass
• Acrylic windows are clear and monoliths whereas glass and polycarbonate are
laminates consisting of layers of material bonded on top of other. Acrylics are sometimes
referred to with brand name Plexiglas and will deflect bullets and hold together under
sustained hits however some “spalling” may occur
• Polycarbonate windows are stronger than acrylic against high powered weapons. In
addition to protective windows “wall armor” is important because employees often duck
below a window during shooting.
• Burglar Resistant windows are also available in acrylic and polycarbonate materials
and are protected against hammers, flame, smash and grab and other attacks. The
combination of bullet and burglar resistant window is a better version however it is expensive

ORDINARY WINDOW PROTECTION

• Steps to make than protective glazing to enhance windows security is the installation
of grating which consists of metal bars constructed across windows. This bar runs
horizontally and vertically which produces effective form of protection. Security screens are
made of steel or stainless-steel wire (mesh) welded to a frame. Screens have the distinct
advantages over grating because it discourages pilfering through the window bars more
easily than through screens and could stop rocks and other objects, especially those of
heavier construction.

LOCK AND KEY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

• The lock originated from Egyptians 4,000 years ago. The oldest known example
comes from the ruins of Khorsabad near Nineveh. It is similar to the modern-day Key-
Operated Lock.
• No matter how much they cost, all locks remain delay devices and not positive bars
to entry. Many states of the art lock systems continue to be developed but equally modern
techniques have been made to open them. Some locks need considerable time and
expertise of the manipulator for covert opening, but all go down to using force and proper
tools.
• The important factors of locks in your security system provide you with a “layer” of
protection. Locks are vulnerable to criminal enterprise just as other security safeguards.
However, when you view them as a “layer” as opposed to a “total solution”, you will perceive
and apply the use of locks with considerable advantage within your system.

TYPES OF COMMON LOCKING DEVICES

• The measured protection afforded by a well-built lock depends on the resistance of

the locking to picking, manipulation or drilling. The types of locks you choose for your
corporate or industrial security needs depend on the security level needed, including what
must be locked and your budget. The following concepts provide a starting point in the
discussion of locks.

1. Key-operated mechanical lock

• It uses some sort of arrangement of internal physical barriers (wards tumblers) which
prevent the lock from operating unless they are properly aligned.
• The key is the device used to align these internal barriers so that the lock may be
operated.
• The design of a basic cylinder lock provides you with a measure of adequate
security. It is most used lock for most corporate and industrial security roles and choosing
the ones supplying the best protection on a cost-benefit basis is often difficult. Each
manufacturer claims that its design is the best, and many boldly say theirs withstand the
most ingenious techniques of opening without proper key. Brass or steel is the

average construction of a cylinder lock with five pin sets and springs, although some later
models use six pin sets to make picking efforts difficult.

2. Padlock

• A portable and detachable lock having a sliding hasp which passes through a staple
ring and is then made fasten or secured.
• While combination locks are popular, key-operated locks are even more popular,
primarily because they are often cheaper and easier to maintain from a business point of
view. One type of key-operated lock is called the warded lock. Wards serve as obstructions
in the keyway (keyhole) and inside the lock to prevent all except the properly cut key from
entering or working the lock.
• The key must have the proper ward cuts to bypass the wards in the keyway or in the
lock. There are keys made to bypass most wards in any warded lock. These will commonly
be called skeleton keys. However, a skeleton key is not necessary to bypass a warded lock.
A piece of wire bent to the right shape bypasses the wards and contacts the bolt of the lock.
• You will see warded locks and padlocks in older buildings and storage sheds. The
locks are more for show and offer very little security. Specifications of most ward locks
include laminated metal and to the unaware might appear strong and secure. Their
mechanical operation becomes identifiable by a free turning keyway. An object such as a
nail file inserted into the free turning keyway will turn the key way but not operate the lock.
The keyway is simply a guide for the key, not a functional part of the lock. However, when
you insert it too far into the lock, the tool will no longer turn the keyway.
 3. Combination Locks

• It uses numbers, letters or other symbols as reference point which enables an

operator to align them manually.
• This popular type of lock works effectively in padlocks that are not key operated
vaults and door locks. The combination lock evolved from the “letter lock” used in England at
the beginning of the seventeenth century. Originally, use of the letter locks served only for
padlocks and trick boxes.
• In the last half of the nineteenth century, their use developed for safes and strong-
room doors, and they proved to be the most secure protection. The added security happens
from the possible combinations of letters or numbers, almost infinite and the absence of
keyholes into which an explosive charge might be placed.
• The operating principle of most combination locks is a simple one. The operator uses
numbers (or other symbols) as reference points to enable him or her to align numbers so
that the locking parts of the lock can move to an unlocked position.

4. Code Operated Locks

• Can be opened by pressing the series of numbered button in the proper sequence.
• This lock is also known as a Cypher Lock is a digital (push buttons numbered from 1
through 9) combination door locking device used to deny area access to any person not
authorized or cleared for entry into a specific company area. This type of lock operates on
the same principle as a combination lock, except that is more difficult to overcome. In
weaknesses remain primarily with the person controlling the combination.
5. Electrical lock
• A type of lock that can be opened and closed remotely by electrical means.

6. Electromagnetic Locks
• Devices holding a door by magnetism.
• When the power is secured on the door, it will resist pressure of up to 1000 pounds.

7. Card Operated Lock

• A type of lock that can be opened by inserting a coded card in a slot in the lock, or by
pushing the correct button on the surface of the lock.

8. Biometric Lock
• A machine that can be used for identification of humans by their characteristics or
traits.
• It is used as a form of identification and access control.
• It is equipped with recording device that can identify the person operating the lock
and the time it was operated.

TECHNIQUES BY INTRUDERS IN DEFEATING LOCKS

• The easiest locks to defeat include the most commonly available and used locks. The
primary reasons begin with reducing expenses and standardization.
• Locks and keys represent a considerable investment in a corporation or industrial
complex. One common error in choosing locks is a perception that a costly lock offers
greater protection. However, placing an expensive, pick-resistant lock in a door needs your
examination of how easy the intruder can breach door, not the lock.
• There is also consideration of other ways of entry to a building, room or area,
allowing the intruder to bypass the costly, difficult lock. When you find other ways to enter,
spending significant amounts of company money for expensive locks makes little sense
• The time needed to defeat most can vary from a few seconds to an hour or more for
the non-professional not adept at picking locks. Experts pick most key locks in a few
minutes. The possibility of losing the key and obtains a duplicate key to replace the one lost.
It is not uncommon for issued keys to multiply and equally common for criminal enterprise to
exploit that problem
• Many illegal entries happen with keys that leaves suspicion of theft squarely on an
employee instead of the real intruder. Criminals also might find ways to make an impression
from a key as the one left in a car being repaired.
• People create locks; other people defeat them. So it is foolish to state a lock is not
pickproof. A lock might be termed pick resistant and that is a relative term. In reality, picking
locks is a simple task, based on a few principles, including the construction characteristics of
the lock. Picks provide a common means of opening locks surreptitiously.
• Purchase of lock picks is restricted under Art. 304 of the Revised Penal Code but due
to ingenious backyard locksmith skills of Filipinos, they could easily be procured. As for
alternatives just in case the intruder does not have linkages to locksmiths, few alternatives
can be found and as a result lock picks can be created at home or fashioned out of materials
at work. Many simple locks as those found in office desks, low quality file cabinets and
others will open quickly using lock picks fashioned from ordinary paper clips after completing
the theft, an intruder can also relock the breached lock with lock picks including the paper
clip version
• Picking a lock takes practice, skill and a little luck. However, despite the ease in
picking most locks, intruders normally use other method to bypass locks.
• Traditionally, they cut locks, pull them apart, blast them with light explosive charges
or pry them off the door. in some doors, an intruder simply spreads the door frame away
from the door to release the bolt from the strike. You can discourage that action using locks
with long bolts and by using grouting around the door frame.
• As for defeating combination locks, the odds are more uneven for the intruder, since
in a minimum 40 digit, 3 number combinations, there are 64,000 possible combinations. How
can someone find one combination out of 64,000?

• On inexpensive combination locks you will find a serial number stamped on the back.
Code books (could be available from locksmith supply houses) have the lock serial number
and you find the combination for that lock depending on its brand. A primary weakness of
inexpensive locks is tolerance between the widths of the lock. That tolerance allows some
leeway for the combination numbers. For example, you can open the lock with manipulation
and applying the exact combination is not critical. If the exact combination is 1-3-8, for
example, the lock might also open on 2-4-7 or 1-4-9. Therefore, manipulation calls for the
intruder to try every other combination instead of every combination. This cuts the intruder’s
time to overcome the lock greatly.
• There are still other ways to neutralize small combination padlocks. The bolt (that
part engaging the shackle) is spring loaded in most models. A sharp blow on the part of the
lock will make the bolt to jump to the blow. When done properly, the bolt disengages from
the shackle and the lock will open. A common term for that technique is “rapping”. The
combination padlock with the spring-operated bolt also opens by shimming with a small
piece of thin metal known as a sneaker. This technique is a quiet, simple and fast operation
• PETERMAN- A term used in England for lock picker, safecrackers, and penetrators
of restricted areas or rooms
TYPES OF KEYS

• Change Key- a specific key, which operates the lock and has a particular
combination of cuts, or biting, which match the tumblers in the lock.
• Sub-Master Key- could open all the lock within a particular grouping in a facility.
• Master Key- capable of opening a series of locks.
• Grand Master Key-open everything in a system involving two or more master key
groups.

ISSUE AND CONTROL OF LOCKS AND KEYS

• Of primary importance in safeguarding property and company information and

preventing criminal activity in your corporate and industrial environment is an effective lock
and key issue control system. The system includes control of combination locks. The firm
control procedures become another “beneficial” layer in your total security system. The
following steps are the minimum effort you need to make. Your action depends on the
specific security needs and company environment. You can easily expand them as
appropriate to meet the security requirements.
• For effective lock and key control, you will need accurate lock and key records. Also
you need to make periodic physical inspections and inventories to ensure accuracy of your
system.
• Combinations or keys to locks must be accessible only to persons you or your
company authorizes to access offices, storage areas and other facilities. Normally, you need
to maintain control yourself

or appoint a reliable security officer as the lock and key control officer.
• Combinations to company safe locks and combination padlocks securing containers
for sensitive company information need changing at least once during each 12-month period.
Other types of locks need regular rotation or core changes. Circumstances might call for
changing combinations before scheduled dates. The following examples are situations that
prompt immediate combination or other types of lock changes:
a. Loss or possible compromise of the combination or key
b. Discharge, suspension or reassignment of any person having knowledge of the
combination or assigned a key
c. Receipt of a container with built-in combination lock
• Frequent rotation of key padlocks in certain instances is recommended practice in
security situations
• When choosing combination lock numbers, avoid multiples and simple ascending or
descending arithmetical series
• When padlocks with fixed combinations include use with bar locks as supplemental
locking devices, keep an adequate supply to enable frequent interchange of locks among
users. This type of lock does not provide adequate security unless used in large numbers
over extensive areas, enabling a successful interchange without compromise. Never use
fixed combination locks for the protection of sensitive company combination.
• Records containing combinations need the same security levels as the highest
sensitive level of the material authorized for storage in the container the lock secures.
• A viable basis for use of keys applies the same general concept as those controlling
safe combinations. Issuing keys need minimum limits, and your responsibility calls for
constant key control supervision. Generally, the security key system needs the control of the
company security manager. However, when your control is not feasible, you need to retain
staff supervision over the system. the following measures are recommended for control of
keys to warehouses and other company structures.
• Keys must be stored in a locked, fireproof container when not in use. Keep the key
container in the security office under supervision
• Access lists for persons authorized to draw keys to sensitive storage facilities must
be maintained in your key storage container.
• Your best company security procedure prevents keys issued for personal retention or
removal from the company areas.
• Key containers need supervisory inspection ending each shift and all keys accounted
for. A log sheet for security supervisors to sign for keys and records of locks and keys must
be a part of your administrative process.
• Key controls records must be maintained on all key systems. Accountability concepts
include records, key cards and key control registers. Each record must include at least the
following information

a. Total number of keys and blanks in the system

b. Total number of keys by each key way code.
c. Number of keys issued
d. Number of keys available
e. Number of blanks in stock for each key way code
f. Persons issued keys.

IT IS WISE FOR SECURITY MANAGEMENT TO APPOINT A KEY CONTROL OFFICER

• You need to appoint a security officer in your department to a fulltime or added duty
position to key control officer. The security officer manages the following functions under
your supervision. The lock and key control officer manages the following duties:
a. Stores the locks and keys
b. Manages keys
c. Maintains records of locks and keys
d. Investigates loss of keys reported or discovered
e. Conducts inventories of locks and keys
f. Makes inspections of company keys and locks
g. Manages master keys and control keys
h. Ensures compliance with your regulations about locks and keys within the company
and its facilities
i. Conducts maintenance and operation of the company’s key depository (where the
keys to certain areas are checked out and turned intro security office.

PROTECTIVE CONTAINERS (CABINETS)

• The final line of defense where papers, records, plans or cashable instrument,
precious metals or other especially valuable assets are protected.
• These could be: SAFE, VAULT OR A FILE ROOM.

1. SAFE
• a metallic container used for the safekeeping of documents or small items that is
robbery or burglary resistance, its minimum weight must be at least 750 lbs. and is anchored
to a building structure. The diameter if its body should at least one inch thick steel.
• Are designated either fire or burglary resistive.
• Fire resistant safes once exposed to a fire, the original protection offered is lost and it
must be replaced. A product factory test prior to distribution is done in this manner. The safe
is placed in a hot furnace to simulate fire at 2000 degrees F for 4 hours (the internal
temperature of the safe under test, is not supposed to exceed 350 F) then the temperature is
lowered for another half hour, after which it is dropped 30 ft. (1m) into a rubble. If the safe is
still intact, it is returned to the furnace and heated again to 1700 F for an hour before it is
allowed to cool then the contents are examined. Fire

resistant safes are able to withstand only one fire, thereafter the insulation is useless.

SAFE CRACKING METHODS

• Drilling and Punching- The skillful burglar knocks off the combination dial then drill a
hole to expose the locking device.
• Torch/Burning- Using oxygen-acetylene torch or burning bars the skillful burglar cuts
an opening in the wall or door of the safe
• Peeling- the skillful burglar attacks the seams of the metal plate with pry bars and
other tools then peel the wall like opening a can of sardines to reach the locking mechanism
or interior
• Ripping- Similar to peeling except that the skillful burglar rips the solid metal wall but
lightweight material until the attacker reaches the lock
• X-Ray- The skillful burglar views the combination and mechanism needed to open
the safe
• Power Tools- the skillful burglar uses rotary devices, hydraulic tools, power drills or
any other powerful electric hydraulic devices
• Explosives- nitroglycerin or plastic explosives (C4) to primarily open the safe
• Manual Manipulation- There are now very few skillful burglars who use the technique,
manually using sight, sound and touch
• Carry Away- The burglar removes the safe from the premises and opens it
elsewhere.

2. Vaults

• A heavily constructed fire and burglar resistance container part of the building
structure bigger than safe. The door should be made of steel at least 6 inches walls, ceiling,
floor reinforce concrete at least 12 inches must be resistive to fire up to 6 hours.
• Defined as enlarged safes, usually made of high quality reinforced concrete except
the door.

• The five sides should be twice as thick as the door but never the less than 12 inches.
• The vault door is usually made of high grade steel and normally 6 inch thick.
• Vaults are normally installed at or below ground level because of their weight.
• Vaults should be fitted with two types of alarm detection devices, capacitance and
vibration.

3. FILE ROOM

• A cubicle in a building constructed a little lighter than vault. Its specifications include
a height of 12 feet, watertight door and being fireproof for at least 1 hour.

SOME FINAL POINTERS TO REMEMBER

• Doors and windows are some openings in the building that an intruder may utilize, so
it is imperative that security managers must include them in the overall contribution of
enhancing the total physical security superiority of the building and its assets to be
protected.
• Locks refer to any device which serves to bar any unauthorized person from entering
an area of the building which is of security interest while a Key is any device used to bypass
a lock which gives a premise that a person is authorized to enter a restricted area of the
facility after being subjected to verification before being issued such one.
• Protective cabinets such as Safes, Vaults and File Rooms are considered as the last
line of defense in the physical security layers, this stems from the fact that should a pilferer
successfully bypass previous physical security defenses, the only standing between the
object being protected and the burglar is the container that secures the former.