On entry to most of the major capital city CBD buildings you are confronted with a host of access control initiatives to govern who is allowed and who is not allowed access. Be it the presentation of your card to a reader to open a turnstile, activate the lift or trigger an automatic door; access is controlled in an efficient and easily managed way and our security programmed brains believe that all is good.
I pose a question
How many of these doors/lifts/turnstiles have a mechanical key override?
The answer is many, not all, but many.
I would then need to pose another question.
Are the mechanical keys secure?
Are the keys stored in a secure place and are not lost?
Also, are they secure from attack and duplication? Remembering that many keys can be visually read and even reproduced from a photograph.
The answer is as soon as they are in a person’s hand that the keys can be compromised by copying, duplication or even 3D printing.
My observation is that at many sites, extremely effective and costly access control systems are installed. These systems are hugely effective in monitoring and controlling access to the building however many of these systems have a very basic weak point that allows the whole system to be compromised. The chink in the armour is,
They are fitted with a conventional mechanical cylinder.
This cylinder has no audit trail, can be in many cases mechanically manipulated (picked). Added to which any access to a key by an unscrupulous person can result in it being read, impressioned (in the way of an impression into a soft material) or photographed and 3D printed.
So now what? A solution is available. Install an electro-mechanical key system such as EKA CyberLock. EKA CyberLock makes a range of cylinders to suit most common locks in the Australian market. The Cylinders are opened with CyberKeys, both of which are managed using software in the same way as an access control system. The management software allows access to be granted when and where, or simply timed out or even revoked when required. CyberKeys are programmed through Communicators such as a smart app and Bluetooth and a 20-key vault cabinet. The entire system can be audited and to make it even simpler can potentially be integrated with your existing access control system.
