S 1.19 Protection against entering and breaking

Initiation responsibility: Building Services Manager, IT Security Officer

Implementation responsibility: Building Services

According to experience, burglars choose their targets based on the level of risk and effort involved and the expected reward. For this reason, all safeguards for burglary protection should be targeted to minimising the chances of success of an intruder. The standard burglary protection safeguards should be adapted accordingly to the local conditions. This includes the following safeguards:

• Using burglar-resistant doors and windows with resistance class WK2 (according to DIN EN 1627 "Pedestrian doorsets, windows, curtain walling, grilles and shutters - Burglar resistance - Requirements and classification") or a higher resistance class, for example, when this is necessary for the corresponding threat scenario,
• Using roller shutter locks on doors or windows that could be used to break in to the building,
• Using special lock cylinders, additional locks and bars,
• Securing basement light wells,
• Locking all unused side entrances,
• Using emergency exits with break-in protection,
• Locking personnel and freight lifts outside of normal business hours.

Your local police department can provide recommendations for burglary protection.

The safeguards used for burglary protection should be of the same quality and should form a continuous shell around the area that needs to be protected against unauthorised access. Doors must be installed in adequately solid walls. Suitable gratings should be placed over ventilation openings (maximum grid size of 10x20 cm). Safeguards for access protection also need to be implemented in and around raised floors and over suspended ceilings. The equality and consistency of the protection against breaking and entering should be assessed by a competent person during the planning and implementation phases, and must be examined regularly later on in the operation phase.

When planning physical security safeguards, it must be ensured that the regulations for fire and personal protection are not violated, for example regulations for ensuring escape routes are not blocked. This applies especially when changes are made to fire protection elements that are not subject to a type approval procedure.

The employees must be informed which regulations they need to follow and safeguards they need to implement to protect against break-ins. Examples include rules stating that doors, windows, or roller shutters must be locked at night.

It may also make sense to install burglar-resistant elements inside a building. Protection must be considered for areas with special access controls such as management rooms, server rooms or the core area of a computer centre.

Review questions:

• Were adequate safeguards for burglary protection implemented and adapted to the local conditions?
• Is the equality and consistency of the protection against breaking and entering assessed by a competent person during the planning and implementation phases and regularly later on in the operation phase?
• Are the employees aware of the regulations for burglary protection?