KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng, and other parts of South Africa are being cleaned up by community members following the devastation left behind by the recent riots and looting. Individuals from all walks of life have banded together in an attempt to recover from the destruction and violence. While signs of restoration and change are positive to note, nothing can take away from the fact that thousands of businesses were destroyed during the events. Small business owners across the affected provinces have returned to work to find their companies in ruins and/or states of disrepair. Now more than ever, protecting your business premises is critical, and business owners need to consider new preventative strategies to avoid falling victim to unprecedented security risks.
The need for tighter business premises security has always been prevalent, however, expert warnings in the wake of the recent riot and looting activity say many small and medium-sized businesses affected are likely to close their doors permanently. In response to the potential future security risks for local companies, Secura has put together the following list of recommendations for protecting your business premises against South African crime statistics.
Your employees and staff are your most critical business asset, and their safety is of extreme importance. Not only are safe and secure employees more comfortable and productive during their day-to-day jobs, but they are also capable of protecting your business premises provided that they are equipped with quick-response security tools. Secura offers a state-of-the-art armed response app and a panic button that your business is capable of providing employees at a fraction of the cost in comparison to other similar offerings on the market. Secura for Business provides business owners with comprehensive security solutions, from API integration to White Labelling, to give you and your employees an advantage over the volatile South African crime statistics. With each employee harnessing the immediate response of a network of reliable armed security teams at the push of a button, your business premises will be quickly secured in the event of an unpredicted safety risk.
While some damage to business property and/or security breaches are orchestrated by intelligent criminals, the majority of business property attacks are opportunistic, like those that occurred following the primary planned attacks during the recent South African riots and looting. To ensure that your business property is protected should something similar ever occur, or in the event of a security threat, you should secure all access points and perimeters. In most cases, business owners should consider the installation of reinforced doors, anti-theft window locks, and anti-climb security gates. If your business is situated on a street without access to enough room for perimeter security, then double down on your access point security strategies. You may want to consider keycard-based entry at access points for added security.
If criminals manage to break in and enter your business premises, you must ensure that you have smart lighting and alarm systems that respond to activity around key access points. Smart cameras, lighting, and alarm systems can be connected to your mobile phone and accessed whether you are on the property or not. With these security investments, business owners are capable of scanning their perimeters, triggering lights in vulnerable spots, and responding to alarm alert notifications on the fly. We have outlined a few primary security systems for protecting your businesses premises below:
You can select one or several of these systems depending on your personal business protection preferences and budget allocation.
Your equipment and physical assets are also at risk during breaches of your business premises. Laptops, televisions, sound systems, and other electronic equipment are popular theft targets during looting and other security risks on a businesses property. For this reason, you must consider safety strategies to minimise the potential theft of these products. Asset tags and record details of serial numbers are essential should anything be stolen, and securing devices to desks using anti-theft and security cables is of imminent importance.
While the recent riots and looting in South Africa have put community members and business owners on high alert, the need for proper security in the workplace has always been of tremendous importance. These devastating incidents further solidify the need for protecting your business premises with new and innovative safety tools such as Secura for Business, access point and perimeter security, smart alarm systems, and anti-theft equipment cables. These are a few of the key ways that you can #SecureYourBusinessWithSecura.
Women in South Africa are at the forefront of change and their fight inspires hope in a time where our country is rife with suffering. There is so much to celebrate this women’s month, yet the fact that gender-based violence continues to plague our country remains. According to Global Risk Insights, there was an “average increase of 146 sexual offences and 116 specifically rape cases per day” from 2018/19 to 2019/20. These statistics, among the rising South African crime statistics around hijacking and home robbery, threaten the safety of women in our country. This Women’s Day 2021, we share 6 tips that promote safety for women in South Africa.
From personal active steps to protect yourself to indirect support strategies to aid the women’s safety movement and livelihoods of women in our communities, there are many ways that you can contribute to reducing the risks and statistics women face daily in South Africa.
Awareness and vigilance are the most significant first steps to reduce safety risks as we go about our daily lives in South Africa. From constantly scanning your surroundings at coffee shops, bars, and other public places to noting exits and escape routes at venues should you need to leave in a hurry, remaining aware of your surroundings will give you an advantage in a potentially threatening situation? Beyond vigilance, active engagement with your surroundings is critical.
One should draw on confidence to acknowledge strangers and others by making eye contact with them, showcasing that you are aware of their presence. Asserting confidence projects strength and helps separate one from being seen as a victim.
Self-defence strategies instil confidence in South African women and give them power in a country enduring terrible crime and gender-based violence. Self-defence classes equip women with the technical know-how to defend themselves should they ever need to.
Coupled with pepper spray, a taser, or a stun gun, the art of self-defence becomes a vital safety strategy that is as emotionally beneficial as it is physically incapacitating for perpetrators of crime and gender-based violence.
If you and your girlfriends join a self-defence class together, you can always top off your training with a spa treatment to reward yourselves afterwards!
Women travelling alone should take extra safety precautions, such as the following:
Switching from a ‘me’ to a ‘community’ mindset would benefit all areas of life, and it is certainly an effective approach to supporting South African communities. Whether you see a woman waiting for a lift outside of a bar alone or see a woman displaying uncomfortable body language around a man, there are opportunities to step in and support women throughout daily life.
From waiting together until they are safely in the car to roleplaying friendly catchup and asking whether or not they are doing alright, one can use one’s instincts to drive positive support for women in our communities. Another beneficial signal to know about is the domestic violence hand signal that has become globally acknowledged for its use over Zoom catch-ups during the pandemic.
The signal involves palming your hand in front of your web camera with your thumb tucked in and then closing your fingers over your thumb to create a fist. Whether you’re saving a woman from unwanted male attention or making her feel safe while waiting for her ride, watching over other women is a supportive gesture that inspires others to pay it forward and do the same.
The majority of steps on this list are active personal initiatives that promote women’s safety in South Africa, yet, there are many indirect ways that you can support women beyond these strategies. An incredibly powerful way to reduce the risks associated with women’s safety is by financially supporting women’s safety foundations.
The following organizations continuously strive to better the lives of women in South Africa through impactful initiatives driven by community members who wish to show their support:
We hold the safety of South African women at the core of our business and deliver tools to reduce risks and support fellow citizens when they are at home, commuting, and outdoors. With our Individual and Family Vouchers now available, we offer women and their families or girlfriends access to the most reliable and affordable location-based armed response on the market.
Our goal is to arm as many women and citizens of South Africa with the highest security response device at the most budget-friendly price – so, click here to get 6-month access for as little as R230.
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