TSCM for Office Renovations, Construction, and Cleaning

Renovations, Construction, and Cleaning—Do the Costs Include the Loss of Privacy?

With the onset of COVID-19, offices have become ghost towns and most people are working from home. Companies who have needed an empty C-Suite to complete upgrades, renovations, or “deep cleaning,” have taken advantage of the time. Company executives and high net worth individuals who may have secondary home sites are also taking advantage of this time to “change their scenery” while renovating their home offices.That said, there are some inherent risks associated with renovation and construction that you need to be aware of lest you put you, your family, or your company at risk.Most people and companies opt not to do background checks on those individuals performing home or office renovations.

There is typically no time or budget for that and since the “boss” is away, there is no obvious threat to him or her from the workers, which creates the intention to simply let them do their work.However, the technology that exists today is not only remarkable, but readily available—Drop Cam, Nanny Cam, and the list goes on – for any individual to access. For those just looking to get “an inside scoop” on the C-Suite, deploying any of these basic devices during a project would be easy.Still skeptical about this? Do not be. It happens. The success of a business first starts with an idea. That idea is then verbalized and discussed. Those discussions are then turned into an actionable plan. But what if your competitor intercepted the information while it was verbalized.

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That new and innovative idea that you absolutely know is going to make its mark on your industry just got hijacked by your competitor.It is essential that companies and executives take a proactive approach to these potential landmines. Protective countermeasures should be a staple within your organization’s C-Suite as well as executive home offices when the inner sanctum has been “disturbed.”Technical Security Counter Measures (TSCM) should be part of every Security Operations Plan (SOP).

The technicians who perform these counter measures should be highly skilled and experienced. Your SOP should contain a TSCM sweep EVERY time an outside vendor works in or around an area that penetrates the “inner sanctum.” That area of your office where privileged conversation, phone calls, and meetings are held.The costs by some can be considered steep when pricing out TSCM. The equipment and skill set it takes to perform this type of work is unique and technical. You must ask yourself, however, as an office manager, estate manager, executive assistant, or security manager, what the costs would be if the privileged conversations or images being conducted by your executives were not so privileged anymore.

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Let us use the current COVID-19 vaccine as an example.  Numerous companies are vying for development of the vaccine.  Your scientific team has worked on, developed, and are close to succeeding in bringing this vaccine to market.  Your C-Suite assembles in the newly renovated conference room under strict physical security to hear from the team and watch a power point. How devastating would it be to the company if your executives and scientific team really were not the only ones in the room? Contact Red5 to learn more about how we can help with your TSCM needs.