Warehouse security needs to be updated to counter increasingly sophisticated syndicates.
safe as warehouses?
Logistics companies need to adapt to increased warehouse thefts, as DALE HES discovers
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ecent research by transport and logistics insurer TT Club and business standards company BSI found a significant shift in the risks posed to logistics companies in 2020. While theft of in-transit cargo is still the biggest threat to businesses, the research showed a decrease in this sort of crime. Instead, due to stockpiling of goods and restriction of movement, there has been a concomitant increase in theft from storage facilities such as warehouses, which are now targets of highly sophisticated criminal syndicates. The BSI and TT Club Cargo Theft Report 2021 found that, globally, theft from facilities doubled in 2020 compared to 2019, making up 24 per cent of all cargo theft. This trend has forced logistics and warehousing companies to increase their levels of security. “Crime syndicates have become increasingly sophisticated and we’ve seen a lot more in-warehouse incidents in the sector, which means that the industry has to keep adapting,” says Bridgewater Logistics general manager Richard Venter. Venter says that syndicates target IT systems, plant informants within businesses and even use “military-grade jamming systems”, which shut down companies’ communication systems. “This means that we constantly need to upgrade our systems and procedures. Over and above strong security systems including cameras, secure IT systems, facial recognition software, alarms and anti-jamming systems, staff training is very important. They are our eyes and ears on the ground,” Venter explains.
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Warehouse security systems need to incorporate highly secure IT systems.
CRITICAL EMPLOYEE CHECKS The following should be probed when vetting new employees, says Bridgewater Logistics general manager Richard Venter: • Past employment history going back 10 or 15 years. Research into why an employee left a company or whether they were engaged in any bad behaviour. • A full criminal history check on any prospective employee. • For large and long-established companies, a check should be done on whether the company is rehiring a previous staff member, establishing the reasons for originally leaving the company.
F R E I G H T, L O G I S T I C S & W A R E H O U S I N G
2021/05/20 9:46 AM
