Contact Us

CORPORATE OFFICE

Per Mar Security Services
Per Mar Centre
1910 East Kimberly Rd
Davenport, IA 52807
Tel# 1-800-4-PERMAR (737627)
Fax # 563-359-6700

Heroic Deeds by Security Officer

Think Thieves Don't Wear Name Tags? Think Again

U.S. Airport Screeners Look for Behaviors

Halloween Safety Tips

Out of Office Notifications- Be a Little Mysterious

One day a company implemented a Microsoft Outlook e-mail feature that sends an "Out of Office" message to external parties, in addition to colleagues at the company.

The new feature provides clients with important information, but it comes with an added level of responsibility: Just as precautions must be taken whenever you leave your office or home, care must be taken when using this new feature to ensure company information remains secure and protected.

When leaving an "Out of Office" voicemail or e-mail message, you should use the following guidelines:

• Message text should be business-focused and concise, and should not include any employee's personal contact information or any company proprietary information.
• When appropriate, the message should redirect the e-mail sender to a colleague who can be contacted if there's an urgent matter. That colleague should be notified in advance that they are being listed as an alternate contact, and only their business contact information should be included.
• Your expected return date should not be included in your out-of-office e-mail or voicemail.

A Cautionary Tale

The following hypothetical situation and scenarios illustrate why you should not include your intended return date in your out-of-office messages:

It's September 29, and Amy Anyone is about to begin a well-deserved two-week vacation. As always, Amy changes her voice mail and out-of-office e-mail messages to indicate that she will be gone for two weeks, returning October 16. Amy notes that if anyone needs immediate assistance they should call her colleague Joe Citizen, and she provides his phone number.

Scenario #1
On October 2, a company competitor calls Amy. When he hears that Amy will not be at work for two weeks, he immediately sets up a series of meetings with a prospective client that his firm and the company are both trying to land.

Scenario #2
A salesman cold calling Amy learns that she will be out for two weeks. He calls her alternate contact Joe, and tells him that Amy had promised to provide him with some sensitive company information. He says he knows Amy will be out until October 16, and convinces Joe that he cannot wait until then for the information Amy promised him. Joe incorrectly assumes that the cold caller can be trusted since he knows Amy's itinerary, and Joe agrees to give him the sensitive information.

Scenario #3
Someone dials a wrong number and learns that Amy Anyone will be out of the office for two weeks. He looks in the local telephone directory (it's a small city) and sees there is only one Amy Anyone. To determine if she's on vacation, he watches the house for two days. When he is sure the house is empty, he burglarizes her home.

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Heroic Deeds by Security Officer

Security Officer Jerrold works for Per Mar Security in the Des Moines area for a company headquartered in Ames, IA. Recently, while Jerrold was off duty, he observed a domestic assault taking place in a parking lot located next to the facility he secures. He realized that the life of the young lady being attacked was in danger. Jerrold approached the altercation and before he could even attempt to speak to the male suspect, found himself under attack and trying to avoid the knife swings of an enraged criminal.

Two of these knife swings did find Jerrold and he incurred lacerations that required medical attention. The attacker ended up leaving the scene, a description of his vehicle was issued to the police, and an arrest took place later that evening. Due to Jerrold’s actions, an assault victim was saved and an individual was arrested for a crime that may have gone unreported if not for Jerrold exhibiting true professionalism.

Originally printed in the Iowa Department of Transportation Newsletter (7/06)

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Think Thieves Don't Wear Name Tags? Think Again

Employees stole $17.6 billion worth of retail merchandise in 2005, according to the University of Florida's National Retail Security Survey. A practice known as "sweethearting," in which retail employees allow friends and family workers to take merchandise for free or at a discounted price, is just one form of retail theft. Farm Fresh took court action in Virginia against several cashiers who were allowing family members and co-workers to go through the checkout line without paying for items, including meat, soda, candy bars, and chips. Farm Fresh caught on to the ruse after examining videotape and electronic cash register journals. Virginia state law allowed the company to seek back pay equal to double the amount stolen by the cashiers. Companies do not like to talk about employee theft, but "in fact, there is no other form of larceny that annually costs American citizens more money than employee theft," says Richard C. Hollinger, director of the University of Florida's Security Research Project.

Source: Virginian-Pilot (10/01/06) Shapiro, Carolyn

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U.S. Airport Screeners Look for Behaviors

Five years after the attacks of September 11, U.S. transportation officials are rolling out a new type of screening program at airports across the country. It doesn't require computers or high tech Xray machines. Instead, it simply calls for screeners to watch. Officials won't say exactly what they're looking for, but Sergeant Peter Didomenica, who pioneered the Behavior Assessment Screening System (BASS) program at Boston’s Logan Airport, says someone en route to a suicide mission can't help but display fear. "Adrenaline causes specific reactions to the body," he points out, "like increased heart rate, like perspiration, like sweaty palms, like increased breathing." So while terrorists may be getting better at outsmarting technology, there's almost no way to outsmart the primitive emotion of fear, according to George Naccarra, with the government's Transportation Security Administration in Boston. Boston's Logan Airport was the first in the country to use this type of behavioral screening. The state troopers' BASS program started shortly after September 11th, 2001. The federal program debuted about two years later and was tested at a handful of airports around the country. The TSA's Naccarra says the federal program, known as Screening of Passengers by Observation Techniques, or SPOT, is now making a nationwide debut.

Source: www.voanews.com (10/2/06)

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Halloween Safety Tips

Both children and adults need to think about safety on this annual day of make-believe.

The National Safety Council urges motorists to be especially alert on Halloween.

• Watch for children darting out from between parked cars.
• Watch for children walking on roadways, medians and curbs.
• Enter and exit driveways and alleys carefully.
• At twilight and later in the evening, watch for children in dark clothing.

Before children start out on their "trick or treat" rounds, parents should:

• Make sure that an adult or an older responsible youth will be supervising the outing for children under age 12.
• Plan and discuss the route trick-or-treaters intend to follow. Know the names of older children's companions.
• Instruct your children to travel only in familiar areas and along an established route.
• Teach your children to stop only at houses or apartment buildings that are well-lit and never to enter a stranger's home.
• Establish a return time.
• Tell your youngsters not to eat any treat until they return home.
• Review all appropriate trick-or-treat safety precautions, including pedestrian/traffic safety rules.

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Volume 3, Issue 12

October 2006  

About Per Mar

Contact Us

CORPORATE OFFICE

Per Mar Security Services
Per Mar Centre
1910 East Kimberly Rd
Davenport, IA 52807
Tel# 1-800-4-PERMAR (737627)
Fax # 563-359-6700

Out of Office Notifications- Be a Little Mysterious

Heroic Deeds by Security Officer

Think Thieves Don't Wear Name Tags? Think Again

U.S. Airport Screeners Look for Behaviors

Halloween Safety Tips

Out of Office Notifications- Be a Little Mysterious

One day a company implemented a Microsoft Outlook e-mail feature that sends an "Out of Office" message to external parties, in addition to colleagues at the company.

The new feature provides clients with important information, but it comes with an added level of responsibility: Just as precautions must be taken whenever you leave your office or home, care must be taken when using this new feature to ensure company information remains secure and protected.

When leaving an "Out of Office" voicemail or e-mail message, you should use the following guidelines:

• Message text should be business-focused and concise, and should not include any employee's personal contact information or any company proprietary information.
• When appropriate, the message should redirect the e-mail sender to a colleague who can be contacted if there's an urgent matter. That colleague should be notified in advance that they are being listed as an alternate contact, and only their business contact information should be included.
• Your expected return date should not be included in your out-of-office e-mail or voicemail.

A Cautionary Tale

The following hypothetical situation and scenarios illustrate why you should not include your intended return date in your out-of-office messages:

It's September 29, and Amy Anyone is about to begin a well-deserved two-week vacation. As always, Amy changes her voice mail and out-of-office e-mail messages to indicate that she will be gone for two weeks, returning October 16. Amy notes that if anyone needs immediate assistance they should call her colleague Joe Citizen, and she provides his phone number.

Scenario #1
On October 2, a company competitor calls Amy. When he hears that Amy will not be at work for two weeks, he immediately sets up a series of meetings with a prospective client that his firm and the company are both trying to land.

Scenario #2
A salesman cold calling Amy learns that she will be out for two weeks. He calls her alternate contact Joe, and tells him that Amy had promised to provide him with some sensitive company information. He says he knows Amy will be out until October 16, and convinces Joe that he cannot wait until then for the information Amy promised him. Joe incorrectly assumes that the cold caller can be trusted since he knows Amy's itinerary, and Joe agrees to give him the sensitive information.

Scenario #3
Someone dials a wrong number and learns that Amy Anyone will be out of the office for two weeks. He looks in the local telephone directory (it's a small city) and sees there is only one Amy Anyone. To determine if she's on vacation, he watches the house for two days. When he is sure the house is empty, he burglarizes her home.

Heroic Deeds by Security Officer

Security Officer Jerrold works for Per Mar Security in the Des Moines area for a company headquartered in Ames, IA. Recently, while Jerrold was off duty, he observed a domestic assault taking place in a parking lot located next to the facility he secures. He realized that the life of the young lady being attacked was in danger. Jerrold approached the altercation and before he could even attempt to speak to the male suspect, found himself under attack and trying to avoid the knife swings of an enraged criminal.

Two of these knife swings did find Jerrold and he incurred lacerations that required medical attention. The attacker ended up leaving the scene, a description of his vehicle was issued to the police, and an arrest took place later that evening. Due to Jerrold’s actions, an assault victim was saved and an individual was arrested for a crime that may have gone unreported if not for Jerrold exhibiting true professionalism.

Originally printed in the Iowa Department of Transportation Newsletter (7/06)

Think Thieves Don't Wear Name Tags? Think Again

Employees stole $17.6 billion worth of retail merchandise in 2005, according to the University of Florida's National Retail Security Survey. A practice known as "sweethearting," in which retail employees allow friends and family workers to take merchandise for free or at a discounted price, is just one form of retail theft. Farm Fresh took court action in Virginia against several cashiers who were allowing family members and co-workers to go through the checkout line without paying for items, including meat, soda, candy bars, and chips. Farm Fresh caught on to the ruse after examining videotape and electronic cash register journals. Virginia state law allowed the company to seek back pay equal to double the amount stolen by the cashiers. Companies do not like to talk about employee theft, but "in fact, there is no other form of larceny that annually costs American citizens more money than employee theft," says Richard C. Hollinger, director of the University of Florida's Security Research Project.

Source: Virginian-Pilot (10/01/06) Shapiro, Carolyn

U.S. Airport Screeners Look for Behaviors

Five years after the attacks of September 11, U.S. transportation officials are rolling out a new type of screening program at airports across the country. It doesn't require computers or high tech Xray machines. Instead, it simply calls for screeners to watch. Officials won't say exactly what they're looking for, but Sergeant Peter Didomenica, who pioneered the Behavior Assessment Screening System (BASS) program at Boston’s Logan Airport, says someone en route to a suicide mission can't help but display fear. "Adrenaline causes specific reactions to the body," he points out, "like increased heart rate, like perspiration, like sweaty palms, like increased breathing." So while terrorists may be getting better at outsmarting technology, there's almost no way to outsmart the primitive emotion of fear, according to George Naccarra, with the government's Transportation Security Administration in Boston. Boston's Logan Airport was the first in the country to use this type of behavioral screening. The state troopers' BASS program started shortly after September 11th, 2001. The federal program debuted about two years later and was tested at a handful of airports around the country. The TSA's Naccarra says the federal program, known as Screening of Passengers by Observation Techniques, or SPOT, is now making a nationwide debut.

Source: http://www.voanews.com/english/index.cfm (10/2/06)

Halloween Safety Tips

Both children and adults need to think about safety on this annual day of make-believe.

The National Safety Council urges motorists to be especially alert on Halloween.

• Watch for children darting out from between parked cars.
• Watch for children walking on roadways, medians and curbs.
• Enter and exit driveways and alleys carefully.
• At twilight and later in the evening, watch for children in dark clothing.

Before children start out on their "trick or treat" rounds, parents should:

• Make sure that an adult or an older responsible youth will be supervising the outing for children under age 12.
• Plan and discuss the route trick-or-treaters intend to follow. Know the names of older children's companions.
• Instruct your children to travel only in familiar areas and along an established route.
• Teach your children to stop only at houses or apartment buildings that are well-lit and never to enter a stranger's home.
• Establish a return time.
• Tell your youngsters not to eat any treat until they return home.
• Review all appropriate trick-or-treat safety precautions, including pedestrian/traffic safety rules.

Quote of the Month: "Bittersweet October. The mellow, messy, leaf-kicking, perfect pause between the opposing miseries of summer and winter."
Carol Bishop Hipps