What is Tailgating and Why Should You Stop It?

Unauthorized personnel can easily breach your workplace by tailgating. For example, if you use your access credentials to enter and hold the door for the person behind you, you gave someone access to the building without verifying their credentials. 

While it may seem rude not to hold the door for that person, tailgating can give access to unauthorized people and open up the possibility of theft or the endangerment of employees.

Internal theft and other security issues can significantly impact your company, estimated to costs businesses up to $50 billion each year. Ensuring you have anti-tailgating technologies utilizing a biometric access control system is a sure way to tackle this issue. 

Why Is Tailgating a Problem?

Tailgating is a widespread security breach that most employees never consider. Without a biometric access control system, it can happen quite innocently when another uniformed worker, familiar face, or employee who says they left their badge inside is allowed access. 

The problem is that someone can sneak into your building without your knowledge, which can then expose your company to theft, sabotage, terrorism, domestic abuse, or simply unauthorized access to secure areas. Anti-tailgating technologies are indispensable in labs, pharmacies, medical centers, equipment rooms, and more.

Why Should You Stop Tailgating?

Building security and anti-tailgating technologies are essential to maintain your employees’ safety from external and internal threats.

One survey found that 66% of companies think insider attacks or accidental breaches are more likely than external attacks. Knowing who is in your building becomes imperative. And if you have different secure areas that require special access, preventing tailgating with a biometric access control system is necessary. 

Many security systems cannot see or control how many people enter a building when someone presents an access card. Once the door is open, it’s easy for any number of people to enter the building. 

The Best Ways to Prevent Tailgating

The first step in adopting anti-tailgating technologies is installing a biometric access control system to prevent tailgating. Alcatraz AI’s Rock system is a frictionless, touchless access control system that keeps people safe and eliminates door tailgating. The AI-enabled access control system has a zero-trust architecture that uses facial authentication to ensure only authorized people can enter the facility. 

As employees continue to return to work in the wake of the COVID pandemic, proper access control is crucial to ensure their safety. A biometric access control system like the Rock allows companies to know who is in their buildings to keep everyone safe. 

It’s also vital for companies to train their staff on their anti-tailgating technologies. Even with a biometric access control system, employees need to know that they should not hold the door for others and allow the companies door access control systems to do their jobs. If everyone understands the importance of solid security practices, employees won’t get offended when someone doesn’t hold the door for them. 

Contact us here to discover more about how the Alcatraz Rock biometric access control system can help prevent tailgating or to see a demo.