ICT equipment theft – let’s get physical

As the use of mobile Information Communication Technology (ICT) equipment in education continues to grow, so does the theft of these valuable items.

Numerous mobile ICT devices such as laptops, netbooks, MP3 players, tablets and game devices can be found in most schools and colleges. Thieves target these highly valuable items because they are easy to conceal and subsequently sell on.

To ensure such equipment is adequately protected from theft, security products and systems should be backed up by third-party approval, such as those offered by LPCB (part of BRE Global).

LPCB has a number of standards and schemes that are relevant to the protection of different types of ICT equipment. These are described below in order to help schools and colleges make an informed choice about how best to protect their ICT equipment.

Physical security
Appropriate physical security is important in keeping experienced and opportunistic thieves at bay. It is essential to ensure that products such as perimeter fences, windows, doors, shutters or grilles offer approved levels of protection.

LPCB’s security standard LPS 1175 (Requirements and testing procedures for the LPCB approval and listing of intruder resistant building components, strongpoints, security enclosures and free-standing barriers), addresses the requirements for these, and other, physical security products and systems.

Independent third-party certification demonstrates that a company’s product or service does what it is intended to do. Obtaining certificated products from a knowledgeable and well-established certification body helps to manage risks by improving products and processes.

Although many schools and colleges have an ICT security policy in place, most of these policies do not include guidelines for physically securing the devices themselves.

At the request of the Association of British Insurers, LPCB developed LPS 1214 (Physical protection devices for personal computers and similar equipment). This standard covers the performance of security equipment designed to prevent removal of or access to personal computers, file servers, printers and other high value equipment.

This standard protects ICT and high value equipment by giving extra time for police or security guards to respond to an intruder alarm or to CCTV.

There are also a number of ‘anti-theft’ technologies that are built into and/or supplied with a product which include:

– Denial of service technologies such as pin codes, passwords and biometrics

– Asset marking devices

– Anchoring devices

– Detection and alarm equipment

LPCB has also produced a standard, LPS 1650 (Requirements and testing procedures for the LPCB approval and listing of ‘theft resistant’ electronic products), which includes requirements for the performance of all the technologies listed above.

The following approval scheme is also available for the testing and classification of asset marking. LPS 1225 (Specification for testing and classifying asset marking systems) provides approval for overt marking systems used to tag computer equipment. Information regarding the tagged equipment should then be stored on a secure database approved to LPS 1224 (Requirements for Secure Database Registers).

Richard Flint is LPCB’s physical security certification scheme manager. Downloadable copies of all the LPS standards are available from: Red Book Live

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