Businesses that operate in a cash-intensive environment are attractive targets for criminals. A recent spike in violent robberies at dispensaries across the United States has caused business owners to rethink their cannabis security strategies, prioritizing ways to safeguard their stores and employees.
Regulations also are evolving. Because each state government makes its own rules, fragmentation adds difficulty to compliance. The industry overall has matured, and the transition from medicinal to recreational markets has accelerated. More than three-quarters (77 percent) of the U.S. population now resides in a state with legalized cannabis.
What does cannabis security entail?
Protecting a cannabis business and remaining compliant require securing facilities, overseeing the production process, providing audit reports, and monitoring operations. Unifying physical security systems is key to remaining compliant and secure. Securing a cash-intensive business means video surveillance, intrusion detection, panic alarms, and access control must be part of system design. With a unified cannabis security system, these measures operate together seamlessly.
Most operators unify both access control and intrusion systems with video surveillance. In some areas, this is mandated. In all areas, it’s best practice. Unification helps teams verify policies and procedures, augment audits, expedite investigations, and mitigate risk. Video surveillance also can unify with point-of-sale, identity verification, and inventory management systems in dispensaries.
Access control also is needed throughout the enterprise, with only specific individuals having authorization to enter restricted areas. State and city regulators may require audit logs of these areas, as well as video verification that only authorized employees are using their assigned credentials.
How does unifying the system help?
With a unified cannabis security system, access points can be correlated with video to provide visual confirmation when a badge or fob is swiped to let you know who has entered any part of the facility and when they accessed the area. Not only does this add an extra layer of security, but it also creates a record for auditing purposes.
Intrusion-detection systems are also a staple in cannabis security design. Local regulations may require active monitoring of perimeter fencing around a cultivation facility, the cultivation center itself, and any production, processing, or storage facilities. Dispensaries require a full intrusion system including duress alarms to monitor potential forced entry, burglary, and armed robbery.
A unified cannabis security system can add value from an operational standpoint as well. Notifications about temperature fluctuations, water flow, and energy consumption in cultivation facilities can alert operators of potential issues that may require immediate response.
In addition to necessary security measures, most states track everything about the industry from seed to sale. Regulations can cover every step from planting a seed through the growth process and production to the transportation and dispensing of the products. A unified system can help ensure compliance.
A robust physical security solution tracks these various stages throughout the plant’s life cycle until it reaches the dispensary. Inventory tracking, with scannable barcodes, follows this process from seed to sale. If audited, synchronizing data across a platform makes the process far easier.
This is where an open-architecture, unified cannabis security system becomes important. An open-architecture security system can provide the necessary integration between the barcode or radio frequency identification (RFID) scanners and correlated video that serves as a visual verification. Each stage in the production process is searchable in the system. Being able to see the entire process from start to finish will help secure your inventory throughout its life cycle.
Keeping customer and financial data secure maintains trust in the operator’s brand and complies with regulatory requirements. Many states have promulgated regulations around data as concerns over privacy increase.
For a comprehensive data security strategy, your system’s data must be secured across your entire environment. A unified security platform must also keep data safe from employees who don’t have authorized access and mitigate exposure to outside cyber risks like camera hacking, password theft, and ransomware. Working with a solution provider that specializes in cybersecurity can limit your exposure to hacking and help keep your data safe.
How to proceed
When evaluating cannabis security solution providers, operators should ask about the firm’s experience with and understanding of local regulatory requirements. System components must meet these requirements, so it’s important to weigh the security provider’s background in the decision.
As you consider the needs of your production facility, it’s also a good idea to consider not only your current goals but also plans you may have for the future. A unified, open-architecture system allows you to select from a wide range of cameras and devices as your business expands, without being locked into specific hardware. It can also help you stay in compliance with regulations and adopt cloud-based solutions for evidence sharing and storage.
Cannabis operators are competing in a rapidly growing industry, and regulations are evolving constantly. Criminals also are continually evolving, finding new tactics to take advantage of this unique, cash-based business. To succeed, invest in an open-architecture, unified security platform that scales for future growth; maximizes operational efficiency; protects your people, products, and data; and meets compliance in all jurisdictions.
As national director for signature brands at unified physical security firm Genetec Inc., Scott Thomas leads a team responsible for sales to the retail, financial, hospitality, gaming, and cannabis vertical markets. He also coordinates the company’s network of system integration partners.
