How Geofencing is Revolutionizing Access Control

Access control continues to evolve beyond who can and can’t enter your business, warehouse or other premises. Aside from security, accountability and guest management, modern access control features extra sensors, mobility and biometrics to reduce the risks.

Geofencing is a recent addition to the access control playbook, across discretionary, mandatory and role-based access. Geofencing can extend your perimeter and add granular control to the comings and goings within the space. 

The rise of geofencing in access control 

Geofencing is simply identifying someone from their smartphone or other device when they enter an area, be it a retail store, hotel, workplace or security zone. A virtual boundary marks the edge of the geofence and their device triggers a presence notification or alert when they enter it.  

As the return to the office mandate picks up pace, a new generation of access control systems are available or in place to protect the modern workplace and workers. People commonly use them to check in to hotels or airports with their smartphones. And the modern business environment is following suit. 

Geofencing is used to identify the person (or vehicle) when entering a geofenced area, typically through their smartphone using GPS or RFID. This approach saves businesses from investing in hundreds of ID cards, with associated management costs, and extensive door controls. The user’s smartphone can also act as the key to open doors and access services, from office printers to drink dispensers or to operate machinery. 

Managing identity with geofencing

When at a door or service, the access control system can confirm their identity through camera recognition and other elements. That means that if someone has stolen or borrowed an ID, while they can enter the geofenced area, they won’t be able to access a building, hotel room or storage facility. This location-based access helps ensure authorised users can access a location. 

Geofencing also supports conditional access policies. Multiple geofences can send an alert if someone strays into an area they shouldn’t be in. Similarly, if a protected device, computer or phone moves outside of its geofenced area, a theft or misuse alarm can be triggered to alert security. 

Another example of geofencing’s usefulness is when there’s a fire alarm. The geofence can confirm how many people are within one building or location, helping fire marshalls double-check the right number of people at an exit point. 

Geofencing is a life-saving tool in the access control feature set

Geofencing isn’t just a fancy feature for office access control, but one that can help save lives. Consider road, rail track or construction staff at work. Geofencing can identify who is within a dangerous zone, and only allow traffic or heavy lifting when that zone is clear. 

If someone hasn’t moved from a hazardous work or factory area in some time, the geofence can send an alert. Security can check through various access control methods if they are really there, rather than simply forgetting their device, and get security or a manager to check on lone or remote workers who may have got into trouble. 

And if someone does have a stolen device, access control’s 4K cameras can provide a clear picture of them to help security track them down via both the device (which they can drop), or their face which is a lot harder to hide. 

All of this makes geofencing a key part of access control in the smartphone-heavy office or business environment. 

James Ewen

James is the head of marketing at Tamoco