Late evening, an empty campus building. Short, windy storms scattered throughout the day. An alarm is triggered in a security operations center (SOC). Something suspicious is detected in the north-west part of the building. While a security officer is dispatched to the location of the alarm, the actual tragedy happens: someone collapses from a seizure on the opposite side of the building. Nobody was there to help. And the alarm? It was a false alarm from a damaged tree, falling across a building entry door due to heavy winds. 

How many false alarms have you responded to throughout your career? Probably more than you can count. 

According to recent surveys, physical security incidents have increased during the pandemic. Active shooter incidents in the United States, tracked annually by the FBI, have also increased. In 2019, there were 28 active shootings, whereas in 2020 the number jumped up to 40. This is the highest number in the last 20 years. The risk of confusion between real danger and false alarms has never been higher