Courtesy and Security
Earlier today, I was searching today for some article or advice on how best to provide security and courtesy at the same time. I was somewhat startled to find that virtually no one – no one – is writing about the topic. In a security-conscious world, we seem to have forgotten that ultimately, security serves human beings. It's a customer service industry.
A friend of mine once said that his typical experience with network security professionals was that if he had hired them to secure a grocery store, they would proceed to install barbed wire fences, attack dogs, searchlights, metal detectors, and perhaps a helicopter or two before finally saying, 'Yep, no one will be shoplifting from here now!' And not only would they have discouraged any sort of legitimate customer from buying from the store, they'd completely ignore the possibility of a teenager with a forged ID buying beer.
Manners, politeness, and respect for fellow human beings as a whole seems to be something that have fallen by the wayside in popular culture. Being rude has been developed into something approaching an art form – an entire genre of comedy is devoted to just this facet of our society.
Combine this with the fact that we, as human beings, are no longer instinctively equipped to judge risks, and you arrive at the modern airline terminal – please take off your shoes and throw away your water, because out of the two billion airline travelers a year, we know you could be one of the few hundred terrorists.
Security isn't a destination, but a process. It's an ideal that will never be attained, not a product packaged into a box. And while there are always tradeoffs, there's no reason we can't combine good security with good customer service.