Church buildings need security systems. In the past, there have been incidents at Churches. These make the news. But do they mean that the Church building needs for security are being ignored?

In the past, the Church – especially the sanctuary – was considered a place of safety. It was a refuge to those in trouble. People respected this, so the Church building was secure and safe. This is no longer the case. So staff need to take steps to make the Church building secure.

Property alarm systems can be installed, but who monitors the alarm in the middle of the night. One Church I was involved with had the alarm system connected to the police station, which was 2 blocks away. This meant that if there was a break in, the police arrived in 2 minutes. However, what happens if the youth are having an overnight event and accidentally trip the alarm. Better to have someone in the Church also get the alarm, and be able to override it before it goes to the police station. And that person should be up to date with the scheduled events of the calendar. That way, you don’t have an issue on the 4th of July.

Typically, users login by entering 2 factors – i.e. a username and a password. For a lot of web sites, the rule is to make the username an email address. I suppose that makes it easier to respond when the user loses there password. 🙁

These days, 2 factors is not enough; so a lot of web sites are going to multiple factors for logging in securely. For example, you can add a 3rd factor, which could be one of the following:

• Text message to a mobile phone
• Phone call to a telephone number
• Random numbers generated by an Authentication App
• Biometric response – e.g. a fingerprint reader

The web sites for our Churches need to be secure. So perhaps it makes sense to add multiple factors for login to your staff’s accounts. But is it appropriate to ask Church members to use Multiple Factor login? Please comment if your Church is doing that.

There are a number of security headaches out there waiting to strike your Church. Malware, Viruses, Trojans, Worms, Ransomware, etc. How can you possibly keep on top of all of the threats? Obviously, you need to get good Anti-Virus software and let it run automatically. It will update it’s database of known viruses periodically and scan your computer automatically, looking for threats. You also need to establish good internet habits. If something looks phishy – it probably is, so avoid it! Here are some additional security tips for your staff:

• Check those links in the email message to be sure they are legitimate before you click or download anything from them. Typically, you can hover over them to see the actual address in your status bar at the bottom. If the domain doesn’t match the exact domain that you were expecting, then you know it is bogus!
  1. For example, the email might purport to be from FedEx.com with an urgent message about your order.
  2. However, when you hover over the link, you notice that it will really take you to fedex_com1234.com.
  3. The destination for the link is bogus, and probably contains malware which will automatically download to your computer.
• If you get an email asking you to do something immediately like transferring money, verify it with the person that supposedly sent it. All it takes is a quick phone call to avoid making a costly mistake!
• If you get an email from someone asking for a password, don’t reply with it. Rather, pick another communication channel to tell it them. You can call them and spell it over the phone, or text it to their cell phone with no references. You can be sure that anyone hacking your email server will take note of an email requesting a password and read the following response. And that just gave away the keys to the account!

Finally, be sure you make regular backups. If your system is compromised, they give you a way to recover. And be sure the backups are valid. You should be able to load a specific file back in from the backup and get the exact file contents.

Any computer system these days is vulnerable to online hacking. The only way to keep that from happening is to never connect to the Internet. But the Internet is such a wonderful source of information, it just can’t be done. However, there are some things that you can do to keep the Church computers secure:

o Use Antivirus software (and keep it up to date)
o Turn off systems when they are not in use
o Avoid downloading anything you have suspicions about

Physical security is probably the best. If the computer is off, then no one can hack into it. However, there is also room for shrewdness (Matthew 10:16). So be on your guard at all times.

Everyone seems to be security conscious these days. And you even have to be concerned about security in the Church – of all places! Because our doors are open to the public, anyone can walk in. And that means the sinners and the criminals get to come in the door. With all of the news lately about incidents within the Church, you need a security policy. And the support staff needs a certain amount of training in handling security situations. Here is one article on designing such a policy:

Drawing the Line on Danger

The article shares some practical ideas about how to handle those with malevolent intentions who show up at Church.

These days it seems like everyone is vitally concerned with security. Political rallies have to have security. Sports stadiums have to have security. Airports are sometimes so tight that you have to plan to leave an hour earlier than normal, just to get through the security screening. Employers check the background of new employees, to make sure that they aren’t a security risk. So what about people working in the Church as a volunteer?

There was a time when the Church was considered a haven for those in trouble. Perhaps that time has passed. These days, with the concerns over security, perhaps we have to make sure that Church employees are people who are trustworthy. But what about volunteers? Should they have background checks done to make sure they are also trustworthy? What do you think?