There is a difference between regular security and VIP security. With VIP security, the security officers are solely responsible for protecting special individuals, such as politicians, celebrities, etc., against thieves, terrorists, or other groups of criminals, as well as fans. As an event organizer, you need to be able to provide the security that a high-profile individual requires and provide them with all of their needs, along with the needs of their crew. A detailed security plan is also needed to ensure their safety to and from the event, as well as during the event. If you have never hosted a VIP individual, here are a few tips.
Perform a Threat and Risk Assessment
Security can vary from one event to the next. Therefore, in order for you to be able to implement the proper security procedures, you must sit down and assess each potential threat source and level of risk that could potentially arise from said threat. This can be done with the help of a Threat, Vulnerability, and Risk assessment. This type of analysis will help you in fully understanding where risk can be avoided, reduced, and accepted while also determining the proper means to reduce the impact of potentially threatening events.
Restrict Access of Unwanted People
As soon as you are able to determine the potential threats and the severity of those threats, you can begin to figure out the proper resources to use for your VIPs. Ultimately, you want to avoid any kind of risk, which can be done with securing the premises of the event. Ideally, you should place a restriction on who is and is not allowed to enter the event. This can be done with a checkpoint for credentials. CCTV cameras can be installed at these checkpoints, along with the placement of a sufficient amount of security officers. Together, the crowd can be monitored.
Plan for Discreet Transport
When it comes to VIP security tasks, one of your most challenging responsibilities will be transportation. This is particularly true if your VIP has a large fan base that keeps tabs on the individual. Therefore, a low-key transfer is imperative to ensure that the VIP's privacy is maintained. It will take some time to find a few different private routes, inspect the destination several hours before the VIPs arrival, arrange for an armored vehicle, if necessary, etc.
Hire VIP Security Officers
When you hire a security team, you will need to keep in mind that the officers will need to have some special training in VIP security. Ideally, these security officers will need to have more advanced skills than your regular security officer. For instance, a VIP security officer may have defense driving and martial arts skills, which will allow them to better protect your VIP. In many cases, VIP security officers come from a police or military background.
For more information, get in touch with a security guard service in your area.