Silly Season: Tips for Access Control During Holidays

An unscheduled holiday too. Access control during holidays becomes critical as festive chaos threatens to undermine your year-round security vigilance. Roughly 40% of the year’s break-ins take place during the festive silly season. And the reason is not what you think. Criminal aren’t Christmas shopping. We get lazy. Criminals know exactly when businesses and complexes become vulnerable. Gates left propped open “because there’s a rush.” Visitor logs abandoned for expected deliveries. Cameras haven't been checked since winter.

C’mon, who doesn’t love an easy target?

Here’s how you can tell a different story this year.

Perform a Pre-Festive Silly Season Security Health Check

When last did you actually test your gate motor? Not watch it open; but test it under load. Check your systems before the rush hits. Better to discover a faulty gate motor now than when your estate is hosting a year-end function with 200 guests.

• Gates: Open and close them 10 times in a row. Listen for grinding sounds. Check the chain tension. Test the emergency release mechanism. If your gate struggles now, it'll fail during your year-end function.

• Alarms: Trigger every sensor. Verify that notifications reach the right people. That alarm linked to your ex-security manager's phone? Update it now.

• Lighting: Walk your perimeter at night. Check every light. Replace flickering bulbs. Power outages makes this crucial. Consider solar backup for critical areas.

• Cameras: Review footage from different times of day. Can you read a number plate at 10 metres? Can you identify a face? If not, adjust angles and clean lenses. Install cameras in strategic positions near gates, driveways, and entry points.

Your biometric access control readers need attention too. Clean the sensors with a microfibre cloth. Update firmware. Remove credentials for contractors who finished work months ago.

Smart Visitor Management (Not Chaos Management)

Let’s say it’s 19 December. Your estate/establishment/office park has three year-end parties happening simultaneously. Security is trying to manage 50 arriving guests whilst checking delivery drivers and last-minute contractors. Without proper visitor management systems, this becomes chaos. Security guards make mistakes under pressure. Gates get left open. Unauthorised people slip through.

Here's the smarter approach:

• Pre-register everyone possible. Send guests QR codes via WhatsApp. When they arrive, they scan and enter. No phone calls. No confusion. ATG Digital's visitor management solutions let you pre-authorise guests from your phone in under 30 seconds.

• Set specific time windows for contractors. No more "sometime this week" arrivals. Book them for exact slots. Your system logs when they arrive and alerts you if they overstay.

• Create designated delivery times. Tell suppliers: deliveries between 10am and 2pm only. This prevents the all-day gate-propping that happens when parcels arrive randomly.

• Use QR codes for repeat visitors. Family staying for a week? Generate a temporary QR code valid for specific dates. They enter without bothering security every time.

Your security team needs a real-time dashboard showing who's expected, who's on site, and who's overdue to leave. No more clipboard confusion.

Secure Entrances During High-Traffic Period

Traffic patterns are unpredictable during the festive season. There are uncharacteristic evening surges as people become more social, and holiday homes welcome guests at odd hours. Your home stands empty more often as you take a long weekend away or attend year end staff and supplier dinners. Contractors push to complete projects before the annual builder’s break from 15 December.

These high-traffic periods create vulnerability. Resist the temptation to relax protocols because of overwhelming traffic or feeling optimistic thanks to holiday joy.

• Roster extra personnel during peak times. One guard manages vehicle access. Another handles pedestrians. A third monitors cameras. Don't expect one person to do everything.

• Deploy automated systems. Biometric readers and licence plate recognition let regular users enter without guard interaction. This frees security to focus on visitors.

• Set up clear signage before events. Tell guests exactly where to go. Simple instructions prevent bottlenecks.

• Never leave entrances unattended. Even "just for a minute". If you need to step away, lock down the access point first.

Side gates and service entrances need special attention. These often get propped open during busy periods. They shouldn't be.

Secure Entrances During High-Traffic Period

Traffic patterns are unpredictable during the festive season. There are uncharacteristic evening surges as people become more social, and holiday homes welcome guests at odd hours. Your home stands empty more often as you take a long weekend away or attend year end staff and supplier dinners. Contractors push to complete projects before the annual builder’s break from 15 December. These high-traffic periods create vulnerability. Resist the temptation to relax protocols because of overwhelming traffic or feeling optimistic thanks to holiday joy.

• Roster extra personnel during peak times. One guard manages vehicle access. Another handles pedestrians. A third monitors cameras. Don't expect one person to do everything.

• Deploy automated systems. Biometric readers and licence plate recognition let regular users enter without guard interaction. This frees security to focus on visitors.

• Set up clear signage before events. Tell guests exactly where to go. Simple instructions prevent bottlenecks.

• Never leave entrances unattended. Even "just for a minute". If you need to step away, lock down the access point first.

Side gates and service entrances need special attention. These often get propped open during busy periods. They shouldn't be.

Pay Attention to Parking and Perimeter Safety

Your security perimeter doesn't stop at the gate. Parking areas are prime targets. Between October and December 2023, South Africa recorded approximately 40,751 home burglaries, that's 453 incidents daily. Many started with vehicles parked in poorly secured areas. Walk your parking zones at night. Where are the dark spots? Which corners have no camera coverage? These are where criminals operate.

Lighting checklist:

• Every parking bay should be visible from at least one camera.

• Walkways need continuous lighting, no dark patches.

• Backup power for critical lights during load shedding.

• Motion-activated lights for less-used areas.

Don't just point cameras at cars. Position them to capture faces of people approaching vehicles. Angle them to avoid headlight glare at night.

Brief Your People

Your technology is excellent. But people are the  weakest link. Residents think they know better and try to bypass protocols. Staff may think a shortcut is ok in this season. The holidays create a sense of casualness, which becomes the cause of breaches. Consider holding a quick briefing before the holiday season kicks off:

For residents/staff:

• Never share your access code. Ever.

• Don't hold gates open for the car behind you (piggybacking).

• Report unfamiliar people immediately, even if they seem friendly.

• Verify all contractor and delivery IDs, even during busy periods.

For security teams:

• Follow full procedures even when you're busy.

• If you recognise someone but they don't have proper credentials, they don't enter.

• Log every visitor, no exceptions.

• Call for backup during peak times rather than taking shortcuts.

Make these briefings practical. Share a recent incident (without identifying details). People remember stories better than rules.

Don't Let Security Take a Holiday

Now have a checklist so you can enjoy festivities without compromising safety.

• Systems tested and functioning.

• Visitors pre-registered and managed digitally.

• Entrances monitored even during rush periods.

• Parking and perimeters properly lit and watched.

• Staff briefed on procedures.

Because your access control and visitor management systems should work harder during holidays, not switch off with everyone else.

ATG Digital's team is ready for support with system checks, upgrades, or troubleshooting.

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For all Access Control related information, contact ATG Digital:

Email | sales@atthegate.biz

Contact Number | 010 500 8611

Whatsapp Messenger | +(27) 072 055 1187

Website | www.atgdigital.biz