Offaly businesses warned about security  during St. Patrick’s weekend

The celebrations of St. Patrick’s Day weekend won’t stop criminals from targeting businesses as attempted security breaches can increase by up to 30% over bank holidays, with St. Patrick’s Day being no exception, according to security specialists Netwatch.

This year to date Netwatch has seen a 16% increase in attempted security breaches and anticipates this figure to almost double during the St. Patrick’s Day weekend.   Industries where materials and assets on-site are of high value will be of particular interest to criminals and Netwatch is urging these businesses  to be aware of the potential risks to their premises when closed.  

Netwatch says that it has noticed a reoccurring peak in loitering from large groups of youths, attempted premises breach and vandalism during bank holidays. St. Patrick’s Day celebrations are a time of extra high alert for the Netwatch Intervention Specialists as an influx of crowds gather for the celebrations.

Unsurprisingly, the evening hours of St. Patrick’s Day weekend are of particular concern for businesses. The most common timings for attempted intrusion on Netwatch clients’ sites are the hours between 6pm and midnight, with over half of incidents taking place during this time.

“Each year St. Patrick’s Day weekend sees a significant rise of criminal activity across our customers’ sites in Ireland as businesses close for a long weekend. Based on last year’s increase in attempted breaches on our clients’ sites, we urge businesses to be on high alert this St. Patrick’s Day weekend,” said Colin Hayes, Managing Director at Netwatch Ireland and UK.