Soft security usually refers to
security
Security is protection from, or resilience against, potential harm (or other unwanted coercion). Beneficiaries (technically referents) of security may be persons and social groups, objects and institutions, ecosystems, or any other entity or ...
that protects something from harm in quiet and unobtrusive ways, often invisibly and after the fact, rather than with visible barriers before the fact. Soft security can refer to immediate security measures, such as silent
burglar alarm
A security alarm is a system designed to detect intrusions, such as unauthorized entry, into a building or other areas, such as a home or school. Security alarms protect against burglary (theft) or property damage, as well as against intruders. ...
s or
motion detector
A motion detector is an electrical device that utilizes a sensor to detect nearby motion (motion detection). Such a device is often integrated as a Electronic component, component of a system that automatically performs a task or Security alarm, ...
s, but often refers to more elaborate social security systems such as the "
moral network" in a tightly knit community — for example, a cluster of friends on a busy city street.
The term has gained widespread use in
wiki
A wiki ( ) is a form of hypertext publication on the internet which is collaboratively edited and managed by its audience directly through a web browser. A typical wiki contains multiple pages that can either be edited by the public or l ...
communities, notably
MeatballWiki.
The differentiation between "soft security" and "
hard security" was first made by Rasmusson and Jansson who used the term hard security for traditional mechanisms like authentication and access control, and soft security for social control mechanisms.
There is a difference between the related concepts of
quality control
Quality control (QC) is a process by which entities review the quality of all factors involved in production. ISO 9000 defines quality control as "a part of quality management focused on fulfilling quality requirements".
This approach plac ...
and soft security.
Soft security attempts to discourage harm and mitigate any damage, while quality control attempts to improve a product and weed out non-conforming output. The social controls on the production of
Wikipedia
Wikipedia is a free content, free Online content, online encyclopedia that is written and maintained by a community of volunteers, known as Wikipedians, through open collaboration and the wiki software MediaWiki. Founded by Jimmy Wales and La ...
documents demonstrate both principles, using discussion pages, accessible edit histories,
policies and guidelines, in contrast to traditional
document control mechanisms such as
workflow
Workflow is a generic term for orchestrated and repeatable patterns of activity, enabled by the systematic organization of resources into processes that transform materials, provide services, or process information. It can be depicted as a seque ...
and
authorization
Authorization or authorisation (see American and British English spelling differences#-ise, -ize (-isation, -ization), spelling differences), in information security, computer security and identity management, IAM (Identity and Access Managemen ...
, to achieve both soft security and quality control.
In commercial security, soft security is often achieved through training of staff to manage the environment (1) to make disruptions more noticeable, (2) to make disruptions less ''socially'' acceptable, and (3) to create a perceived ''vested interest'' in the public.
References
{{Reflist
External links
*
''SoftSecurity'' on
MeatballWiki
Security