[Part 3 of a 4-part Series on Custom Branding Security Seal]
I'm sure all Security Seal users have heard the standard sales pitch when it comes to custom branding your Security Seals - "Custom branding your seals creates brand awareness. Users will know immediately that the seal is yours."
But what if Seals HQ told you today that we can optimise custom branding on your Security Seals and use it as a security feature? What if by being creative with how we brand your Security Seals, you're staying one step ahead from being pilfered?
OPTIMISATION 1: ROTATING THE COLOURS OF YOUR SECURITY SEALS
A criminal who is intending to pilfer your goods is aware that your Security Seals are always Yellow in colour, printed with your logo and the serial number is sequentially numbered. Nothing is stopping him from going on Alibaba, find an identical seal, request it as a sample and suddenly he's in possession of an identical seal with what you're using (Refer to Part 1 of this series if you want to know how easily identical seals can be obtained from Alibaba).
By rotating the colours of your Security Seals, you are making it difficult for someone who is familiar with your operations to be able to obtain an identical seal.
Seals HQ recommends that Security Seal colours are rotated at least every quarter.
OPTIMISATION 2: ADDING AND ROTATING PREFIXES ON SERIAL NUMBERS
According to ISO17712, a Security Seal needs to be marked with a unique serial number. However, most companies just purchase security seals in sequential order - 0001, 0002, 0003...
Another method of custom branding Security Seals as a security measure is to add a prefix or suffix to your serial number - A0001, A0002, A0003, and rotating the prefixes or suffixes on the Security Seals on a regular basis. For example, if you use approximately 1000 seals per month, then Seals HQ can provide you with A0001 - A1000, B1001 - B2000, C2001 - C3000 etc. Better yet, randomise the prefix and don't follow alphabetical sequence.
By adding and rotating prefixes / suffixes in your serial numbers, you are adding an extra layer of protection against someone getting an identical seal with a serial number that will match a number in your system.
OPTIMISATION 3: ADDING A CHECK DIGIT IN YOUR SERIAL NUMBERS / BARCODES
Check Digits were initially designed to guard against errors caused by the incorrect transcription of an ISSN (International Standard Serial Number). A calculation is applied on a serial number to create a single digit that is added as a last digit on a serial number. For maths lovers out there, click HERE for an example of a Modulus 11 Check Digit calculation. Let's take a look at this sequence of serial numbers:
50000012 - 50000029 - 50000036 - 50000043 - 50000050 - 50000067 - 50000074 - 50000081 - 50000098 - 50000104
What if I were to tell you that these 10 numbers above are actually in sequence? The construction of the serial number is shown in the table below:
The last digit in the Serial Number is actually the Check Digit. By looking at the serial numbers without knowing that a Check Digit is used, the numbers don't look like they are in sequence when in actual fact, they are.
The 3 methods recommended above are just some of the many ways Seals HQ utilises custom branding Security Seals not just for the single purpose of brand awareness, but actually as one of the tools to increase the effectiveness of your Security Seals.
If you would like to discuss custom branding on your Security Seals, please contact Seals HQ using one of the methods below. One of our team members will contact you to discuss what Seals HQ can do for you.
This is Part 3 of a 4-part series on Custom Branding Security Seals. Follow Seals HQ on LinkedIn to stay updated as we release our articles.
