How Do GUARDIAN RFID Key Fobs Work?

*Enters password*
“Incorrect password”
“Incorrect password”
“Incorrect password”
*Resets password*
“New password cannot be your previous password”

Imagine you’re in a scenario where you’re in a hurry to access something important, and you’re locked out of your account. You immediately go through your mental list of usernames and passwords and still can’t seem to get it right. Do you reset your password? Do you call your kids to see if they know your password? Do you throw the device across the room? Or do you accept defeat and give up completely? On most days, it can be a toss-up. 

Please accept our apologies if you’re only this far into the blog and you're already frustrated. But it makes you think, there must be other people that can relate to this, right? Of course. It’s extremely common to be failed by technology, especially if you work with others who struggle to comply with their devices (more specifically, those who genuinely believe their computers are changing their passwords behind their backs).

Jeff Jackson, Jail Operations Account Manager, has experienced first-hand the epitome of Boomers and their technology at its finest.

As a Captain working in a state-of-the-art correctional facility with every new piece of technology available to the corrections world, I literally had an officer wholeheartedly believe in computers developing free will and changing his password. Being the sarcastic and amazing leader I am, I asked, “Just like Skynet?” Fully expecting to get a chuckle from the officer, I was met with, “Exactly like Skynet. I don’t trust these computers.” I then asked if he trusted the flip phone in his pocket as I walked off shaking my head.

Jeff Jackson

Jail Operations Account Manager at GUARDIAN RFID

Do you get tired of hearing staff complain about having to log into their assigned SPARTAN? You know the staff we’re referring to. The ones that make you have an extra nightcap. The ones that you blame your receding hairline on. The ones that you would define as “just lazy.” By default, GUARDIAN RFID SPARTANS are programmed to automatically log out at certain intervals. This decreases the likelihood of officers conducting security checks under the wrong identification. Think about it: how often have you reviewed your reports and noticed one officer conducting all the checks? At Jeff's facility, Pod officer assignments were usually conducted in pairs. Jeff began to notice a single officer’s name on all the reports. Jeff’s first (and incorrect) assumption was that his/her partner was “lazy.” Upon investigation, both staff members were conducting checks but were merely handing the SPARTAN off to one another without switching the user. Shaking his head, Jeff asked, “Why would you do that?” In unison, as if they had rehearsed their answer, the officers said, “Because it takes too long to sign in when we are busy.” While Jeff tried to be empathic as a leader, their complaint landed on deaf ears. After a deep breath, he explained to them the importance of individual log-ins, how it correlates to accurate logs, and how, in the event there is a critical incident, we explain the log saying only one officer is present but the cameras show something else. 

We all know what they say about officers with big hands, right? It takes them way too long to sign into their assigned SPARTAN (get your head out of the gutter!). Fortunately for big-handed folks, GUARDIAN RFID has a solution that makes logging into a SPARTAN easier and holds the highest level of defensibility: the Key Fob. Having the Key Fob to allow an easier login process improves overall officer morale as staff who struggle with individually typing their username and password (such as elder or big-handed staff) can seamlessly log in without the trouble of typing only with their index fingers. Plus, the Key Fob can easily be stored on your keychain or duty belt for quick access. Not only can officers not share their usernames and passwords, but the Key Fob has the ability to auto-log off to ensure someone doesn’t handle the device that’s currently logged under another user.  

When I worked as a Captain, my team loved using the GUARDIAN RFID system but we all had one point of frustration: having to log in with a username and password multiple times a day. In fact, it was disliked so much that multiple staff members used only one login on the SPARTAN so they wouldn't need to go through the process of constantly logging on and off. When we received our GUARDIAN RFID FOBs, it took me 15 minutes to set up the 30 users. I taught the staff how to scan the FOB and log in without having to manually type their username and password. By the end of the week, I had many staff members tell me how well it worked and how happy they were with the change. The minimal cost for the FOB was very much outweighed by the positive morale this created for the staff.

Mark Cowley

Jail Operations at GUARDIAN RFID

How to Set Up Your GUARDIAN RFID Key Fob

Your administrator can set up your user account with the Wave ID wristband/ID card activator. This is done from the “Manage User” screen. Under the user’s account information, you will see a block labeled “RFID.” Simply click that block, move the desired key fob near the Wave RFID programmer, and it will automatically populate the RFID value of the fob onto the account. Finally, you click “Save Changes.” Once you have the Key Fob registered to your user account, all you have to do is scan it with a SPARTAN. On the login screen, instead of taking the time to log in with your username and password, all you have to do is scan the Key Fob. You will hear the beep and be logged into the initial screen. From there, it is business as usual. The staff member conducts their rounds and assigned tasks. If they need to hand off their SPARTAN, they just need to log out and the next staff member just places their personal Key Fob near the SPARTAN and it will log them in seamlessly. It really is THAT easy. A few minutes of work per officer account is going to save your facility countless hours in the long run.

Staff only like one type of change, and that’s a shift change. We don’t always find the easy loopholes in corrections but having a tool to automate your login process and save your staff time is a game-changer. We hope the days where you see “incorrect password” pop up on our screen while trying to sign into your GUARDIAN RFID account no longer exist and you can experience the benefits of the Key Fob for yourself.