Setting up fire and/or security monitoring services for one’s business provides great peace of mind. But the process can be confusing, especially when multiple parties are involved in providing the services.
Koorsen Fire & Security wishes to provide quality monitoring services to our customers, which is why the company works with CMS, who provides excellent service and a valuable end-user experience with their free online portal.
To better understand how one’s Koorsen monitoring services work, and to help one take full advantage of all that is available to one, read on to learn about CMS and their free online portal that allows one interactive access to one’s monitored alarm accounts.
Criticom Monitoring Services
Criticom Monitoring Services (CMS) is a monitoring agency that has been in business for over 40 years. They operate as a wholesale alarm monitoring company in the country and provide monitoring in partnership with over 3,500 alarm and security companies, such as Koorsen Fire & Security.
With three separate, yet redundant, 24/7 monitoring stations across the country providing monitoring services for responses to fire, security, two-way voice pendant monitoring, and more, they are ready to serve their customers whenever they need it wherever they are in the nation.
CMS and MyAlarms.com Online Portal Working
Security alarm customers typically request that the operator attempt to reach them first
CMS’s stations are staffed with highly trained operators who respond immediately, according to their customers' specifications, when an alarm signal is received.
Security alarm customers typically request that the operator attempt to reach them first before sending emergency responders to help reduce false alarms. But, in the event the customer cannot be reached, emergency dispatch will be sent to the site.
Customer response
If the operator does reach the customer, the customer can respond in one of three ways:
- Inform the operator that it is a false alarm. The customer will provide a verbal false-alarm passcode, which is a secret word chosen by the customer, to let the operator know they are who they say they are and that all is well.
- Inform the operator that it is a real alarm and that emergency dispatch is needed.
- If held in a hostage situation, the customer can give the operator the verbal duress code – another secret word– that lets the operator know the customer is in danger and needs immediate help. The operator will hang up and immediately send the authorities. Any wrong passcode given will be treated as a duress code resulting in the dispatch of authorities.
While, to a degree, the above operations are standard for many alarm monitoring services, what is not standard is CMS’s MyAlarms.com Online Portal.
Online Portal
When one is a Koorsen monitoring customer, one gets FREE access to MyAlarms.com Online Portal
The beauty of CMS’s MyAlarms.com Online Portal is that it allows one to do in seconds, with the click or tap of a button, what most monitoring customers have to type an email or make a lengthy phone call to do.
When one is a Koorsen monitoring customer, one gets FREE access to MyAlarms.com Online Portal, giving one more access and more control over one’s monitored systems.
Benefits of Using the MyAlarms.com Online Portal
The benefits of being able to manage one’s monitored security and fire systems without having to make a single phone call include the ability to:
- Add and remove contacts at one’s convenience as quickly as one need to. When an employee leaves, one can immediately remove them from the contact list. Likewise, when a new employee is hired, one can add them on without having to make a phone call.
- Add and update verbal passcodes to be given to the monitoring center by one’s contacts in the event of an alarm. For security, it is recommended to change these passcodes regularly, especially any time an employee leaves or is let go.
- Put one’s system into test mode to avoid false alarms and related fines. One will want to do this whenever one’s are testing or performing maintenance on the system, or when doing renovations or construction projects that could accidentally trigger an alarm.
Test mode, event history and reports
- One puts either one’s whole system or specific zones into test mode for up to 4 hours, during which the monitoring center will know not to respond to any alarm activity at that site.
- Review, in real-time, all event activity and history on all of one’s monitored accounts from one’s phone or tablet. One will be able to see the details of how many and which alarms were triggered and what, if any, agency dispatches occurred as far back as 18 months.
- Download event history reports for use as evidence or analysis to improve security and safety strategies.
- Check one’s system and zones status.
Access online
Access MyAlarms.com Online Portal from a smartphone, laptop, or desktop 24/7.
The MyAlarms.com Online Portal makes managing one’s accounts extremely convenient and is a significant time-saver. One will have 24/7 access to all of one’s information, along with the ability to update it without having to wait for office hours to make a phone call and without having to wait on hold to make a simple change.
The portal also puts one in control, allowing one to make updates and changes when one needs them and giving one’s knowledge of all one’s monitored accounts’ activities.
