Red Flag Security: From Pirates to Protection
I was sitting in a meeting the other day with a long-standing client—someone we’ve worked with for years—when he leant back in his chair, furrowed his brow and asked:
‘Matt, I’ve got to ask—where did the name come from?’
It’s a fair question. And truth be told, it’s one I’ve been asked a lot over the years.
Now, I’m originally from England, and when I started the business, Red Flag made perfect sense to me.
But I’ve since realised that here in Australia, the name tends to raise a few eyebrows. (Thankfully, not the kind of red flags that send HR departments into a panic.)
For me, a red flag has always meant one thing: a warning. A signal that something’s not quite right.
And that’s exactly what security systems are designed to do—alert you and your team to a potential threat before it becomes a serious problem.
But there’s another layer to it too.
Somewhere along the line I read that back in the days of pirates and naval battles, a red flag was a symbol of no mercy.
A ship flying the red flag wasn’t there to negotiate—they were there to fight to the end, to stand their ground, and to never surrender.
And while we’re definitely not pirates, that attitude stuck with me.
Running a business, protecting your people, keeping your assets safe—it all takes that same relentless, never-back-down mindset.
So, that’s where the name came from.
