Under what condition may the alarm system control unit be located outside the monitored area?

• A. Only during power outages
• B. Anytime with no restriction
• C. Only with battery backup
• D. When it is supervised to annunciate tampering

Answer: (D)

The important idea is tamper supervision. If the control unit is located outside the monitored area, the system must have a tamper-detection mechanism that is actively supervised so any attempt to open, move, or disable the unit immediately triggers an alarm or alert. This ensures the integrity of the entire system because even though the panel isn’t inside the protected space, tampering of the panel itself will still be detected and announced. Power conditions like outages or battery backup don’t address tamper visibility, and placing the unit outside with no restrictions would create a security gap. So, the unit may be outside only when it is supervised to annunciate tampering.