Part of the problem is that in the US(since forum members here are intl), many security firms/private contract companies push a "observe and report" mindset/SOP on guards.
This lulls some officers(mostly the semi-skilled or untrained) to
not be ready to repel a attack or deal with a aggressive subject.
Hurricane Katrina is a great example. Many first responders & private security guards fled or went AWOL after the big storms.
I worked with a armed guard on a post in 2005 after Wilma in south Florida.
He would spend his
entire security shift on his cell phone!
Could he watch for danger or fight off a trespasser? I doubt it.