Final answer:
Proprietary security officers have authority based on the company or organization employing them, limited to the property and assets of their employer, and not akin to full law enforcement authority.
Step-by-step explanation:
Proprietary security officers derive their authority to act from the company or organization that employs them. Unlike federal law enforcement officers who operate under specific government agencies such as the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) or the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), proprietary security officers do not have broad-based law enforcement authority. Their role is limited to the premises or assets of their respective employers and they cannot enforce laws in the wide-ranging manner that police do.
These officers are typically responsible for protecting the private property of their employer, which can include enforcing the employer's rules and policies on the property. Their powers are therefore dictated by the contractual arrangement between the officer and the employer and are bound by the legal limits set for private security personnel.
In some aspects, the proprietary security officer's authority is similar to that described by the proprietary charters of historical times, in which a proprietor determined the governance and laws of a property, subject to the rights of the freemen.