CCTV cameras News

Artificial intelligence (AI) is expanding the capabilities of license plate readers and vehicle identification systems. Within a smart/safe city scenario, automatic license plate reader solutions are used to help analyse real-time video streams for site surveillance, inspection and public safety, and to offer actional information through a network of connected camera systems. Outside of law enforcement, this can include other public safety initiatives such as traffic tolls, car counting, and pa...

There will be more artificial intelligence, more machine learning, video systems with more capabilities, and all of it will add greater value to our solutions. Those are among the expectations of our Expert Panel Roundtable as they collectively look ahead to the remainder of 2019. One unexpected prediction is that AI will not prove to be a game changer – at least not yet. We asked this week’s Expert Panel Roundtable: What will be the biggest surprise for security in the second half o...

While security salesmen are touting megapixels and anti-passback features, they are missing an opportunity to communicate the role of technology in the broader context of risk management and incident response – and in saving lives. That’s the message of Gerald Wilkins, PSP, Vice President of Active Risk Survival. Incident response is at the core of how an enterprise reacts to risk and is a standardised approach to the command, control, and coordination of emergency response. Effect...

The basic need for public safety is one of the biggest forces driving the adoption of smart city solutions: approaches that seek to solve urban challenges through technological means. The thinking behind these initiatives is that with enough internet connectivity and real-time data, surely environmental, social, economic, and public health issues should become more manageable. However, just adding more technology is not the whole answer. Although technology is necessary for an urban area to tra...

Time for an indepth review of IFSEC 2019 in London. This show had fewer exhibitors than previous shows, and the ‘vibe’ was definitely more low-key. Fewer exhibitors meant larger aisles and plenty of room to breathe, and the slower pace provided time for exhibitors to reflect (often negatively) on the return on investment (ROI) of large trade shows. There was little buzz on the first day of the show, but spirits picked up on the second day (when, not coincidentally, some exhibitors...

In five states in the Western United States, 200 video surveillance cameras keep are keeping watch to provide early warning of wildfires. In the near future, the number of wildfire surveillance cameras will be growing dramatically. Soon there will be more than 1,000 of the cameras in California alone, keeping watch on thousands of acres at risk of destructive events like last year’s deadly Camp and Woolsey wildfires. It is a striking example of how video surveillance technology can be use...

The ability to treat patients in a secure environment is a base requirement of hospitals and other healthcare facilities. Whether facilities are large or small, security challenges abound, including perimeter security, access control of sensitive areas, video surveillance, and even a long list of cyber-risks. We asked this week’s Expert Panel Roundtable: What are the security challenges of hospitals and the healthcare industry?

The definition of a standard is “an authoritative principle or rule that usually implies a model or pattern for guidance, by comparison with which the quantity, excellence, correctness, etc., of other things may be determined.” In technology markets, such as physical security, standards are agreed-upon language, specifications or processes that are used across the board by multiple stakeholders to enable easier interconnectivity and smoother operation of systems. We asked this week&r...

Whether it is video analytic platforms to monitor traffic patterns or cameras deployed to help law enforcement ensure public safety, many cities are looking at advancements in video technology. Upgrade costs and technology compatibility issues are often front-and-centre when it comes to blending new technology with existing infrastructure. For example, if the city law enforcement officials want to improve video camera image quality, which can improve the evidentiary value of footage in prosecu...

The healthcare sector is a crucial part of a functioning society as it provides life-saving care and reassurance to the population. A key part of ensuring the professionals in this industry have the best work environment is the ongoing security of the facilities. Overcoming environmental challenges Hospitals are challenging environments for security integrators. There is little room for mistakes because staff, patients and assets cannot be compromised. Medical centres and their facilities can...

With the advent of online shopping, brick-and-mortar retail businesses are challenged to make transactions more convenient while enhancing the “experience” aspects that differentiate real-life shopping from the simpler route of clicking on a website. Technology is helping retailers create that differentiation, including technologies such as video systems, deep learning analytics and point-of-sale (POS) integrations that have evolved from innovation in the physical security market. Fo...

In 2017, IoT-based cyberattacks increased by 600%. As the industry moves towards the mass adoption of interconnected physical security devices, end users have found a plethora of advantages, broadening the scope of traditional video surveillance solutions beyond simple safety measures. Thanks in part to these recent advancements, our physical solutions are at a higher risk than ever before. With today’s ever evolving digital landscape and the increasing complexity of physical and cyber-a...

Panasonic is selling off 80% of its video surveillance business to a private equity firm but will retain 20%, and the new company will continue to use the well-known Panasonic brand. The move is aimed at reinvigorating a business challenged by new competition from large Chinese companies and lower prices of video surveillance equipment. Strategic business alliances Panasonic is establishing a new company made up of its security systems business, and Polaris Capital Group Co. will acquire 80%...

Attendees strolling the exhibit hall at IFSEC International, 18-20 June, 2019, at ExCel London, will be hearing a lot about artificial intelligence, convergence and GDPR. These industry hot topics are representative of major trends in the industry, from new technologies to new ways of designing systems to new privacy requirements. The education sessions at IFSEC International will also address these timely subjects – and provide a welcome chance to sit down and consider the ‘bigger...

The focus of the global security industry will shift to London this month for IFSEC International, Europe’s ‘integrated’ security event focusing on the latest technologies and the opportunity to learn from the industry’s top leaders and experts. IFSEC will be held from 18-20 June, 2019, at ExCel London, welcoming 27,000 security directors and managers, installers, integrators and distributors. The exhibition at IFSEC may not be as large as previous years, and several bi...

Facial recognition has seen huge breakthroughs since the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) first began testing in 2010. Accuracy has seen massive gains, especially from 2013-2018. In the 2018 test, the most accurate algorithm was 20 times more accurate than the 2013 equivalent. Essentially, 95 percent of the matches that failed in 2013 now yield correct results. Compare that to 2010-2013, when the most accurate algorithm reduced its error rate by 30 percent. This reduc...

Technology advancements often come with new terms and definitions. The language of our marketplace evolves to include new words that describe innovations in the industry. In the skilled hands of marketers, terms intended to be descriptive can also take a new element of ‘buzz,’ often presaging exciting developments that will drive the future. We asked this week’s Expert Panel Roundtable:  What new buzzword have you heard, and what does it mean for the industry?

Statistically speaking, incidents of terrorism are unlikely to impact most businesses and institutions. However, the mere possibility of worst-case-scenario attacks is enough to keep security professionals awake at night. Compounding the collective anxiety is the minute-by-minute media coverage when an attack does occur. The immediacy of the shared experience of global tragedy impacts us all – including security system decision-makers. We asked this week’s Expert Panel Roundtable: Ho...

Virtualisation offers multiple benefits to video surveillance systems, but the technology has been slow to adapt to the needs of video. However, the tide is turning. At ISC West, BCDVideo introduced a hyperconverged infrastructure tailored to video surveillance (HCI-VS) that answers the demand for higher and more efficient operating performance while also lowering the total cost of ownership for the integrator and end user. Hyperconverged infrastructure solution “ISC West attendees were...

Simultaneous suicide bombings at several churches and hotels in Sri Lanka on April 21 were of a scale, sophistication and level of coordination that hasn’t been seen since 9/11. Nine suicide bombers targeted three churches and three hotels on Easter morning, and the resulting casualties numbered 359 dead, including 45 children, and about 500 injured. The complexity of the attacks suggests the bombers received help from an outside organisation, likely the Islamic State (IS). Sadly, securit...

The excitement of ISC West 2019 continued until the very end – almost. Exhilarated by the first two busy days of the show, attendees and exhibitors seemed to welcome a slower third day. There were no complaints about booth traffic, and still plenty of thoughtful conversations taking place, everyone determined to maximise the value of face time with customers until the last second. Building an IoT ecosystem in SAST At a show lacking in high-profile new technology announcements, the bigges...

Our Expert Panel is an opinionated group on a wide variety of topics, and we are dedicated to providing a useful and flexible forum to share those opinions. This week, our panelists address a range of opinions about several self-selected topics, culled from the large number of Expert Panelist responses we have collected in the last year. In this Expert Panel Roundtable article, we will share these varied and insightful responses to ensure they are not lost to posterity!

Delivering on high expectations, the first day of ISC West 2019 kicked off with a crowded Sands Expo Center and exhibitors putting forward their best new technologies. Developments seemed more evolutionary than revolutionary, but attendees quickly found plenty of interest. Thermal cameras Hanwha Techwin also showed off a new Android camera that can deploy new apps The largest booth at ISC West, Hanwha Techwin, remained crowded throughout the first day as attendees checked out the company&rsqu...

Ethical hackers are familiar to the world of cybersecurity. As cybersecurity awareness increases in physical security, they are also playing a larger role to ensure the safety of networked and information technologies used in our market. We asked this week’s Expert Panel Roundtable: What is the role of ‘ethical hackers’ to ensure cybersecurity of networked products in the physical security market?

Where are video surveillance cameras headed? At the core of next-generation Internet Protocol (IP) cameras are advanced chips with artificial intelligence (AI) at the edge, enabling cameras to gather valuable information about an incident: scanning shoppers at a department store, monitoring city streets, or checking on an elderly loved one at home. Thanks to advanced chip technology, complex analytics operations are becoming more affordable across the full spectrum of surveillance cameras &mdas...

When security topics become a part of current events, it is usually in a negative light. Security generally only becomes news when it fails, sometimes in a dramatic, high profile and tragic way. However, security failures can also shed light on lessons learned and opportunities to improve. Working toward better security can translate into the purchase of more goods and equipment supplied by our market. For additional insights into the intersection of security and current events, we asked this we...

MIPS (Milestone Integration Platform Symposium) Copenhagen 2019 saw Milestone Systems double down on the ‘creating an intelligent world’ theme from 2018 and expand it to ‘exploring an intelligent world.’ “The intelligent world theme was bigger than we could cover in one year!” said Malou Toft, VP of EMEA at Milestone Systems. Isolate important events With 865+ registered attendees and more than 47 exhibiting partners in Denmark, this is the largest Communit...

Across the country, law enforcement officers are finding it increasingly difficult to respond to the near overwhelming number of calls coming from security alarms. Police departments commonly define a false alarm as a call, which upon investigation, shows no evidence of criminal activity, such as broken windows, forced doors, items missing, or people injured. While false alarms bog down police, they can also negatively impact customers and integrators. End users can expect hefty fines for fals...

If you’re heading to ISC West in Las Vegas this year, it’s helpful to acknowledge immediately that there’s no way you can experience all aspects of the show. Just not enough time and too many options. Once you give up on seeing everything, you can immediately lower stress. But you also raise the stakes in terms of picking and choosing exactly what you have time for – or want to make time for. Hoping to help out as we all set our ISC West priorities, here are some ways to...

Application of artificial intelligence (AI) and deep learning in the physical security market runs a gamut from cloud computing to edge computing. A variety of hardware solutions enable AI to be deployed at any level of a system from the cloud to edge devices such as security cameras. Smarter AI-powered applications A distributed structure can incorporate cloud computing and edge computing. It extends the Artificial Intelligence (AI) algorithm from the cloud, to an edge network of on-premises...