IP Surveillance - Expert commentary

The average business owner or investor has some kind of security precaution in place, especially in the after-hours when there are fewer deterrents to inhibit criminal activity. Security guards, video surveillance systems, motion sensor lights, or even just fake cameras placed around the property are some of the common options people choose.  Future of overnight security Smart business owners are starting to realise, however, that some of these traditional security measures are becoming...

The autumn equinox, which marks the start of autumn, occurs this weekend on Saturday, September 23. With darker evenings ahead, the experts at ADT have shared five ways to maximise your home's security. Author's quote Michele Bennett, General Manager at ADT UK&I comments: “Opportunistic thieves use darkness to their advantage, so it’s no surprise that the number of burglaries committed increases when the darker nights draw in." He adds, "Our 2022 burglary report found that bu...

Daniel May of Consort reviews the integration of access control systems in healthcare settings, outlining the benefits and key considerations decision-makers must make throughout product specifications.  From patient safety and traversal to the protection of sensitive data and pharmaceuticals, healthcare environments are faced with several operational challenges. And where security remains at the forefront of decision-making, modern access control systems may often hold the answers. Physi...

Security systems represent a significant investment, yet many organisations still only use a small percentage of their physical security systems’ capabilities. That’s before we even begin to consider the different ways that the likes of video, access control and ANPR can add additional value beyond security by serving the needs of other business functions. Whether that be to obtain additional insight, streamline compliance or drive operational efficiencies.  Consumption...

Global transportation networks are becoming increasingly interconnected, with digital systems playing a crucial role in ensuring the smooth operation of ports and supply chains. However, this reliance on technology can also create vulnerabilities, as demonstrated by the recent ransomware attack on Nagoya Port. As Japan's busiest shipping hub, the port's operations were brought to a standstill for two days, highlighting the potential for significant disruption to national economies and supply cha...

Physical security is essential for a modern production facility, users don’t want just anyone entering the building or accessing secure areas. But what about production machinery? Machine authentication is often a missing link in the security plan for manufacturers. Why machine authentication?  Most manufacturers have made significant investments in physical access control (PAC) for production facilities. Few shops currently hand out physical keys to employees or leave the building...

Mass attacks continue to lead the news far too often. All are horrific and disturbing, but the heartbreaking tragedies that have unfolded on school campuses touch us the deepest and have the most profound effects on our communities. NTAC statistics According to a January 2023 report from the United States Secret Service National Threat Assessment Center (NTAC), K-12 events accounted for 6% of all mass attacks in public and semi-public spaces between 2016 and 2020. 6% may strike some as being...

Open platform video technology software is more than just a product; it's a tool that helps customers achieve their desired business outcomes. Safety, round-the-clock security, and increased operational efficiencies are now the norm due to video technology. Responsible Technology Despite humanity’s impressive technological advances, we also recognise the immense responsibility that comes with technological innovation. It's not enough to focus solely on the positive impact video technol...

There are about 3,500 cybersecurity companies across 17 categories operating throughout the United States right now, according to both IT-Harvest and Cyber DB. So, on any given day, an IT security firm must beat back competitors in the market before it can even begin to battle the bots, phishing scams and ransomware attacks that are a part of your trade. And, you won’t be able to do that with marketing and advertising alone. Most, if not all, of your competitors are probably using a sim...

Inadequate security measures on your essential infrastructure can have severe consequences.  Consequences  Consider the rail industry: If a vandal cuts the cables on a vital mechanism that controls train signals, train safety is jeopardised. To avoid train collisions or derailments and thus significant damage to property and potential loss of life, the operating company must shut down the service until the infrastructure is repaired and the network is up and running again. The disru...

The security industry is going increasingly digital these days, with more small- and medium-sized businesses joining their global brethren by moving their data to the cloud, leveraging the benefits of artificial intelligence, and embracing more open solutions. Innovation is expected to continue at a rapid pace, thanks in part to the residual effects of the pandemic which has driven changes that might have otherwise taken five years or a decade or more to get into customers’ hands on a glo...

Dr. Henrik Siegle has been the CTO at Bosch Building Technologies since November 2021. In this interview, he speaks about the megatrends of energy efficiency and sustainability, and about new developments in the building technology sector. Dr. Siegle, the building industry is currently facing major challenges in the form of climate change and energy shortages. How is Bosch Building Technologies dealing with these challenges? Dr. Henrik Siegle: Energy efficiency and sustainability have long...

Two trends in recent years are combining to exacerbate insider threat risks at companies. First, companies continue to foster cultures of openness and collaboration that often run contrary to the needs of a security-oriented mindset. Second, the mainstreaming of hybrid work has made companies’ control over data and device usage during work more tenuous. Addressing insider threats We’ve seen repeatedly that companies have the tools, structural choices, and decision-making power acro...

In the past five years, the retail landscape and the relationship between consumers and businesses has shifted drastically. It wasn’t too long ago when shopping at malls was considered a family activity and consumers shopped at local stores where they knew and interacted with sales personnel. Today, however, malls and interactions with employees are relics that accurately portray the way retail used to work. Retail companies have shifted their consumer model to focus on the online market...

If defence is the best form of attack, then in security, planned preventative maintenance (PPM) is the best way to protect your business from harm. Also known as PPM, the service ensures that your security efforts are up-to-date and effective. In the latest how-to guide, discover the benefits of planned preventative maintenance and learn how to add PPM to your building. What is Planned Preventative Maintenance? You have installed all of the necessary security measures for your business, now wh...

Nowadays the Internet of Things has become an integral part of business around the world. The enhanced functionality made possible by the Internet of Things (IoT) and associated technologies are responsible for many of the major changes seen across society today. Video surveillance Video surveillance is one area that experiences substantial evolution driven by IoT technology. The intelligent monitors and sensors of the IoT combined with emerging high-speed network solutions promise to improve...

Enable third-party application system quickly to incorporate the visual data, as part of their solutions. Each and every user has a unique set of platforms that they need to efficiently run their business. In the security and surveillance field, increasing interest in visual sensor networks drives the development of multi-camera applications in private and public areas. Thus, middleware is needed to facilitate video data sharing connections between software platforms. It works like video plumbi...

Although video camera technology has been around since the early 1900s, it was not until the 1980s that video started to gain traction for security and surveillance applications. The pictures generated by these initial black and white tube cameras were grainy at best, with early colour cameras providing a wonderful new source of visual data for better identification accuracy. But by today’s standards, these cameras produced images that were about as advanced as crayons and coloring books....

Integrators need to be well versed in Total Cost of Ownership (TCO), when discussing video surveillance options with their customers. Business leaders are looking for the best, most economical technology that will address their security needs, and they also want to avoid being blind-sided by unplanned technology operations and service costs. While most folks understand that the initial cost of a video surveillance system is not the same as the total cost of ownership, many might be surprised to...

Back in 1890, Samuel Warren and Louis Brandeis published a ground-breaking article in the Harvard Law review called ‘The Right to Privacy’. To this day, it is regarded as one of the most influential essays in the history of American law and is widely regarded as the first publication in the United States of America to advocate a right to privacy, articulating that right primarily as a ‘right to be let alone’. In this essay, the authors questioned whether the arrival of p...

In the era of the ‘Great Resignation’, it may seem counterintuitive to say that people will power business security in 2022. However, a convergence of challenges over the past few years has led to an undeniable trend in the security industry: With more technology comes the need for more people to monitor, analyse and leverage the data that technology produces. Always-on approach to security Since businesses were forced into lockdown two years ago, we’ve seen technology adopti...

Most individuals have strong opinions about what is more essential to our civilisation: personal privacy or security. After more than a decade of technology enabling greater and greater amounts of Personally Identifiable Information (PII) and data harvesting, now the pendulum is swinging towards a society that places more emphasis on individual rights and privacies. This shift is manifesting in a variety of ways, quickly changing the technology, security and cyber security landscapes, and requi...

There is no denying that the COVID-19 pandemic has radically changed the way we work. In May 2021, 31% of the countries workforce was still working remotely, with 71% of businesses in professional, scientific, and technical industries remote-working. Work patterns shifting Although the conversation often focuses on office workers, the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the way many other, non-office sectors operate. In the security industry, since the introduction of lockdowns and social distancin...

Cloud-based applications and platforms revolutionise supply chain management, helping stakeholders scale operations from small businesses to complex enterprises. Cloud supply chain solutions are showing significant increases in implementation – so much so the sheer number of organisations with a cloud solution outpace or far outnumbers the ones that don't. But there is one area that has still not made the switch to the cloud, most often the security department. But the advent of using vid...

They say nothing stays the same for long, and this has never been truer than in today’s world of technology and innovation. The 21st century has seen rapid changes and every day brings a new update in one of the many segments of technology. Technology is evolving at such a rapid rate, due to a phenomenon dubbed accelerating change. Each new improvement is now a stepping stone, enabling stronger and better generations of technology, at faster speeds. Accelerating change evolving across all...

Businesses large and small rely on their CCTV systems to deter intruders and provide recorded evidence of security incidents. Overtime, CCTV has evolved to offer real-time intrusion detection and monitoring, and businesses now expect easy, secure and anytime access to cameras, and data. For that, they need connected CCTV systems. These modern installations can benefit from cellular connectivity, helping businesses protect their sites, while also supporting enhanced capabilities for CCTV to deliv...

In the new era of work, our relationship with the workplace is defined by flexibility and mobility. Employees are working across the home, office, and blended spaces more than ever before, as well as working varied hours to suit the modern work schedule.  This new hybrid workforce model holds the potential for more diverse talent and better productivity, but it also comes with its challenges – one being how to ensure security, health, and safety in the workplace.  Strong a...

Metal theft is nothing new, but the impact of the pandemic has left many in financial uncertainty, couple this with the rising price of metal, and one result is an increase in the level of acquisitive crime. It seems there is no limit to the types of materials stolen. Just recently, lead stolen from church roofs has caught the media’s attention again, but this type of theft reaches to more commonplace materials too, including steel, cast iron, and aluminium, and even items like street sig...

The COVID-19 pandemic is only accelerating the expansion of Automation, Robotics, Machine Learning (ML) and Artificial Intelligence (AI), and changing how people live their daily lives. This expansion leads the way with technologies that are developed to solve problems, improve operations, streamline processes and assist people, to focus on learning new skills, creativity, and imagination. Transformation of the physical security industry One of the latest industries to be permanently transform...

Today’s organisations face numerous diverse threats to their people, places and property, sometimes simultaneously. Security leaders now know all too well how a pandemic can cripple a company’s ability to produce goods and services, or force production facilities to shut down, disrupting business continuity. For example, a category three hurricane barreling towards the Gulf of Mexico could disable the supplier’s facilities, disrupt the supply chain and put unexpected pressure o...