Expert commentary

What factors should an end user consider when looking for a professional systems solution provider? Andrew Schonzeit, President of IDESCO Corp., New York, knows what it takes to have an award-winning, top-in-its class systems integration company. For more than seven decades, the company has grown, morphed and continued to move into the world of value-add integrated solutions contracting. They’ve received numerous industry and business accolades and increased their statur...

How will the UK's decision to leave the European Union affect security cooperation between its member countries and with European countries? 'Strength through unity' is the term being used by pro-European economists observing the fall-out from Brexit, but it's surely an even more pertinent phrase for the security sector and this is being underlined in the most unexpected quarters. Fifty-six percent of the referendum votes cast in Northern Ireland were for 'Remain' and even sta...

The market for smart buildings has expanded exponentially to greater benefits including life safety, security, and intelligence Much like the term “Internet of Things” or “IoT” the concept of “Smart Buildings” brings to mind many different ideas -- from programmable thermostats to touchless faucets to other green-building initiatives, with a focus on environmentally-friendly and energy efficient designs.  While the early days of smart b...

 Part 2 of our Security in Healthcare series The future is digital, and analogue systems are a thing of the past – or are they? The fact is, in the healthcare vertical at least, we may still have a way to go before the full potential of IP-based systems is realised. Obstacles include a lack of funding and the challenge of sharing IP bandwidth with other healthcare technologies. Bandwidth competition While many hospitals have invested significantly in IP syst...

The rate of adoption of mobile credentials will progress quickly, because of its exciting value proposition Cloud computing has been around for some time now, starting with the formal public Internet in 1990. But the nature of it has changed and evolved quickly and dramatically. Now, the cloud is becoming foundational to many emerging security applications, including mobile credentialing involving Near Field and Bluetooth communications, with the Internet of Things (loT) poise...

Budget cuts are causing councils to scale down their systems, or decommission them altogether Budget cuts in England and Wales are leading to cameras being switched off to save money. But why is this happening and what could be done to minimise the impact on public space CCTV systems? The UK could be described as the CCTV “capital” of the world, with between 4 million and 6 million cameras deployed, according to a British Security Industry Association study in 201...

Transport hubs will always be terrorist targets since people congregate in tight clusters (Image credit: deepspace / Shutterstock.com) The attack on Ataturk Airport, Istanbul, comes only three months after the bombing of Brussels Airport. Many are considering common elements in terms of modus operandi and likely perpetrators but the similarities are largely superficial. Airports, like any major transport hub, will always be terrorist targets since people congregate in tight...

DIY—the fastest-growing segment of the residential alarm market—has evolved from a niche trend into a major event in which the big dealers are “in” but the small dealers are not. But the good news is that new partnership programmes emerging from central stations are levelling the field so that even the smallest dealers can get themselves an “in.” Why board the DIY train in the first place? It’s become clear the DIY craze is here to stay, with capital in...

It is more complicated to search through video compared to text-based data Since the launch of Google’s search engine in 1998, Internet search has grown and expanded from desktops to mobile devices, generating over 3.5 billion searches of text, images and videos per day. One likely reason for this popularity is the search engine’s ability to immediately produce relevant results based on search criteria. The security industry, in contrast, has not always taken adv...

Revolving doors have been around for well over 100 years since their invention by Theophilus Van Kannel in 1888. As the story goes, Van Kannel, working in a lobby during a cold winter in Philadelphia, complained about the unpleasant effects of the swing door at the main entrance: “Every person passing through [the exterior door] first brings a chilling gust of wind with its snow or rain, and the noise of the street; then comes the unwelcome bang!” Van Kannel decided to do something...

 Part 1 of our Security in Healthcare series Hospitals have a continuous need for security, to update their systems,and to make repairs The healthcare vertical provides plenty of opportunities for security integrator companies. A single large hospital system can supply a dependable ongoing source of revenue to integrator companies, says David Alessandrini, Vice President, Pasek Corp., an integrator. Hospitals have a continuous need for security, to update their...

Angela White was sworn in as President-elect of ESA at the ESX show in June and will take office July 1 The Electronic Security Association (ESA) wrapped up its annual ESX conference June 8-10 at a new location in Fort Worth, Texas, with keynote speakers, educational sessions, networking events, exhibitions, awards and the installation of new officers. Logging its ninth year, ESX is jointly owned and sponsored by ESA and the Central Station Alarm Association (CSAA). This year&...

The days when Chinese video surveillance products were associated with lower quality are mostly gone now. Certainly, it’s easy enough to test the quality and functionality of any Chinese-made product in a shootout against products made anywhere in the world. In that sense, the quality of Chinese goods is no longer an obstacle for security customers: Their ability to judge quality for themselves eliminates any dependence on previously held opinions. But what about other preconceived ideas...

H.265 compression continued to be a popular topic from exhibitors on the second day of IFSEC Video beyond security, compression, HD over analogue and integration were on the lips of several exhibitors at IFSEC International 2016. Strangely for a security exhibition, there were plenty of exhibitors talking about non-security applications on the second day of IFSEC International in London. For Axis Communications, Atul Rajput, Regional Director for Northern Europe, said th...

H.265 compression, apps and the inherent security of security systems were some of the themes to be gleaned on the first day of IFSEC International. Almost every video exhibitor I saw on day one of the show mentioned that many of their products use H.265 compression in these days of high definition, bandwidth-hungry cameras. Over at Vivotek’s stand, for example, Emilio Sanchez, project consultant, spoke of the company’s H.265 Smart Stream compression algorithm. He said this saves an...

The unfortunate reality in today’s world is that everyday places in our communities that were once thought of as safe – hospitals, schools, shopping malls and office buildings – are now places where people are at an increased risk for being injured by gun violence. Increase in gun violence Shocking incidents of active shootings have become all too common where we work, learn, relax and recuperate.  In the wake of the Orlando Pulse shooting, it’s hard to forget that...

This SourceSecurity.com Technology Report will describe one of those analogue HD-over-coax technologies, HDCVI 3.0 by Dahua, which is poised to have a dramatic impact on the video market in the next several years. New capabilities of HDCVI 3.0 include broad compatibility with a range of other (even competing) technologies; higher resolutions including Ultra HD (UHD) or 4K; and intelligent functions comparable to those available in IP systems. What's inside? What is...

There is a contrast between high levels of security inside Westminster and little to no security outside the safe environment The fatal attack on 41-year-old Jo Cox, a Labour member of the British Parliament, on the street in her district in West Yorkshire in Northern England, is increasing calls for greater security of Members of Parliament (MPs). Cox was stabbed and shot to death June 16th outside a library in Birstall, where she was meeting with constituents. There have be...

No matter how strong the security planning, it will take only one small failure tocreate an opportunity for unimaginable events(Photo credit: Marco Iacobucci EPP / Shutterstock.com) Successful security at UEFA Euro 2016 may well depend on the ability of the French to bring cohesiveness to disparate technologies. Given the scale of the threats, a variety of security solutions are being used visibly and behind the scenes – in addition to the presence of 90,000 police, gend...

Organisations have a duty of care to protect their employees wherever they work. But in the increasingly complex world that we all live in, the ability to deliver a risk-commensurate and cost-efficient security programme that adds real value to a business is extremely challenging, according to IFSEC International 2016 speaker Frank Cannon. He will be speaking on developing an employee security awareness programme in the Security Management Theatre at IFSEC International in London o...

IPVideo Corporation, Bay Shore, New York, recently announced a new OEM agreement with Milestone Systems Inc., Beaverton, Oregon, in an effort to provide deeper and wider options in its portfolio of video management solutions. According to Steve Rice, Director of Business Development, the partnership will allow the company to reach a broader number of enterprise customers and provide them with distinct choices – and two completely different video management system (VMS) offerings. On the t...

Porter will tell IFSEC attendees about an upcoming National Surveillance Camera Strategy The Surveillance Camera Commissioner for England and Wales, Tony Porter, will be speaking at IFSEC International 2016 on how compliance with the U.K. Surveillance Camera Code of Practice can ensure that CCTV systems are operated proportionately, transparently and effectively. Porter has certainly been busy in the two years since his appointment by the Home Secretary. He has the difficult...

A “smart home” featuring networked security devices and other home automation products will be new to IFSEC International 2016 in June. This replica smart home will be at the heart of the new home automation zone at IFSEC International (London, 21-23 June). The smart home will feature CCTV, intruder alarms, biometric readers, door entry solutions and locks, as well as wireless blinds, lighting and heating control, and 4K video and audio distribution. “These features, along wi...

The growing sales of IP-based solutions in the surveillance market is a well-discussed topic. Security companies are rushing to grab a slice of this lucrative pie. However, at the same time, analogue surveillance systems have continued to retain their appeal for many end users. Aware of this demand, some companies have continued to develop technology for analogue solutions despite the IP trend. One company driving this force is Nextchip, the company behind AHD™. Up until rec...

A public facility with too much security or the wrong kind  of security can discourage the public from visiting (Photo credit: Steve Williams Photography) The lethal November 2015 terrorist attacks against several soft targets in Paris have inspired changes in security at facilities considered soft targets across the United States and around the world. Today’s security directors well understand that “it can happen here.” To be clear, it probably won&rs...

Hikvision website’s “Security Center” provides cybersecurity informationand tools for integrators and end users The time is now to address the impact of cybersecurity threats on the IP video market. In the case of video surveillance systems, the main motives of cyber-attackers are usually to either cover up video evidence of crimes or to gain access to video that should be private. “The use of video surveillance is growing across North America, not j...

ONVIF's 1.0 Core Specification debuted in 2008 at Security Essen The adoption of the ONVIF protocol by manufacturers continues to grow. Last year, the number of member companies in the ONVIF forum exceeded 500 and more than 5,000 products are currently certified on the ONVIF website. How did ONVIF achieve this amazing result and experience this wild adoption? More than a decade ago, every manufacturer was defining their own protocols and pushing for Video Management Software...

Multiple trends point to a maturing video analytics market that is poised to meet or even exceed customer expectations Systems that use video analytics, also known as video content analysis, have a chequered history in the security market. Since the technology was introduced amid much fanfare a dozen or more years ago, opinions about video analytics have sometimes been undermined by systems that did not live up to the initial hype. In fact, early failures continue to taint per...

The landscape for end-to-end solutions is not designed to address thelong-term evolving needs of customers The video surveillance industry has reached an important crossroads where manufacturers can choose to continue in one direction that solely focuses on their own products and profits, or to move forward in another direction that emphasises building partnerships for the greater good of the community. On one side lies the short road of end-to-end, proprietary solutions fro...

The integration of H.265 technology may be hindered by the availability of optimised H.264 best encoding for surveillance systems Video compression technology has been a crucial element in surveillance system design since the advent of Internet Protocol (IP) in the 1990s. Since that time, standards for video encoding have been explored in various capacities. Currently, the industry is all abuzz around H.265 High Efficiency Video Coding – the next iteration beyond H.264,...