Artificial intelligence (AI)

Genetec Inc., a renowned technology provider of unified security, public safety, operations, and business intelligence solutions announced the immediate availability of its next-generation mobile license plate recognition system. The new AutoVu SharpZ3 goes beyond traditional license plate identification and brings new levels of insight in vehicle analytics, situational awareness, and accuracy. Mobile ANPR Ideally suited to meet the needs of parking managers who use mobile ANPR as part of their enforcement activities, the new SharpZ3 can help them track the types of vehicle (car, van, truck, bus, motorcycle) in parking lots or around the city, and analyze the evolution of the mix of vehicle types over time. SharpZ3 allows patrols to flag vehicles based on vehicle type and color For law enforcement officers who use mobile ANPR to aid investigations, the SharpZ3 allows patrols to flag vehicles based on vehicle type and color where no license plate was identified by a witness. Computer vision technology “Traditional ANPR systems solve traditional parking and law enforcement challenges, like finding vehicles of interest and parking violators,” said Stephan Kaiser, AutoVu General Manager at Genetec. “The SharpZ3 tackles emerging problems that are not served by current technology, helping customers gain new insights into the types of vehicles in their city and how their streets and curbs are used.” The AutoVu™ SharpZ3 is among the first specialized in-vehicle ANPR systems in the world to use Intel’s latest machine learning and computer vision technology to unlock new insights through innovative analytics. The AutoVu SharpZ3 system will not only be able to improve the accuracy of license plate reads in difficult environments (such as bad weather, heavy traffic, and fast speeds), but will also be able to record additional vehicle characteristics such as, vehicle type, color, and more, in real-time, and without requiring large amounts of bandwidth. ANPR-equipped vehicles With its modular design, SharpZ3 gives users the flexibility to add new functionalities over time Designed with a third optical sensor, the AutoVu SharpZ3 can accurately capture multiple plate designs in complex urban environments. These include flat, embossed, reflective and non-reflective license plates. The extra sensor will also allow more precise positioning of vehicle data on maps to provide more precise occupancy data than before. With its modular design, the SharpZ3 gives users the flexibility to add new functionalities over time. This reduces the complication and cost of hardware replacement. With future releases, the machine learning capabilities in the AutoVu SharpZ3 will enable a number of new potential applications such as enabling cities to use their ANPR-equipped vehicles to address other operational issues including detecting unpermitted road construction, discovering abandoned e-scooters or bikes in unauthorized zones, and more. Operations and intelligence solutions The AutoVu SharpZ3, and the complete portfolio of Genetec security, operations and intelligence solutions will be on display April 20-22, 2020 at Genetec Connect’DX (#GenetecConnectDX), the company’s three-day, live, virtual tradeshow.

This year Counter-Terror Expo (CTX) and IFSEC International will co-locate for the first time, creating the UK’s largest security event. The two events will take place simultaneously from 19-21 May 2020 at the ExCeL, London. CTX brings together international specialists and experts from industry, government and policing to share ideas and technology within the counter-terrorism field. The content program will feature themes including drone threats and response, securing major events and public spaces, perimeter and access security, counter surveillance, threat forecasting and prevention, cyber threat detection and mitigation. IFSEC, one of UK and Europe’s most popular security events, will welcome tens of thousands of security professionals and provide valuable opportunities to meet with buyers and customers across the supply chain. Discuss technologies in crucial areas The first-time co-location of these two key industry events will allow attendees from the broader security and protection sectors to join with counter-terror stakeholders to source and discuss technologies in crucial areas including surveillance, venue security, AI, access control, transport security and more. Co-locating CTX with IFSEC opens the event to a wider and more international audience, which is a win-win" Exhibitors have praised the co-location of the two shows. Antonia McIntosh, Marketing Specialist at Fischer Connections said, “Fischer Connectors is looking forward to be exhibiting at CTX again and as part of the show’s continued growth and popularity, we’re excited to see it co-located with IFSEC which will give us the opportunity to showcase our products and meet and engage with even more visitors representing all aspects of the security supply chain, all under one roof.” More international audience Nick Booth, VP Marketing at Blighter Surveillance Systems Ltd said, “Co-locating CTX with IFSEC opens the event to a wider and more international audience, which is a win-win for both visitors and exhibitors alike.” CTX and IFSEC will also be joined by further co-located events within ExCeL – Forensics Europe Expo, Intelligent Building Europe, FIREX International, Safety & Health Expo, Facilities Show and Workplace Wellbeing Show.

Videonetics, an international provider of AI & DL powered Unified Video Computing Platform development company, has announced a distribution partnership with Spectra Innovations Pte Ltd, Singapore, to offer their complete array of products and solutions across the South East Asia and ASEAN region. Headquartered in Singapore, Spectra Innovations Pte Ltd has an established network of certified channel partners, system integrators, training and support specialists in South East Asia and ASEAN countries. Through this partnership, Spectra is all set to offer Videonetics AI & DL powered Unified Video Computing Platform encompasses Intelligent VMS, Artificial Intelligence & Deep Learning Video Analytics, Intelligent Traffic Management System and Facial Recognition Software. Video Analytics solutions We are pleased to enter into this value-added distribution relationship with Spectra" On the appointment, Avinash Trivedi, VP – Business Development, Videonetics expressed, “We are pleased to enter into this value-added distribution relationship with Spectra and introduce our indigenous offerings in the ever-growing markets of SEA and ASEAN region. As ranked amongst the top 5 VMS providers in Asia, Videonetics continues to increase focus and investment globally." "I am assured that Spectra’s remarkable management capabilities and extensive partner network, combined with Videonetics’s state-of-the-art solutions will cater to growing demand for truly unified solutions in different verticals such as safe & smart city, aviation, transportation, critical infrastructures, heavy engineering, healthcare, education and retail to name a few.” Affordable and deployable “Spectra is pleased to be appointed as a Regional Distributor of Videonetics. With the adoption of CCTV gaining acceptance beyond just surveillance into sectors such as garbage management under Smart City initiative, loss prevention applications in retail, logistics and warehouses, productivity improvements in factories to name a few, the need for VMS and Video Analytics solutions are becoming affordable and deployable in mass scale today” said Kanwal Sahney, Managing Director, Spectra Innovations Pte Ltd.

Motorola Solutions, a global pioneer in responsible video analytics, announced the newest addition to its video security and analytics portfolio, Avigilon Control Center (ACC) 7.6. ACC™ 7.6 is the company’s most recent video management software release, enabling enterprise customers to better monitor their facilities through new AI-powered facial recognition features and analytics. The introduction of this technology is a part of Motorola Solutions’ ongoing commitment to creating state-of-the-art solutions that address enterprise safety needs while safeguarding individual privacy rights and enforcing the responsible use of analytics and data management. Facial recognition capabilities In keeping with this commitment, the new video management capabilities in ACC 7.6 include robust controls to govern the retention and accessibility of watch list data, the ability to create and manage multiple watch lists from within ACC and the option to upload reference images to a watch list. These features are built into the solution natively, meaning that the technology is developed and owned by Motorola Solutions as opposed to a third-party vendor. In addition, the new facial recognition capabilities do not make consequential decisions or initiate actions on their own. The data that are entered and saved in the watch lists are managed and maintained by the enterprise customers employing the technology. Vigilance across school campuses “When leveraged responsibly, facial recognition is an incredibly powerful tool that can assist in numerous ways, including helping enterprise organizations make better informed decisions that empower them to respond to events proactively,” said John Kedzierski, senior vice president, Video Security Solutions, Motorola Solutions. “For our enterprise customers, we believe potential facial recognition matches should always be assessed and verified by a trained specialist who can then determine whether further investigation or action is necessary.” ACC 7.6 features Unusual Activity Detection analytics that provide site-wide intelligence For example, with the heightened vigilance across school campuses, district officials are able to employ the technology to ensure that anyone deemed a threat to the students and staff on campus has their photo added to the system. When there is a face match made against the watch list, the school’s security operators receive a notification so that they can take proactive measures to assess the situation and ensure the safety of students and staff. Unusual Activity Detection analytics In addition to new watch list and facial recognition capabilities, ACC 7.6 features Unusual Activity Detection analytics that provide site-wide intelligence with the ability to recognize out-of-ordinary activity such as unusual speed of movement or location of people or vehicles. This edge-based intelligence distinguishes between typical and abnormal events by continuously learning what usual activity might be for a scene over time. For example, if there is an individual running through a crowded mall, a security guard could be alerted in Focus of Attention to locate where the individual is and take measures to understand the situation. ACC 7.6 is ONVIF Profile G compliant and will be available for preview at Motorola Solutions’ first-ever virtual showcase taking place March 18-20, 2020.

A person infected with the Coronavirus (COVID-19) infects an average of 2.5 other people within five days. You do not need to be a mathematician to realize that early detection of infected people is key to successful pandemic containment. The aim of effective containment strategies is therefore not so much to reduce the number of absolute cases as it is to extend the time frame within which they occur. Without effective containment measures, the virus spreads rapidly and is beyond the capacity of the health care system. However, if infection rates can be minimized through early detection and rapid, targeted identification of further infections, cases will continue to occur over a longer period of time and remain within the capacity of the health care system. Identifying, testing and results For example, the goal of many countries is to carry out as many Corona tests as possible to quickly identify infected people. It is then necessary to identify and reach potentially-infected people and isolate them in quarantine. This is a tried and tested procedure. But this method also costs valuable time in the fight against the virus and has many unknowns. The determination of a concrete test result alone sometimes takes up to 48 hours due to limited laboratory capacity. Added to this is the imprecise and slow procedure for determining contact persons. Or do you still remember exactly who and where you shook hands with in the last ten days - and could you provide information on this? Security technology to the rescue When it comes to the time factor, security technology can be a great help. Thermal imaging cameras and temperature sensors, for example, can help to detect a person with elevated body temperatures. Fever can also be one of the symptoms in those infected with the Coronavirus. At neuralgic points such as airports and train stations, or at entrances to hospitals, thermal imaging cameras can quickly reveal which people have fever. Presumably infected people can be easily separated and asked about other symptoms. Physical security technology can make a great contribution here. Dr. Frank Gillert, a professor at the University of Applied Sciences in Wildau, Germany states, however, as one of the leading scientists for logistics-centric security research, he demands "rapid innovation in dealing with situations like COVID-19 should be a priority". He sees enormous potential in the possibilities of IT and artificial intelligence; "We should use the disruptive changes that are currently taking place and that are challenging global orders to strengthen the significance in IT infrastructure development and also in security technology development.“ The goal in a global crisis And he is right: In global crises such as the Corona pandemic, security-related deficits become apparent and space is created for technical innovations. The goal of governments and companies is to restore security and save human lives as quickly as possible. The German data analytics powerhouse G2K, for example, has developed a Corona Detection & Containment System (CDCS) that is ready for immediate use in record time. Detection takes place in combination with AI-supported data analysis to specifically identify virus hotspots and distribution routes, as well as to identify other potentially infected persons. When developing the system, the focus was on two questions: How do I detect a suspected infected person in crowded environments and even more importantly, how do I quickly and comprehensively determine the person's contacts and previous whereabouts, and find correlations and patterns in this information? The data experts of the Berlin-based company found the answer in the combination of physical security technology and their existing data analytics platform. The G2K system The system is based on G2K's scalable IoT platform "Situational Awareness Builder" (SAB), which is already in use in several projects worldwide and sets standards in process automation and process optimization, including security management. As soon as a person with fever is detected by the system, he or she can be immediately screened to avoid contact with other people and thus prevent possible new infections, i.e. to interrupt the chain of infection. For this purpose, stationary thermal imaging cameras or smartphones equipped with a temperature sensor accessory can be used. The potentially infected person must now be registered and referred to a doctor or hospital for further specific diagnostic measures. The entire process is covered by a mobile G2K application. A combination of security and medicine The platform can bring together available hospital capacity, infection reports, movement and contact profiles and provide an excellent picture of the source of infection. Thus, medically necessary isolations can be implemented quickly. At the same time, infected patients can use the app to document their recovery and become actively involved. All this data is centrally managed and analysed, using deep learning methods. This provides crisis managers with a single monitoring, control and resource management tool that enables immediate action to be taken to combat the spread of the virus and gives officials full transparency on the status of the pandemic. Karsten Neugebauer, founder and CEO of the company behind the solution, explains his commitment as follows "A few weeks ago we too were faced with increasing difficulties due to the Corona crisis. As we have a strong presence in Europe in particular, we had to struggle with postponed project starts and limited resources". But instead of burying their heads in the sand, G2K's dedicated team decided to declare war on the virus." "In our entrepreneurial duty, we, therefore, decided to use our available technology and equip it to fight COVID-19. Our team has been working day and night over the last few weeks to expand our software platform to enable us to contain the pandemic quickly and effectively. Politicians must now immediately push ahead with the unbureaucratic implementation of prevention and control measures such as our CDCS to ensure the stability of our public systems," demands Karsten Neugebauer. The pandemic continues As the COVID-19 pandemic spreads from continent to continent, researchers around the world are working to develop antidotes to the virus. As long as this has not been found, the spread of the virus must be slowed down internationally. Only by this can system-relevant infrastructure be held consistently. Combining modern physical security technology with platform technology and artificial intelligence provides an excellent possibility to slow down the current and for sure, future pandemics.

Artificial Intelligence. You’ve heard the words in just about every facet of our lives, just two words, and they’re quite possibly the most moving, life-changing words employed in everyday conversations. So what exactly is AI, who currently uses it and should be using it? What is AI? AI is a powerful way of collecting, qualifying and quantifying data toward a meaningful conclusion to help us reach decisions more quickly or automate processes which could be considered mundane or repetitive. AI in its previous state was known as “machine learning” or “machine processing” which has evolved into “deep learning” or, here in the present, Artificial Intelligence. AI as it applies to the security and surveillance industry provides us the ability to discover and process meaningful information more quickly than at any other time in modern history. Flashback - VCR tapes, blurred images, fast-forward, rewind and repeat. This process became digital, though continued to be very time-consuming. Today’s surveillance video management systems have automated many of these processes with features like “museum search” seeking an object removed from a camera view or “motion detection” to create alerts when objects move through a selected viewpoint. These features are often confused with AI, and are really supportive analytics of the Artificial Intelligence, not AI themselves. Machine Learning Fully appreciating AI means employment of a machine or series of machines to collect, process and produce information obtained from basic video features or analytics. What the machines learn depends on what is asked of them. The truth is, the only way the AI can become meaningful is if there is enough information learned to provide the results desired. If there isn’t enough info, then we must dig deeper for information or learn more, properly described as “deep-learning” AI. Translated, this means that we need to learn more on a deeper level in order to obtain the collaborative combined information necessary to produce the desired result. Deep learning AI Deep learning AI can afford us the ability to understand more about person characteristic traits & behaviors. Applying this information can then further be applied to understand how to interpret patterns of behavior with the end goal of predictable behavior. This prediction requires some degree of human interpretation so that we are able to position ourselves to disrupt patterns of negative behavior or simply look for persons of interest based on these patterns of behavior. These same patterns evolve into intelligence which over time increases the machine’s ability to more accurately predict patterns that could allow for actions to be taken as a result. This intelligence which is now actionable could translate to life safety such as stopping a production manufacturing process, if a person were to move into an area where they shouldn’t be which might put them in danger. Useful applications of intelligence  Informative knowledge or intelligence gathered could be useful in retail applications as well by simply collecting traffic patterns as patrons enter a showroom. This is often displayed in the form of heat mapping of the most commonly traveled paths or determining choke points that detract from a shopper’s experience within the retail establishment. It could also mean relocating signage to more heavily traveled foot-paths to gain the highest possible exposure to communicating a sale or similar notice, perhaps lending itself to driving higher interest to a sale or product capability. Some of this signage or direction could even translate to increased revenues by realigning the customer engagement and purchasing points. Actionable Intelligence From a surveillance perspective, AI could be retranslated to actionable intelligence by providing behavioral data to allow law enforcement to engage individuals with malicious intent earlier, thus preventing crimes in whole or in part based on previously learned data. The data collection points now begin to depart from a more benign, passive role into an actionable role. As a result, new questions are being asked regarding the cameras intended purpose or role of its viewpoint such as detection, observation, recognition or identification. Detecting human presence By way of example, a camera or data collector may need to detect human presence, as well as positively identify who the person is. So the analytic trip line is crossed or motion box activated or counter-flow is detected which then creates an alert for a guard or observer to take action. Further up the food chain, a supervisor is also notified and the facial characteristics are captured. These remain camera analytics, but now we feed this collected facial information to a graphic processing unit (GPU) which could be employed to compare captured characteristics with pre-loaded facial characteristics. When the two sources are compared and a match produced, an alert could be generated which results in an intervention or other similar action with the effort of preventing a further action. This process- detect, disrupt, deter or detain could be considered life-saving by predictably displaying possible outcomes in advance of the intended actions. The next level is deep-learning AI which employs the same characteristics to determine where else within the CCTV ecosystem the individual may have been previously by comparatively analyzing other collected video data. This becomes deep-learning AI when the GPU machine is able to learn from user-tagged positive identification, which the machine learns and begins to further reprocess its own data to further understand where else the person of interest (POI) may have existed on the ecosystem and more correctly improve its own predictive capabilities, thus becoming faster at displaying alerts and better at the discovery of previously archived video data. The future In conclusion, the future of these “predictables” wholly rests in the hands of the purchasing end-user. Our job is to help everyone understand the capabilities and theirs is to continue to make the investment so that the research perpetuates upon itself. Just think where we’d be if purchasers didn’t invest in the smartphone?    

With the start of the 2020s, many security industry experts are reflecting on the emerging technologies over the past decade and looking forward to what is in store in the future. Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a buzzword that has infiltrated everyday nomenclature throughout the past decade. Every industry from healthcare, to banking, to security has implemented some form of AI that is touted as the hidden key to maximizing productivity and/or security. However, AI technology is still in its infancy and is not the panacea that many cybersecurity experts claim. Why AI is more hype than reality AI is a nascent technology and has limited practical applications Today, AI is a nascent technology and has limited practical applications because it’s still difficult to understand the rational that is used by the machine learning algorithms for making their decisions. As a result of this limited understanding, these technologies are only leveraged for pinpointed functionality. For example, AI can be designed to analyze data for specific threats, such as malware, but AI technology is only as good as the data it analyzes and cannot be fully trusted to discover new threats that emerge on their own. Furthermore, even when a threat is detected by AI, humans are still needed to confirm that a real risk is present. The value of AI in security today AI undoubtedly has its place in today’s security space. Government agencies and the military use AI to comb through hundreds of hours of call data to try to isolate terrorist or criminal activity. In its current state, AI can successfully review large amounts of data and automate repetitive tasks. The results of these services are helpful as additional data points, but at this time it makes more sense to use AI as helper technology rather than fully relying on AI to ultimately make decisions for organizations. Furthermore, AI can be utilized in access management to watch the habits of individuals and identify actions that stray outside the norm. For example, if a user logs into a system outside the normal working hours, AI can identify this anomaly and utilize step-up authentication to further validate the user should be granted access. AI can also be leveraged for access certification campaigns by providing scoring that helps approvers prioritize their efforts on certifications with low scores. However, algorithms should not be trusted to make higher stake decisions. This is because AI cannot currently be taught or programmed with the intuition that humans naturally possess, making the risk of a breach or other security threat is considerably higher. As computing power rapidly grows, so will the future of AI capabilities AI will continue to grow from its infancy into a more useful and robust tool In this next decade, AI will continue to grow from its infancy into a more useful and robust tool that companies can utilize to keep their assets and people safe. There will be a point where AI reaches a mature stage where it can truly think and learn on its own; computing power has grown exponentially in the last decade and will only continue to grow more in the next. This increase in computing power opens up a limitless number of possibilities for AI usage, especially as humans perfect and refine AI’s algorithms. For now, AI has a place in today’s security industry and has already proven to be adept at identifying threats and making society safer. While this is helpful, humans remain as a critical factor in evaluating threats. I believe that the future of AI is bright, and fully expect that our capabilities around explainable AI will rapidly advance thus providing many opportunities to leverage these technologies in a fully autonomous capacity in the not-to-distant future.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will be participating at ISC West in a big way. Representatives of the federal department will be taking part in more education sessions this year, and the DHS tech-scouting team will be on hand to view the latest technologies on display at the show. Exhibitors – and anyone else at the show – are invited to the “DHS Town Hall” on March 19 (Thursday) at 3:30 p.m. in meeting room Galileo 1001. The aim is for DHS to engage with the technology community and provide guidance as industry innovation moves forward. In the face of growing operational demands and complex threats, the need for homeland security technology solutions continues to rise. The Department of Homeland (DHS) is seeking new ideas and partners to safeguard public trust, save lives, reduce risks, and protect the flow of commerce and goods for the community. They will share information about the department’s problem sets, capability needs and business opportunities for accelerating technology development to ensure they are keeping pace with the speed of innovation and complex threats. Speaking at ISC West DHS seeks to challenge industry partners to develop technology to enhance security operations across multiple end user missions. The DHS Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) and Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) will jointly speak and exhibit at ISC West. Attendees can meet DHS professionals working in cyber security, critical infrastructure, resilience, aviation security, border and port operations, and first responder capabilities. Attendees are invited to visit the DHS exhibit booth #33040 in the Drones and Robotics Zone. The DHS Town Hall on Thursday, titled “Enhancing Security and Doing Business at the Speed of Life,” will be a “call to action” for show participants to help secure the future. DHS seeks to become more agile and to pursue new pathways to do business in a fast-moving world. Through strategic partnerships, DHS is mobilizing the innovation community to safeguard the public trust. Security sessions DHS will also be participating in these sessions at ISC West, March 17-20 at the Sands Expo, Las Vegas, Nev: You Say It’s Going to Change the World? Tues., March 17, 9:45 a.m., Sands 302. Security relies on anticipating what comes next and staying a step ahead. How will 5G increase secure capabilities and reduce threats from bad actors? How will blockchain secure personal and financial identity and when will quantum computing render all encryption obsolete? How is DHS investing in counter-drones? How does AI change the security landscape? The New Federal Security Landscape – Are You Prepared? Wed., March 18, 1 p.m., Sands 302. The federal security landscape is evolving alongside the private sector. What are the new high-risk areas of concern and how are emerging threats (cyber, UAS) changing the way federal facilities are protected? How are these new risks balanced against traditional ones? How is the Interagency Security Committee (ISC) responding? DHS panelists will discuss. CISA Special Guest Speaker at SIA Interopfest. Wed., March 18, 4 p.m., Sands 701. Daryle Hernandez, Chief, Interagency Security Committee, DHS, Infrastructure Security Division, will provide insights to complement the technology interoperability demonstrations. Enhancing Security Through UAS Technology, A DHS Perspective. Thurs., March 19, 11:30 a.m., Venetian Ballroom. What is DHS doing today to prepare for a future of increased visualization and automation? New questions are emerging around capabilities and vulnerabilities. Emerging technologies like AR, Next Gen Sensors, and UAS, provide the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) with tools to become more responsive and adaptive to new threats.

Security’s intersection with consumer electronics is on view at CES 2020, the world’s largest technology event, Jan. 7-10 in Las Vegas. The giant show features more than 170,000 attendees, 4,500 exhibitors and 1,100 industry thought-leaders featured on the CES stage. A range of technologies will be on display, from artificial intelligence (AI) to 5G, vehicle technology to AR/VR (augmented and virtual reality), robotics to home automation. Security plays a prominent role, too.The impact of this event for the smart home could be about delivering home analytics and enhancing privacy" Smart home market on the forefront The smart home market is a major focus. “For the smart home market at CES this year, we expect to see numerous announcements regarding home awareness,” says Blake Kozak, Senior Principal Analyst at IHS Markit. “This will include brands offering up additional analytics for consumer security cameras with a focus on edge-based solutions.” “The impact of this [event] for the smart home could be about delivering home analytics and enhancing privacy through cloudless architectures and new electronic door lock approaches,” he adds. An example of cloud analytics is the Resideo Home app, introduced in December, which will make whole-home monitoring possible for four critical networks of the home – water, air, energy and security. Resideo promises a “simplified and integrated smart home experience.” Video is also prominent at the show. “For cameras, we can expect to see more cameras focused on the outdoor space and possibly new form factors for video doorbells,” says Kozak. Familiar security industry brands exhibiting at CES 2020 include ADT, Ring, August Home and Yale (both part of ASSA ABLOY), Bosch and Alarm.com. Focus on Cybersecurity In 2020, companies will continue to focus on solutions for protecting consumer data" Cybersecurity is an aspect of many of the devices on display at CES. “Device security and data privacy play a key role in the adoption of connected devices,” says Elizabeth Parks, President, Parks Associates. “Consumer security concerns for smart home products will continue to be a barrier to adoption in the U.S. and Europe, and these concerns can actually intensify with device adoption-71% of U.S. smart home households are concerned about cybersecurity. In 2020, companies will continue to focus on solutions for protecting consumer data. One big area of interest is protection on the network router, providing whole home solutions, which are very appealing to consumers.” “At CES we will see the traditional players introducing new DIY (do-it-yourself) products, as well as new players announcing new product features, services, and partnerships,” Parks adds. Smart access control Smart locks will be among the security products at CES 2020. For example, PassiveBolt, a lock company, will show the Shepherd Lock, a touch-enabled smart lock with enhanced security through sensors and AI. The add-on lock converts existing locksets into touch-activated devices. Another lock manufacturer is Kwikset, whose door locks and door hardware include Wi-Fi-enabled smart locks, Bluetooth-enabled smart locks, keyless and keyway-less locks and connected home technology. Video doorbells, including industry-innovator Ring, have been a hit in the consumer market. At CES, Ring will expand the mission to make neighborhoods safer by creating a “Ring of Security” around homes and communities with a suite of home security products and services. The “Neighbors by Ring” app enables affordable, complete, proactive home and neighborhood security. Homeguard offers a range of affordable CCTV solutions for home and small business DIY CCTV demonstrations DIY security systems are another market. Homeguard is a leading DIY consumer brand offering a range of affordable CCTV solutions for home and small business, including wired and wireless CCTV kits, smart cameras, home alarm systems and wire-free HD CCTV kits. Swann Communications is also at the forefront of surveillance and monitoring with new products developments including wire-free HD cameras and doorbells, professional CCTV video surveillance systems, and 1080p full HD systems with “True Detect” heat and motion sensing. AVTECH, and subsidiary YesGo Tech, will demonstrate a compact Wi-Fi home security set, a series of special cameras with face recognition, thermal detection and license plate recognition, customized central management software and a university ID tag that is compatible with access control, OEM and ODM opportunities. Security and automation solutions D-Link’s home networking, security and automation solutions will help consumers connect, view, share, entertain, work and play. SECO-LARM, manufacturer of a Room Occupancy Monitor that shows whether a room is in use, has a line of keypads and proximity readers with built-in Bluetooth for convenient access. Another smart home security solutions provider, Climax Technology, integrates wireless security, home automation, energy management, home emergency monitoring and live visual monitoring. Personal safety mobile application Manufacturers are positioning outdoor cameras as deterrents to theft before a burglary happens" WaryMe designs and develops a personal safety mobile application to improve a user’s security in public places, schools, transports and companies by addressing major risks such as terrorism attacks, intrusion, fire and even industrial accidents. An all-in-one mobile application integrates alerting, crisis management and mass notification features. “Market players are looking to expand beyond established smart home devices like smart thermostats and networked cameras to products like smart water leak detectors, smart pet feeders, and smart air purifiers,” says Elizabeth Parks. “Manufacturers are positioning outdoor cameras as deterrents to theft before a burglary happens. This trend is part of a broader security marketing effort to extend the perimeter of home security beyond traditional home access points.” “Familiarity with smart home devices lags behind familiarity with smart entertainment products; it even lags that of smart speakers, which are quite new in the market,” adds Parks. “In 2020, we will see players working to advance the visibility and marketing around device integration, and specifically focus on use case scenarios around safety, security, and convenience, which have always been the primary drivers of adoption of these types of products.”

Technology is expanding passenger screening functions and other capabilities at airport security checkpoints. For example, Smiths Detection is exploring the concept of a security checkpoint that integrates biometric identity management with screening solutions, says Richard Thompson, Global Market Director Aviation, Smiths Detection. Biometrics is the “unique identifier’” for passengers, and through integration of biometrics directly into the checkpoint, passengers can be matched with their luggage trays to enable real-time risk-based screening (RBS). The system is now able to trigger differentiated workflows for each passenger and their bags. Risk-based screening Risk-based screening optimizes security operator resources through enhanced screening of passengers who represent a higher risk, while passengers deemed to be low risk enjoy a more seamless journey.Passengers deemed to be low risk enjoy a more seamless journey Easily integrated with existing infrastructure, biometric checkpoints deliver operational efficiencies and a competitive advantage to airports through accelerating the screening process, thus enabling a more seamless free flow of passengers. Passenger and tray identification Through passenger and tray identification, new data insights can also be gathered to inform decision-making. Advanced data analysis based on flights, airlines or destinations could be utilized by airlines and security authorities. For example, airlines could monitor passenger flow through security for specific flights or track the number of trays per flight to predict overhead compartment capacity. Checkpoint data could also be combined with hold luggage screening results or shared with transit and arrival airports to better inform security assessments. Advanced data analysis based on flights, airlines or destinations could be utilized by airlines and security authorities Advanced screening of carry-on baggage Smiths Detection’s HI-SCAN 6040 CTiX offers advanced screening of carry-on baggage using Computed Tomography (CT), an advanced X-ray technology originally intended for medical applications, which allows for detailed, layered 3D images to be rotated and dissected. Electronic devices and liquids do not need to be removed from baggageThis enables detailed detection, meaning electronic devices and liquids do not need to be removed from baggage, thus expediting screening and further improving the passenger journey. Smith Detection’s iLane.evo is an automatic tray return system. By delivering a steady flow of trays, it plays a critical role in streamlining the screening process and delivering increased throughput; optimized operational costs; and an improved passenger experience. AI for Object Recognition In other trends, the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in aviation security is on the rise due to the exponential growth in computing power. It has the potential to significantly boost the performance of screening equipment – allowing for the deployment of new object recognition functions at the checkpoint, which could pave the way for a more automated, alarm-resolution-only passenger screening. Smiths Detection has developed a family of smart algorithms, called iCMORE, which use machine learning to reliably detect prohibited or dangerous goods in baggage, including weapons, to reduce the burden on image analysts and improve screening outcomes.

AI technology solutions firm, Athena Security is rolling out a line of artificial intelligent thermal cameras, which will be critical in the coming weeks. Containing Covid-19 spread With voters congregating at the primary polls in three US states, exponential spread of the Coronavirus (Covid-19) is inevitable. The infected voters, many of whom will be ignorant that they have the contracted the virus, will spread it to countless others. In the coming weeks, those infected with the virus will need full awareness of their state of health to prevent further spread of the infection. High-tech AI thermal cameras AI thermal cameras can be life-saving by giving instant warning to the person that they could have the virus Taking into consideration that high temperature is one of the first symptoms of Coronavirus (Covid-19) infection, these high-tech AI thermal cameras can be life-saving by giving instant warning to the person that they could have the virus and encouraging that person to take serious steps to self-quarantine immediately. Although many voters are bound to contract Coronavirus (Covid-19) when casting votes, steps taken in the coming weeks could prevent those infected from spreading it to loved ones and strangers alike. Some details surrounding the AI thermal cameras include: The cameras capture video accurately within 1/2 a degree They detect 12 different points on the body These cameras are perfect for mass congregation locations, such as airports, grocery stores, hospitals and voting locations The AI thermal cameras are ‘Ethical’ and feature no facial recognition or personal tracking Athena Security is the first A.I. technology company to accurately detect guns to mitigate mass shootings back in 2018 The first deployment of the AI thermal cameras is in Austin, Texas, USA

Link11, renowned European firm in the field of cyber-resilience and cyber security, is offering its DDoS protection solutions free of charge to public sector health, government and public education organizations during the highly contagious phase of COVID-19. Public sector organizations are particularly vulnerable to cyber-attacks, and the availability of critical public infrastructures is more important than ever as people look for genuine sources of information related to the virus outbreak. Remote working policies Governments all over the world have taken necessary actions to lower COVID-19’s spreading curve, including implementing remote working policies, resulting in significant growth in internet traffic, leading to an increased risk of social engineering, business email compromise, ransomware and DDoS attacks. According to Link11’s research, during the three-week period Monday 17 February to Monday 9 March, Link11’s Security Operation Center (LSOC) defended 20,349 minutes of attacks (over 2,860 hours), which is more than 30% up compared to the 15,612 minutes of attacks mitigated during the same period in 2019. Link11 Cloud Protection Platform Marc Wilczek, Chief Operations Officer (COO) of Link11 said, “It takes only a small effort these days to overload servers and online services, and organizations need to protect their infrastructures. To help them deal with the evolving threat landscape, Link11 is offering government, public health and education organizations a solution that proactively identifies, blocks, and mitigates DDoS attacks within the Link11 Cloud Protection Platform, free of charge until September 2020.” Link11’s integrated Cloud Security Platform ensures cyber-resilience of the entire IT infrastructure On Sunday 15 March, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) suffered a cyber-attack, designed to slow the agency’s services amid the government’s rollout of a response to coronavirus, with the aim of overloading HHS servers. Officials assume a hostile foreign actor was behind this campaign. Cloud-based DDoS protection Traditional on-premise DDoS defenses, which are still widely used, and load-balancing products, are not able to protect individual websites, APIs or cloud applications against Layer-7 attacks, as these malicious data tsunamis can create big damage with little total bandwidth, bringing everything to a standstill instantly. Cloud-based DDoS protection, such as Link11’s integrated Cloud Security Platform, uses artificial intelligence, machine learning, strict automation and real-time analytics to ensure cyber-resilience of the entire IT infrastructure and application landscape supporting hybrid as well as cloud-native deployments.

Many organizations use hundreds and even thousands of surveillance cameras on their premises. They are used for crime or loss prevention, to have supporting evidence after the fact, to reduce liability, and to protect their reputation. The public generally expects that surveillance footage will be available after an incident and therefore it is almost a must to have a camera system. The US alone has over 200 million security cameras already installed with substantial growth anticipated over coming years. Most expensive camera A simple answer to this problem would just be to check every camera at least once a day, every day At any time and without warning, it is possible for problems to arise that affect the view of a camera. Examples include a branch of a tree growing in front of a camera’s view, bugs creating a nest inside a camera dome, condensation accumulating on and around the lens, wind knocking a camera off its axis, malicious tampering with the camera, dirt or mud sticking to the camera, among many others. When that happens, even the highest quality and most expensive camera will not capture the desired field of view and crucial evidence will be missing. Our survey effort of over 100,000 cameras indicates that at least 50% of cameras in a camera system will have a view problem each year. Theoretically at least, a simple answer to this problem would just be to check every camera at least once a day, every day. Artificial intelligence software But for an institution with hundreds or even thousands of cameras, this task is laborious and subject to human error. That’s where Ai-RGUS comes in. Named after the all-seeing giant from Greek mythology, Argus, Ai-RGUS is artificial intelligence software that monitors security cameras and makes sure that they are all working according to a reference image. The ‘i’ in Ai-RGUS is silent, and it indicates that the technology uses AI. Because the CIO of Duke couldn’t find any software on the market that would solve the problem It was designed by CEO Daniël Reichman, PhD, and is the continuation of a project that Duke University requested to be developed from Daniël’s lab at Duke while he was completing his Ph.D. in electrical and computer engineering at Duke, in order to help the university keep its then-1,100 cameras in working order. They requested it from their own lab, because the CIO of Duke couldn’t find any software on the market that would solve the problem of verifying the camera views. Consistent level of verification Although Duke was conducting regular manual inspections of their cameras, this process was onerous, costly and time-consuming for the team members. Furthermore, it was very burdensome to verify and audit manual inspections to ensure that both a consistent level of verification and to be sure it was regularly done. The goal was to avoid the situation of finding out a camera was not aimed right or was not recording until they went to access the video for evidentiary purposes… exactly the time you don’t want to find that out! “It’s a huge investment to put up 1,100 cameras,” Daniël Reichman, Ph.D., said, “so they want to make sure that once they have them, they can actually count on having the images from the cameras.” Camera inspection results Thanks in part to Ai-RGUS, Duke was able to nearly double its camera system in 2 years Since 2017, the software is operating successfully at Duke University. Thanks in part to Ai-RGUS, Duke was able to nearly double its camera system in 2 years. Duke’s Office of Information Technology reports that “We spend on average 5 minutes a day to inspect 2,000+ cameras thanks to Ai-RGUS.” A company spun out of this effort, called Ai-RGUS, with the University as a stakeholder. Ai-RGUS comes with a web dashboard that will allow you to see camera inspection results as well as historical analytics about your cameras system. It has an easy and automated install process and is agnostic to camera system size. It also comes with an API to integrate with your ticketing system. Ai-RGUS keeps security cameras in check by first requiring users to take a reference image that the software will use as the basis for comparison to the current image it sees. Identifying faulty cameras Potential problems that Ai-RGUS could identify in an image are blur, tilt, tamper, obstruction, glare, low light and a blank/black screen or feed down. If Ai-RGUS identifies a problem in a camera it will mark it as ‘unwell,’ so its owner can fix it. Ai-RGUS also keeps track of when cameras are habitually ‘unwell’ to help owners to identify faulty cameras for potential replacement. For security camera owners, it was such a headache to install the cameras" “It’s the kind of thing where you can set it and forget it,” Daniël said. “Ai-RGUS sends you emails when it needs to, it also has an API that can connect to an already existing ticketing system. Otherwise, don’t bother looking at the camera views. The surveillance camera hardware and software space is so complicated and fractured, we’re trying to make it as simple as possible. For security camera owners, it was such a headache to install the cameras. Now we want to make sure the system works as intended.” Video management software Ai-RGUS started its commercial efforts in May 2019 and have gained much traction since. The headquarters are still located in Durham, NC, and commercialization efforts are done from Las Vegas, NV. Among the many partners who signed up and utilize Ai-RGUS are Duke University, the City of Las Vegas, Thomas and Mack, Green Valley Grocery, Temple Beth Sholom, among others; to show that Ai-RGUS is suitable for deployment in many vertical markets. Now, Ai-RGUS is focusing more on further discussing partnerships with system integrators, distributors, and camera installation services, along with Video Management Software companies, which can include Ai-RGUS at the time of installation or for legacy systems to existing clients as a bonus service.

LILIN announced that Aida traffic management solution will be released and unveiled at ISC West 2020. With the success of LILIN Aida number plate recognition (ANPR), LILIN Aida adds AI traffic management to Aida product line. LILIN Aida can be installed on the edge for traffic analysis where the metadata gets sent to remote Navigator Control Center. LILIN Aida ANPR and traffic management can integrate with LILIN Navigator VMS products including Navigator Control Center, Navigator Corporate, and Navigator Enterprise for event notifications, statistics, and system automation. Both LILIN Aida and LILIN Navigator products utilize Intel Media SDK for Windows and maximize the GPU processing power for video decoding and rendering. LILIN offer Aida ANPR, traffic management, VMS software, and AI recorders (NAV2000AI and NAV3000AI series) which can run on Intel CPU, GPU, VPU, and NVidia Cuda on Windows OS. LILIN Aida traffic management LILIN Aida software is able to run Multiple AI models on distributed AI CPU, GPU, and VPUs of a Server. LILIN Aida ANPR series and Aida traffic management use the latest deep learning technology. LILIN Aida traffic management by deep learning technology requires thousands of pictures for image labeling Aida traffic management can provide accurate AI traffic object recognition for parking spot detection, parking violation, turn left violation and turn right violation, wrong way detection with number plate recognition, truck, motorbike and pedestrian violations, queuing detection, average speed detection, and loitering detection. LILIN Aida traffic management by deep learning technology requires thousands of pictures for image labeling and machine training of object datasets. These processes are time consuming tasks. The datasets are then used for traffic managements. Intelligent video surveillance Image labeling needs more attention for inference accuracy. LILIN deep learning processes consist of image labeling, video recognition, and accuracy validation. LILIN design and developed AI-enhanced software combined with intelligent video surveillance edge devices can optimize traffic system. Mr. Steve Hu, Product Manager of LILIN, said, “We are very pleased to show Aida traffic management solution at ISC West 2020, since our development engineers focused on the AI development for years. Other than AI products, LILIN will demonstrate products for custom install, facial recognition system, QR code for B&B, campus solution, building automation, access control for hotel, and LILINHome app.”

Ten years is a long time, but it seems to pass in an instant in the world of security. In terms of technology, 2010 is ages ago. Changes in the market have been transformative during that decade, and we called on our Expert Panel Roundtable to highlight some of those changes. We asked this week’s panelists: What was the biggest change in the security industry in the 2010-2019 decade?  

The new year is several weeks old, so it is safe to say that many of our New Year resolutions have fallen by the wayside. Despite the limited success of our personal resolutions, the new year is a great time to take stock, look ahead, and plan to make 2020 the best year yet. Thinking about our industry as a whole, we asked this week’s Expert Panel Roundtable: What should be the security industry’s “New Year’s resolution?” 

2019 was a big year for the Expert Panel Roundtable. The range of topics expanded, and we had more participation from more contributors than ever before. In closing out the year of contemplative discussions, we came across some final observations to share. They can serve both as a postscript for 2019 and a teaser for a whole new year of industry conversations in our Expert Panel Roundtable in 2020.