SubscribeIt is widely accepted that video surveillance can improve security.
But how can this technology be used most effectively?
The "Intelligent Security Cycle" enables security managers to take a proactive, systematic approach to managing security and improving performance.
Using the latest video technology to accelerate five primary activities in the security process:
- Detection
- Verification
- Event Resolution
- Investigation
- Continuous Improvement
Making the most of technology
Having the best technology in the world isn't enough. It's what you do with it that counts. Technology can play a key role in effective security operations if it's used to its full advantage, enabling the security team to perform security tasks with greater proficiency.
A systematic approach which takes into consideration all the pieces of the security puzzle can greatly enhance the effectiveness of security operations by freeing up security resources, speeding up response times and improving the investigation process.
To begin the process, there are five critical questions which should be asked by every security manager:
How can you be aware of threatening situations quickly and reliably when you have hundreds or even thousands of CCTV cameras to watch?
When an event occurs, how do you find out quickly if it represents a false alarm or serious and imminent danger?
How can you manage security events in real-time and resolve developing situations with maximum efficiency?
And when you're investigating an event, how quickly can you get the information needed to understand exactly what happened and who was responsible?
Finally, when you pause to evaluate your security operation, how do you get the objective insights you need to identify vulnerabilities and drive improvement programs?
The Intelligent Security Cycle answers all these questions as part of a comprehensive methodology which addresses the five primary activities of the security process:
- Detection
- Verification
- Event Resolution
- Investigation
- Continuous Improvement
Event Detection: spotting what's important
How can you be aware of threatening situations quickly and reliably when you have hundreds or even thousands of CCTV cameras to watch? A challenge faced by all security operations is the need to detect potentially threatening situations as soon as they develop.
CCTV is widely used to monitor for events of interest, but operators naturally suffer from fatigue, boredom and distraction, limiting the effectiveness of this approach. With hundreds or even thousands of cameras to view, operators frequently face sensory overload, and may struggle to notice events that could alert them to significant threats.
Intelligent video solutions, such as NiceVision® provided by NICE Systems, enable better security by automating the threat detection process. CCTV video is analyzed to detect specific conditions that indicate a security, safety or operational problem.
And because the analysis is performed in real-time, operators are alerted immediately, dramatically improving awareness of developing situations. For example, an unauthorized person enters a controlled area (see figure 1), or a group of people loiter around a high security barrier. The system immediately alerts security officers who can quickly approach the area and ask the specific individuals to move along or apprehend them, if necessary.
And it's not only people or vehicles in the wrong place. Intelligent video solutions can also be used to monitor industrial processes or passenger flow, customer queues or casino chips to protect those things most valuable to organizations. As a result, operators can concentrate on high priority or high complexity tasks, whilst the video system ensures they will be alerted if a situation of interest arises. Benefits include:
- Heightened awareness
- Reduced information overload
- Better use of human resources
- More time to make decisions
Event Verification: False alarm or imminent danger?
Detection of an event is just the start of an effective security management process. The next step is to verify the situation as quickly and accurately as possible. Operators need reliable access to information that can confirm precisely what is going on.
And the clock is ticking... does an event represent a false alarm or serious and imminent danger? Take too long and the situation may be out of control. Intelligent video solutions can help operators understand the context of an alarm by automatically displaying video of the event and surrounding area.
Live video shows precisely what is happening now and instant replay shows how the event occurred. Together these two pieces of highly relevant information help an operator verify the current situation and decide what action should be taken
When events are more complex, intelligent video solutions can help operators understand the details. Clicking on a suspicious object on-screen immediately shows the operator a video replay of how and when that object appeared in the field of view. No searches, no waiting, just immediate video verification (see figure 2).
As a result, operators are automatically provided with relevant, high quality information to enable rapid verification. Benefits include:
- Ability to differentiate threats and false alarms quickly
- Immediate visibility of relevant information
- Improved ability to make effective decisions
- Rapid, more effective allocation of resources
Resolution: Managing situations in real-time
Whether a situation is a serious threat or just an everyday annoyance, managing it efficiently is key to running a highly effective security operation. Simple technologies, designed only to detect events, contribute little to resolving issues as they arise.
What security teams actually need is help with the process - what to do next - and help with the task - tools that make complex and time consuming tasks easier and quicker. First, a video management system can direct alarms to the team or operator that needs to know about it. The alarm can trigger display of relevant video automatically in a pre-defined format that best suits that event.
Next, security managers can pre-define task lists to prompt operators when an alarm occurs. Managers can decide what is most relevant, for example, the task list could hold a concise reminder of the process, or vital, but hard to remember information, such as contact telephone numbers for critical situations. Either way, operators will know what the standard response should be and have essential data immediately available.
Intelligent video also serves to coordinate actions between different teams by using video as a common reference point for understanding and managing the situation. With some systems, officers in the field can view the same information by receiving video over wireless networks to a handheld device or PDA.
And in the near future, it's likely that intelligent video will go beyond this, to directly assist operators with complex tasks like locating a suspect. As a result, events are managed and resolved more efficiently and effectively, enabling:
- Guided, informed, effective response
- Better coordination of multiple teams
- Improved consistency and reliability
- Continuous reinforcement of approved process
Investigation - gathering critical information to understand what happened
When investigating the event, security teams need fast access to information to understand exactly what happened and who was responsible.
Investigations can tie up valuable resources for hours, so optimizing this essential aspect of the security management process is critical.
Particularly time consuming is watching video from hundreds of cameras to find information relevant to the investigation. This is a difficult task even when teams know exactly what they're looking for. If they're still searching for clues, the task can be extremely challenging.
Intelligent video solutions can accelerate the investigation by filtering material that is likely to be of interest from the rest of the video archive. So rather than just watch everything in an arbitrary order, officers can start by watching video that is most likely to contain something relevant, for example, locating video that shows suspicious movement in a target area.
Queries could be as simple as replaying the last ten minutes from a single camera, or as complex as showing all recordings that were triggered by associated access control points during the last five days. Some systems can also detect faces in recordings and automatically build them into a visual database, just like a photo-album. Intelligent video systems can also help managers to review how their team handled a particular situation.
Who was using the surveillance system and at what time? Did they view particular cameras or replay anything? Again, authorized managers can quickly and easily extract a user audit report, right down to which users logged in at which workstation. As a result, investigations demand fewer resources and are completed more quickly. Benefits include:
- Reduced time spent watching irrelevant video
- Improved coverage of available video
- Clear, reliable evidence produced quickly
- Readily demonstrated accountability and due process
Improvement - objective insights to drive improvement programs
The only constant is change, or so the saying goes. And whether they're facing new security threats or supporting new business initiatives, managers have to assess, adapt and improve their organization increasingly often.
Key to a successful improvement program is a good understanding of the current operation, trends and opportunities.
Resources need to be applied where they will have most effect. This all demands detailed, accurate information, and it needs to be easily available without requiring a separate, extensive data gathering exercise.
Intelligent video surveillance systems can easily support improvement plans with real, detailed information. The system is full of examples of the new challenges facing security teams. It can show how well current operations work and help identify opportunities for improvement.
These insights are available simply by viewing video clips, specifically those showing events of interest. Some video systems offer the ability to graph and report events, traffic or operations over time (see figure 5). Patterns and trends are easily visible, and more detail can be provided by viewing the associated video.
For operational issues, advanced video analysis tools, such as people counting, can offer a sound statistical basis to schedule resources, whilst queue detection can show exactly when inadequate customer service impacts on safety. When new plans are agreed, real examples from the video system can be used to explain key issues and train staff, directly connecting with their daily experience.
By making reviews systematic, based on video evidence, the improvement program can be checked to ensure that it's being implemented the way it was intended and delivering the expected results.
Using a systematic system, valuable information is more easily accessible and improvement programs become linked to what really happens. Benefits include:
- Ability to compare and measure performance over time
- Establishment of a systematic basis for planning and training
- Identification and understanding of patterns and trends at the earliest opportunity
- Improvement in security and business performance based on real needs
Summary
Effective security operations can use video surveillance technology to automate the security process, enabling better awareness, and information, resulting in improved security, service and business.
In a world where security and safety dominate the everyday running of organizations, there are real benefits to be had from taking a proactive, systematic approach.
