When designing a surveillance system that is to be used in the outdoors, changing lighting conditions are one of the biggest challenges to overcome. So over the past several years, low-light surveillance technology has been growing in importance as a means to improve outdoor surveillance designs, and megapixel imagers have been modified to improve identification.
Monitoring makes a difference. Surveillance is not a monitored Video Intrusion Alarm. Security video and DVRs (whether on-site or the newer DVRs in the cloud) provide remote viewing and document what has happened – but their primary use isn’t catching burglars.
The role of cloud-based services is being increasingly accepted and adopted by users in all parts of life. Cloud-based software is provided as a service over the Internet, typically on a subscription basis.
Achieving security awareness around perimeters and outdoor areas comes down to timely, credible alerts with detail to respond appropriately to the level of threat. Knowing the nature and location of an intrusion is the key to forming an effective response.
Remember Cathy Cruz Marrero? No? Well, maybe you remember her starring role in what was probably the most viewed security video of 2011. While texting on her phone walking the Berkshire Mall in Wyomissing, Pa., she fell into a mall water fountain.
In this age of heightened security, the sheer quantity of video needing to be monitored from cameras observing sensitive locations can be a daunting challenge for security professionals at all levels. Added to this task is the expense and potential fallibility of dedicated personnel hired to scrutinize video displays for extended periods of time.
Sooner or later, it always happens with a technology discussion; we get to the alphabet soup section. There are a variety of storage options available, the most prevalent being –
1. Direct-Attached Storage (DAS),
2. Network-Attached Storage (NAS) and
3. Storage Area Networks (SAN).
The rate at which many technologies are evolving is astounding. Just think what today’s smartphone can do, how email and the Internet have changed our work lives, or how the fax machine — though useful — is now considered outdated. This rapid evolution brings us many new opportunities; it also raises the challenge of what to do with systems, technology and equipment that are still functional, but no longer as effective. Security and surveillance markets in particular are affected by these exponential advancements.