Page 42 - Security Today, November/December 2018

NETWORKED CITIES
SMARTER INFRASTRUCTURE Safer cities count on efficient and advanced solutions for sustainable operations
By Brandon Reich
Smart city initiatives are growing across the globe, as leaders look to increase security and intelligence across metropolitan environ-
ments. At the heart of these projects is the deployment of efficient and ad- vanced solutions to help ensure safe, intelligent and sustainable operations. The data from these sources is what drives more proactive security opera- tions and stronger risk management. The backbone of any smart city is the information collected and analyzed from an array of connected devices.
Although an intelligent infrastructure is the foundation of a smart city because it allows key stakeholders to quickly and efficiently manage and access data, in es- sence, the growth of the smart city market is driven by the Internet of Things (IoT). Increasing IoT deployments and the ris- ing demand for other smart technologies create the ability to coordinate data, ap- plications and services across domains for multiple stakeholders.
This market is only growing: Analysis from Frost & Sullivan forecasts that smart cities will create tremendous business op- portunities with a global market value of more than $2 trillion by 2025, driven by an increased adoption of Big Data analytics, increased connectivity and higher interest in IoT devices and services.
Video Data
Video surveillance is a key part of any smart city program because it helps op- erators gain higher levels of situational awareness and intelligence. Over time, cit- ies have built substantial video networks, but these solutions are often decentral- ized, outdated, prone to failures and cost-
ly to maintain—essentially, they are still built around the analog approach of the past. With increased interest in connected devices and AI-driven tools, such as real- time analytics, there is a critical need to update infrastructures to fully obtain the benefits of new technology.
The landscape of video surveillance and security is changing as rapidly as the IoT market. Higher resolution and IP cameras are expected, and new use cases, including body-worn, traffic management and in-vehicle cameras, are introduced on
a daily basis. Users also want to retain data for longer periods of time. The result is that the data being generated and stored by surveillance systems is exploding.
In addition to effectively monitoring, storing, securing, processing and mobiliz- ing data from hundreds to thousands of cameras and sensors spread across a city at all times, a city’s IT infrastructure so- lution must integrate seamlessly with ex- isting and new IoT technologies and sup- port the multi-use case demands of smart city initiatives. Traditional infrastructure
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NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2018 | NETWORKING SECURITY
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