Page 94 - Security Today, May/June 2021

In the Cloud
Camera investments combat campus crime, fSoster safer environment
urveillance is the leading security measure in place in educa- tional settings, as school administers look to technology to help them combat school safety issues that can range from identifying unwanted visitors and fights between students to discovering vandalism or diffusing an active shooter situation.
A Safe Environment
According to the National Center for Education Statistics, more than 91 percent of public middle schools and high schools use video sur- veillance in one form or another to monitor the school environment. In recent years college campuses have invested heavily in surveillance to combat campus crime and to help foster a safe environment for students, staff and visitors.
As the surveillance system infrastructure continues to grow in the education market, schools are faced with the increasing cost and technology challenges associated with supporting these large-scale systems. Today, many of these IP-based systems incorporate the latest surveillance technology that use high megapixel cameras, analytics and artificial intelligence.
With these growing systems come challenges. Where and how do you store the video? How do you ensure the video remains secure from cyber-attacks yet easily accessible for investigative purposes? Where does video fit within the broader shift of systems and applica- tions to the cloud? As more cameras are added to a system, how do you ensure that bandwidth does not become an issue?
Security professionals in the education market are often faced with unique challenges. Perhaps the biggest is dealing with budget con- straints as it relates to implementing new security measures in public school settings.
Public schools in North America have to deal with limited funding each year to hire new teachers, improve buildings and to support the overall cost of educating students. While security remains a priority, it’s not uncommon for school districts to be limited on the scale of their security projects to make only gradual improvements each year due to the high cost often associated with installing, operating and expanding security systems.
Universities and colleges face a similar set of challenges. Many col- leges already have a large-scale surveillance system in place, so replacing an outdated solution with the latest technologies can prove to be a daunting, cost prohibitive undertaking without a system that supports their existing technology investments. In addition, college campuses are traditionally expansive in nature, with campus environ- ments encompassing dozens of buildings and hundreds of acres even for small- or medium-sized institutions.
The introduction of cloud surveillance is providing undeniable benefits within the education market. Major cost savings, improved data security, remote access and maintenance, flexible storage, scal- ability and redundancy are just a few.
Optimize Campus Security with Cloud
Cloud-based analytics can help schools to improve security operations and increase situational awareness, supporting real-time alerts when an issue arises. Using analytics, schools can monitor the number of stu- dents and staff entering and exiting buildings and use this information to help discover peak times for traffic. Analytics can also provide valu- able insights into traffic flow and pattern, enabling adjustments to be made to maintain social distancing guidelines or occupancy limitations.
Schools are unique in that they are often the hub of a community, hosting youth sports programs, adult education classes and non-
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By Ken Francis
profit groups on the weekends and after regular school hours. Because of this, it can be difficult to ensure that off limits areas, such as certain classrooms or laboratories, remain secure.
By leveraging cloud-based analytics, school security directors can keep an eye on vulnerable areas after hours by setting parameters and tracking when someone or something enters the predetermined area. Another advantage is reduction in false alarms as anywhere, anytime viewing of alerts and video streamed to any authorized device can help determine if it is a true incident.
Cost Savings
Perhaps one of the biggest benefits for schools and college campuses is the cost savings associated with a cloud-based surveillance solu- tion. The cost associated with security can be transferred from a capital expense to a monthly operating expense, by moving from investing in an onsite video management system and storage devices that often come with a large upfront price tag to a cloud-based solu- tion with a monthly fee for storing video.
Here, the expense can be spread over a longer period of time with a subscription based model that provides a fixed monthly cost along with flexible storage, continuous feature delivery, as well as improved customer service such as rapid replacement of broken equipment.
Total cost of ownership is the biggest game changer within the education space. The savings for a cloud system, when compared to an on-site video management system in a corporate data center, can range up to as much as 50 percent.
The reason for this is that a traditional surveillance solution hosted in a data center requires redundancy, a high-bandwidth wide area network infrastructure and high cybersecurity controls. By moving to the cloud, these solutions become more affordable from an opera- tional perspective.
Choosing the right cloud surveillance provider enables colleges and universities to continue to leverage legacy cameras already in place instead of a rip and replace scenario that can happen when faced with compatibility issues when implementing the latest VMS.
While many college campuses and larger school districts operate their own central command center, which is monitored by a staff of security professionals, campus police still need remote access to their video systems to enable those in the field to view incidents in real-time.
Cloud surveillance optimizes emergency response by supporting remote access for security officers and if there is a serious issue in hand, can support personal alert notifications that can be pushed out throughout a school district or college campus.
Remote access capabilities, thanks to a cloud surveillance system, not only provide users with the ability to view video remotely, but also to manage video remotely. This includes being able to quickly identify large groups of people congregating in an area, perhaps stag- ing a demonstration or protest, and being able to take that video, download a clip and send it to the appropriate personnel, including administrators and first responders.
A well-engineered true cloud system in a school or university can provide a myriad of benefits. School and college administrators are now leveraging the benefits of cloud surveillance to provide an addi- tional set of eyes on remote parking lots and common spaces, to pro- actively identify problems and to address threats before they become severe.
Ken Francis is the president of Eagle Eye Networks.
Video Surveillance