Open Enterprise Security

When considering the reasons for implementing video surveillance systems, I view those to fall into three basic categories: mandatory requirements from governments or controlling agencies, customer service/marketing and safety/security. This leads me to believe that it may be more a matter of whether one desires to have video surveillance capabilities or are demanded to do so.

Let me give you some examples that have lead me in this line of thinking.

Mandatory

Casinos are required to have surveillance on their premise. To date, those have been analog networks that are still VCR-tape based. I found some interesting references to these environments in an article from Casino Connection. The VP of corporate surveillance for Resorts International Holdings (who own Resorts Atlantic City, the Atlantic City Hilton, the Las Vegas Hilton) told the reporter for Casino Connection that gaming tables have  “approximately four to 10 cameras watching” and “regulations mandate every slot machine must be covered by camera coverage.” Along those lines, I recently found a document dated February ,1 2008 issued by the Colorado Limited Gaming Control Commission that provides Internal Control Minimum Procedures (ICMP) for Colorado casinos. The following is a quote taken from that document:

“Any casino issued a license on or after February 1, 2008, is required to install a recording system that is totally digital and that meets the requirements outlined in this section. All Licensees shall have in place digital recording systems that meet the requirements of this section no later than July 1, 2009.”

The ICMP mandate continues on to specify the type of cameras, where the cameras are to be placed (in the gaming area, cashier stations, vaults and counting rooms, for example) and the duration the video is to be archived.

In the retail sector, convenience stores in Toledo, Ohio have actually formed an alliance called the Midwest Retail Association to contest a recent ruling requiring the installation of IP surveillance networks in stores 'smaller than 5,000 square feet selling food and beverages” (reported in the June 2008 issue of Security Director News).

Customer Service/Marketing

In some instances, video surveillance is being turned into a revenue-generating or customer satisfaction tool in contrast to the traditional cost center mentality. A sales team I work with that covers a global airline recently responded to an RFP for a surveillance system that would monitor customer traffic at the ticket counter. The requirement included analytic capability to determine the number of passengers in the queue, compare that against a pre-defined agent|passengar ratio and send notifications to management of when the staffing should be adjusted to meet customer demand. I liked this one since one of the most difficult parts of travel for me is the whole 'hurry up and wait' characteristics of getting from one place to another. Nice to think that someone is proactively trying to address this pain point.

Another example is, once again, from the same June issue of the Security Director News (can you tell I find this publication valuable?). This example leans more toward the revenue-generating mode I alluded to. An urban shopping mall in Bellevue, Washington uses “an embedded video analytics appliance with an on-board camera” to count the number of shoppers. The primary reason for doing this? To establish the value of the retail space to the tenants of the shopping center. Certainly, if you're a business looking for the best location for your shop, you're willing to pay a premium price if you are guaranteed thousands of prospective customers passing by your doors on a daily basis.

A couple of months ago I spoke with a security director responsible for several automobile auction sites. These were high end vehicles – often fleet cars from leasing agencies. With the advent of the IP video surveillance network in his environment, he was considering how to leverage the web-based infrastructure and security offered by the IP network. His plan is to one day provide his elite customers access to the video feeds so they can view the traffic on the auction yard and see for themselves the volumes of customers viewing their inventory.

Another interesting conversation I had relative to the use of surveillance for customer-satisfaction was with a private jet service. Their goal is to have a service person meet their customer at the security gate within 20 seconds of their arrival (in a limousine, I'm sure (smile)). The idea is that the camera would be set to detect the arrival of the vehicle at the gate and send an alarm to the on-duty personnel. Additionally, this premier jet service wants to have personnel waiting in the hangar when the door to an arriving plane opens. In order to do this, they need advance notice that the jet has landed and is taxiing to the hangar. The tool? Video cameras installed on outer buildings that can read the writing on the aircraft to help identify the plane as one of their customers.

Safety and Security

Intuitively, safety and security would seem to be the primary reason for installing video surveillance and would appear to fall under the 'mandatory' category I've described. But, I've found that not always to be the case.  Even when there is a mandate or regulation to provide security in a particular environment, it isn't necessarily required that the security be video surveillance.

A case in point would be the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) who has many mandates surrounding security in and around the U.S.  I can't quote it specifically, but I know of one such mandate that requires the scanning of all cargo, packages and luggage coming into and moving around the U.S.  It doesn't specifically call out video surveillance as a means to do this scanning, but I could see an application there.  I also have found a reference to the DHS providing grant money to law enforcement agencies to provide protection of it's citizens. In some cases, those agencies choose to use a portion of those funds for video surveillance networks. A case in point includes the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department. In an online blog, PolicyBeta, the author discusses the investment the DC police will make in upgrades to cameras in the downtown area, idicating they will “use $630,000 of DHS grant money.”

We all know that sometimes the need for protection provided via video surveillance is based on a particular event. An example in my home town is the upcoming 2008 Democratic Convention hosted in Denver, Colorado. The Denver Post reported on December 11, 2007 that the Denver police hoped to install additional cameras in strategic locations with enough sophistication to "capture images as detailed as faces and license plates” and to ultimately be the eyes for the officers already planning to be the 'feet on the streets'.

The final example I have for this post is the reference the BBC News  has in their article Britain is 'surveillance society'. I've always heard that there is a plethora of cameras in Britain and have heard numbers all over the board. Now, I have a source I consider to be reliable stating: “There are up to 4.2m CCTV cameras in Britain – about one for every 14 people.” Hmmm, disire or demand?