Casino Security: The Future Is Now

A lot of casinos are still tied to analog camera solutions, but this industry is slowly moving to HD megapixel surveillance.  Faced with multiple security challenges including false claims, employee theft, table game scams, money laundering and drugs, casinos around the US are upgrading their surveillance to ensure customer and employee safety.

While consumers have stopped using VCRs and are beginning to adopt HD megapixel camera technology on their TVs, recording devices, and cell phones, the VCR is still in use in many Las Vegas casinos.  There are several factors that are helping push the transition to HD surveillance.  Most of the time, there will be a large enough incident to prompt the transition.  HD security camera video can be recorded in real time (30 FPS) and the clarity removes all doubt and gives clear evidence for the casino security staff.

There are some issues to consider when upgrading casinos to the latest technology:

• Gaming establishments have a set of standards to go by, and these have been written for analog devices, most likely from a non-technical person who may have an analog bias
• Existing coaxial cable infrastructure and building design
• Meeting budgets and the approval process
• Training for new technology

A successful implementation will include the following:

• Education on the current level of security in use and why it must be replaced
• The proposed HD surveillance solution and why it needs to be used
• The cost associated with implementing a new solution and how it compares to the benefits the casino will receive
• Testimonials from previous customers that have used your HD surveillance solution and experienced the benefits

The transition from analog VCR security to HD megapixel surveillance is gaining momentum in the casino market and eventually there will be standards set in place by regulators for HD surveillance.

Selling CCTV? How to Convert Your Clients from Analog to IP

Are you a CCTV dealer or retailer?  If so, you must have noticed that the demand for IP cameras is growing exponentially.  Many industries have already adopted IP video as a standard, some of which include universities, K-12 schools, health care, transportation and government.  The retail market hasn’t fully adopted IP, but will soon begin to, considering marketing purposes such as counting people coming and going from a store, checking the gender and age of customers, and monitoring peak times for business.  Below, you will see 4 points that can help you prepare to offer your customers IP video solutions.

1) Should dealers install coax for current and future analog projects?

The simple answer, no.  You can install Cat-5e or Cat-6 cable and future-proof the cabling at your customer’s location.  You will need to use video baluns for this cable to work with analog cameras.  When you begin the switch to IP cameras, you will simply replace the video baluns with an RJ45 connector (if not already on the cable), so that it can connect to the IP camera, switch, etc.

2) Are all dealers that don’t offer IP the same?

Yes!  The most common fear from dealers is the networking component.  The best way to overcome this is to invest in your staff and offer them basic network training.  This will help when discussing what you are trying to do with your customers IT department.  Getting a “green light” from the IT department of your (potential) customer will make the purchase much easier and offer far fewer headaches.

3) HD cameras vs. Megapixel cameras

All HD cameras are megapixel cameras.  A 720p camera is 0.9 megapixels and a 1080p camera is 2.1 megapixels.  The main difference between an HD and megapixel camera is that HD cameras use a widescreen format (16 x 9).  As an example, a 3 megapixel camera will only provide a 4 x 3 format, but it will have a higher resolution than a 1080p camera.  One advantage of the HD cameras, is that most end users understand “720p” and “1080p” terminology, when dealing with the type of TV they buy for their home.

4) Which IP cameras should dealers offer?

The two biggest variables for choosing a distributor or manufacturer of IP cameras are great support and training.  Another big variable is to determine what the application is.  A large scale university will need a completely different solution than a person who wants a couple of megapixel cameras for their home.

The reality is, IP camera solutions are here to stay. If you are already offering IP camera options to your customers, then you are ahead of the bandwagon.  Analog solutions still have a strong place in the market, but it is best to offer both types, especially as IP gains more acceptance.

Why Choose IP Over Analog?

When choosing which type of cameras you’ll need for your security system, there are many questions to ask yourself:

1. What is my overall budget?
2. How much video footage (how many days or weeks) do I want to be able to store?
3. Am I replacing or upgrading a current system?
4. Does the current system already have existing wiring?  If so, what type?
5. How important is it to clearly see detail if the image is magnified (i.e. denomination of currency coming out of a cash register)?
6. Do I require the ability to manipulate the image later?
7. Do you want a large variety of cameras to choose from?
8. Do you need offsite recording?

IP cameras have increased in popularity over the years, but sometimes analog can be sufficient for your needs.  IP camera systems can get pricey for several reasons.  First, the cameras themselves generally cost more.  Also, you need to have a more robust DVR because IP cameras require much more bandwidth to operate, and they require much larger hard drive storage, a faster operating system, and more RAM, which can increase the price of the system.  Since video clips for IP cameras are larger files, the amount of hard drive space must be increased to handle your particular storage needs (depending on how far back you want to archive).

The benefits of the IP system may outweigh the difference in cost.  An investment in an IP camera system will carry you into the next generation of cameras.   You can do things with IP cameras that are virtually impossible with analog.  One of the many benefits is that digital images are compressed and allow you to zoom in (or blow up) a picture without degrading the image, as compared to analog cameras.  With a high enough Megapixel camera, you can electronically zoom on an image that was recorded well away from the camera and still get detailed information (what is the person typing?, what does the perpetrator look like?, etc).  Don’t expect a level of detail seen in unrealistic TV shows, but the results are nonetheless impressive.

With an analog system, you can get detailed (blown up) images only in real time if you have someone to manually operate a PTZ (Pan Tilt Zoom) camera (common in casinos and parking lots), whereas with IP, you can go back to a past recording and do it anytime.  Since IP cameras have not been around as long as analog, there is not as much variety in styles and types of cameras.  It’s also important to note that if you’re replacing a current analog system, it may be easier to replace another analog system if the traditional RG59 wiring is already in place.

Amazing Possibility with the Right PoE

So much can be said about the evolution of the Surveillance industry and probably the number one topic these days is the transition to IP Networks, PC Based DVRs, NVRs, and IP Cameras. Much goes into finding out how many Mega Pixels a Camera has. How powerful is the network or software. But one minor detail that plays a vital role in this new age of CCTV is the PoE (Power over Ethernet).

A PoE switch is an Ethernet switch that sends power as well as data through the Ethernet Cable. Standard PoE requires CAT5 cable. So when a Complete IP system is being considered it’s also important that as much research is done on the PoE switch as the cameras themselves. Most advocates expect PoE to become a global long-term DC power cabling standard and replace “wall wart” converters, which cannot be easily centrally managed, waste energy, are often poorly designed, and also easily vulnerable to damage from surges and brownouts.

It’s important to pay close attention to the Power being distributed from the PoE switch to accommodate all of your IP cameras.  It makes no sense to invest as much as possible in quality IP Cameras and fall short on supplying the cameras with the proper PoE switch.

Turn the Holiday Frown Upside Down with Security Cameras

Well believe it or not the fall and winter Holidays are just around the corner and for most people, this reminds them of Family, Friends, Great Food and Gifts Galore. But for others this reminds them of the best opportunity to steal from those overcrowded stores. With some many Holiday Specials and traffic increasing tenfold, the opportunity for theft most certainly increases.

This especially within the retail business, has them ramping up holiday hires in hopes of maintaining the traffic and minimizing the lost inventory. But eyes on the ground can only do so much and many times with the amount of traffic that increase around these holidays it’s not even enough.

So it only makes sense to get ahead of the Black Fridays and Christmas Eve Savings and invest in a security system that will provide the eyes in the air and allow your associates to focus on all the Holiday Shoppers at hand. Many retail stores lose a ton of money on stolen merchandise especially during these holidays, so having Cameras can also work as deterrent and keep those pesky shop lifters at bay.

The Value of Wide Dynamic Range Security Cameras

Wide Dynamic Range is a technology utilized by security cameras in order to balance out images that have a large dynamic range.  An example of this situation would be if an indoor security camera were pointing towards a window or building entrance.  During daytime, the image produced by the camera would be extremely washed out due to the high brightness of the incoming light.  This effect is commonly seen in restaurants, stores, offices, and other buildings that have large windows or entrances.

In order to solve this problem, many security cameras have been using back light compensation, or (BLC), to help compensate for high brightness.  However, Wide Dynamic Range technology has recently become the most popular solution to washed out images.  WDR cameras are fitted with two Charge-Coupled Devices (CCD), one high speed and the other low speed, which are designed to take multiple scans of the same image.  The image processor will then process and combine the two images to provide one clear and balanced image which shows both the indoor and outdoor image clearly.

The prices of WDR security cameras have recently dropped to affordable levels. Several government facilities, banks, and progressive businesses are so convinced about the value of wide dynamic range technology they have incorporated WDR cameras in all of their recent security installations.

Like the early adopters, I’m sold on WDR cameras and they rise to the top of my recommendation list for customers looking to get the best insurance should crime occur.

Call Virtual Surveillance for Security Cameras for sale in Florida at 866-424-9070

New York beefs up World Trade Center site security for September 11th anniversary

“Without question it is a target, because it has tremendous symbolism,” said James Kallstrom, a former top FBI official who headed the New York City office in the 1990s. “Going back and attacking a landmark that was already attacked once is the ultimate challenge.”

The site isn’t the target of a current known plot, but it “remains squarely in the terrorists’ crosshairs,” says Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly.

Fears of a repeated plot against the site years ago resulted in its signature skyscraper being redesigned.

An original plan putting 1 World Trade Center 25 feet off a state highway near the Hudson River raised concerns by the NYPD that it could be vulnerable to car or truck bombs. A redesign moved it farther off the street and incorporated a windowless 200-foot base.

Developers and law enforcement also have grappled with how to best police the anticipated steady flow of tourists, workers and commerce at the site without turning it into an inhospitable, armed camp.

Kallstrom, while the top counterterrorism adviser to former Gov. Gov. George Pataki in the mid-2000s, was an architect of an ambitious security plan for 1 World Trade Center – scheduled to open in 2013 – the National September 11 Memorial & Museum and other office towers and transit at the site.

The measures – combining architectural innovation, hi-tech gadgetry and good old-fashioned manpower provided by the NYPD, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey police and private security firms – will make it “a very, very secure site,” Kallstrom said.

Police plan to use a vehicle security centre to screen tour buses, trucks and cars before they enter the site and park or makes deliveries using an underground roadway. Pedestrian traffic, including visitors to the museum, also will be screened before they can enter the central plaza.

Ticketed visitors to the memorial will be funnelled into a security screening room with airport-style metal detectors and X-ray machines. Employees and frequent visitors will be pre-screened so they can bypass regular checkpoints.

The security plan also calls for 400 closed-circuit surveillance cameras in and around the trade centre site. Live feeds will be monitored around the clock at an NYPD command centre located in a private office building near Wall Street.

A computer security camera system in New York uses “video analytic” computer software designed to detect potential threats like unattended bags, and retrieve stored images based on descriptions of terror or other criminal suspects.

Final touches are also being put on another ambitious piece of the plan: Screening every car, truck and other vehicle for radioactive materials – evidence of a possible dirty bomb – and other potential threats as they enter lower Manhattan. To achieve that, police are installing cameras, radiation detectors and license-plate readers at the 16 bridges and four tunnels going in and out of Manhattan.

In addition to NY police, Port Authority of New York and New Jersey police officers are also on the site; the agency wouldn’t disclose how many for security reasons.

Originally posted on telegraph.co.uk

Should Security Cameras be Hidden?

I have had many people coming to me in the recent months asking about covert cameras. If you are looking at implementing a new CCTV system into there are two ways you can go about doing it walk around your property and find the vulnerable areas that need to be more secure that could use a camera placed on or around a certain area. You want people to be able to see the cameras, there are many cameras on the market know that are small but visible and will not become a eye sore on your home. Letting people know there is a system in place can certainly play in your benefit, let’s say you spend a solid amount and have a system installed on your home. If somebody walked up to your home wanting to break in, would you prefer them see your cameras and decide maybe I should pick a different house, or would you rather them be unaware of your surveillance system, and they break in maybe your family is home or they steal valuable items. I would have to say I would have rather prevented the situation then have to be reactive of the situation and perhaps place my belongings or family in a situation. Business surveillance is a different case, most situations do not require covert cameras in businesses unless there are internal theft issues. Again typically you want your system to be seen and know, to prevent theft or other crimes from occurring. Use signage as another form of prevention to help stop unnecessary issues.

“Don’t Wait Until It’s Too Late”

by Thomas Foster

A lot of people don’t realize their need for surveillance until an incident happens. Then, all of a sudden, surveillance becomes a huge necessity. In this day and age, surveillance is an absolute necessity.

The main reason is that no one can be in multiple places at one time watching everything, 24 hours a day. As technology progresses, so does criminal activity. Although technology allows people to prevent and solve crimes, it also helps criminals commit crimes more intelligently. One way to stay one step ahead of the modern day criminal is to have an up-to-date surveillance system.

With crime at an all time high, it’s crucial to have surveillance at your home or business. Why wait until your business is broken into, your property is vandalized or one of your loved ones is harmed before deciding to install a surveillance system? This all could be prevented by investing a small amount now.

A surveillance system could save yourself not only thousands of dollars in losses, but also lots of heartache if something happened to a loved one. Surveillance is more of an investment than an expense.

Livin’ On the Edge!

‘On the edge’ or ‘at the edge’ recording allows images to be stored on the IP camera with a SD card. This feature can offer several advantages:

Bandwidth

If the server becomes overloaded with data, the SD card will store that data on your camera, preventing loss of important recordings. This option can also preserve your server during time of higher image processing.

Security

At the edge recording will also save your images in case an incident occurs at the server: theft or deliberate damage.

This is a great feature to consider and to look for when investing in a Security System.