IS YOUR Building Safe?

Jul 1, 2005 12:00 PM, by Maxwell A. Stevens

The eyes have it. At least they did when Tom Cruise stepped up to a camera to scan his retina before gaining access to a top-secret clearance area. This scene from the futuristic movie Minority Report reflects today's reality that similar technology is being used across public and private sectors.

New technology being incorporated into security systems has the ability to limit access, provide video-on-demand and detect and deter intruders from a single or multiple sites, locally or remotely. The current digital revolution has fueled significant advances in monitoring devices, access control and intrusion detection systems. With the advent of new technology come new challenges, particularly with issues concerning privacy.

Simply restricting access to a building is only one of many concerns. Security executives must be completely aware of each individual entering and exiting a building as well as the total number of people in a building at any particular time. Therefore, today's access control technology is focused on keeping a real-time log of who enters and leaves a facility, thus providing the building's management, as well as law enforcement, with an accurate count of the occupants at any point in time.

Technologies that help to monitor building occupancy include access key cards, closed circuit television, biometrics and intrusion detection devices. These technologies can also interface with other building departments and systems to increase security and safety. For example, a pocket full of bulky, jingling keys can now be replaced by one slim card programmed for different levels of access. One card can be used to open one door, or 10 doors — depending on the level of access given to the user.

Video surveillance

Technology is largely replacing the human eye to view and record entrances and exits. Recognizable CCTV images can be produced in sunlight, or in times of total darkness. CCTV enables security professionals to pinpoint who has accessed what, when and where.

Significant CCTV advancements include cameras that adjust their outputs as lighting levels change, and Internet protocol (IP)-based cameras that provide real-time video to a network on a stand-alone basis.

CCTV has recently become the fastest growing segment of the security industry, the result of increased usage and heavy saturation within the market. Thanks to the low cost of quality digital technology, CCTV is now everywhere.

Camera design is also making more things possible. Cameras are smaller, less conspicuous and come in many different formats. They can record in color, black-and-white or infrared — when no light is available. The average price for a color digital camera has dropped to $250 vs. around $600 just a few years ago. An average site using 16 cameras and monitors as well as the necessary power supply, can cost between $12,000 and $15,000. Cost-effectiveness is boosted by the camera-to-manpower ratio. The more cameras a facility has, the less manpower it needs to patrol the premises. On any given shift, there may be only one security person, but many cameras strategically placed at various locations to provide video images on a real-time, call-up or recorded basis.

Archiving of surveillance recordings has been streamlined by elimination of bulky, degenerative videotapes — now replaced by computers hard drives. “Mega” drives can store hundreds of hours of digital video, which can be compressed and stored for safekeeping. A specific date, time and camera location can be pinpointed and accessed in seconds. Web-based systems can be accessed from any networked computer or PDA.

Access control

With the increased demand of knowing who is accessing a building at a particular moment, the challenge is to have systems designed that are easy-to-use, reliable, cost-effective and have a high level of authentication to the user. The old days of lock-and-key have given way to sophisticated devices that read cards from a distance and measure a distinctive physical characteristic or personal trait of an individual.

Coupled with terrorism concerns and corporate data piracy, the need and demand for biometric fingerprints, hand geometry, facial recognition and iris and retinal scan security solutions have never been higher. Since biometric systems are used to identify and verify a person's identity, the use of such systems is a natural extension in granting access to secure facilities.

Although it is unlikely an unauthorized person would gain facility access when biometric systems are used, intrusion detection devices can alert security when an area has been breached. These devices use lasers, electronic switches, photo-electric beams, heat and motion sensors and trip alarms to alert security of the intruder. While these types of systems have not changed much over the years, they have become more efficient and are more reliable because of improvements in electronics.

Deployment of electronic security systems in buildings increases the amount of information that can be gathered and stored. Using an access card to enter a parking garage or elevator provides an audit trail of what time an employee arrives at work. In an integrated and highly secure facility, one might find that presenting a card and biometric data at the building lobby will not only authenticate one's presence in the building but will also authorize computer log-ins to the company's computer network.

Integration

Cameras throughout a building can track and record an individual's every movement, thereby providing a real-time record of what areas he or she accesses. With this level of information, it is possible to integrate electronically the operation of various departments, so that information can be accessed and shared as needed. For example, data from an access control system can be integrated with the human resources and payroll departments so that when a card is presented at a gate or door, an employee's presence at the facility is immediately logged, beginning his or her work day. If an employee is terminated, his or her access to company facilities and services can be eliminated by a computer keystroke.

Electronic security systems can also be integrated with building automation systems to decrease facility energy consumption. Air conditioning and heating are turned on or off as employees use their access cards to enter protected space. Detectors can also increase building safety by interfacing with the HVAC system and monitoring the air intake to a building for chemical, radiological or biological agents. In the event that hazardous agents are detected, the system will shut down.

In a world where the threat level fluctuates because of events beyond our control, security systems are now designed with several layers of protection that can be tailored to match the level of perceived threat. A system may be programmed for “normal operating conditions” by requiring only a programmed card match; if the threat level increases, a match between the programming card and biometric data could be required before granting access.

Privacy concerns

It will be a challenge to balance the need for effective and efficient security systems with individual rights to privacy. Balancing these competing desires will present great challenges in the years ahead as more information is demanded and collected in order to conduct normal business transactions. For example, the collection and storage of biometric data creates both legal and ethical issues. Accessibility to this type of data and its subsequent vulnerabilities are also a key issue. Another major question to be answered is who owns biometric data once it has been submitted? This can be critical in the event of one's fingerprint ending up at a crime scene. The “owner” of that print would be a prime suspect, despite the fact that others have access to his or her biometric data.

With CCTV cameras, the issue is one of where is it legal and appropriate to install, view and record video images of the public? Once images are recorded, how safe are these images, can they be tampered with, and are they admissible in the court of law? Building owners and security officials should remain aware of any federal, state and local standards that apply to the use of such technologies.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Maxwell A. Stevens, CPP, CSI CDT, serves as the director of physical security design for RTKL Associates' Special Systems Design Group, Baltimore. RTKL is an international planning, architecture and engineering firm providing security systems technology, voice, data and audio-visual solutions. Stevens has consulted on projects for such clients as the Department of State, Singapore Embassy, National Science Foundation, and the United States Department of Health and Human Services.

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