Whenever we are in a public place, we will most likely find ourselves on camera. CCTV cameras are used to prevent and solve crimes, find missing persons, and keep our roads safe. Traditionally however, there has been some discussion around the effectiveness of CCTV, and how much it really does to prevent crime. Through the digitalisation of CCTV, these concerns can finally be addressed properly as connected CCTV has the potential to make a real difference to crime levels through the use of digital technology and IoT to enhance surveillance. Connected cameras and smart security solutions are revolutionising the way CCTV can help keep the public safe, at the same time as helping companies and local authorities to save time and money.
Live streaming
By digitalising CCTV, live footage can be streamed directly to remote screens in police control rooms and alarm monitoring centres. Using connected cameras, security companies and the police can visually verify a situation using live CCTV footage, saving them a costly trip for a false alarm.
Facial recognition technology combined with live streaming could result in a radical change in the ways that police catch criminals. Rather than knowing where they were a few hours ago, police can track a suspect’s location in real time using remote access to connected cameras.
The Cloud
Filling in forms and dealing with paperwork can take up a considerable amount of police time and resources, keeping officers away from the front line. The sheer volume of paperwork processed by teams of police can result in a massive data storage problem, even if the information is kept electronically. By adopting cloud data storage and implementing analytical insight tools to aid with data sorting, police forces can save valuable time and money previously spent on filing.
Vulnerability
For obvious reasons, security cameras are at risk of vulnerabilities if they are not connected to a secure and reliable network. Cyber attacks such as information theft, malware or hacking could cause significant disruption to security systems and put lives at risk. It is essential that security cameras are connected via authenticated networks using robust and reliable secure connectivity, and that data is encrypted as it is transferred between devices. Integrated SIMs must contain encryption engines and secret keys.
Emotional CCTV and digital identification
Technologies that are able to assess a person’s face for emotion, or even intent, as well as monitoring the way somebody walks or uses their smartphone, are already out there and beginning to help with crime prevention.
Russian firm NTechLab have created a technology that could read emotions and behaviour to help stop crimes before they happen. The technology would be integrated into already existent security cameras and there are claims that the software is able to perceive whether a person is looking angry, aggressive or nervous. It may seem a little out there but could this be the next solution for reducing crime levels?
Behavioural biometrics is an emerging technology using the accelerometers and gyroscopes within our smartphones to measure our wrist strength, gait, and physical behaviour, helping to prevent identity fraud and smartphone theft. Combining this technology with connected security cameras could take crime prevention to the next level.
While digitalised and connected security systems offer countless advantages over traditional CCTV networks, it is absolutely essential that connectivity is robust, secure and reliable. Download our whitepaper on video surveillance to find out more.