Tag Archives: CCTV systems

Why appoint a CCTV regulator?

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New IP solutions encourages new appointment.

Why has the UK government decided to appoint an interim CCTV regulator? Well Andy Rennison certainly has a big task ahead of him. To be fair it seems on the surface just another public servant being appointed just for the sake of it. We already have regulation within the industry in the form of the NSI and this is effectively controlled by the government already through the implementation of European standards for intruder alarms, access control and CCTV.

The challenges ahead.

There are however some challenges ahead within our industry that to the credit of government officials have actually been foreseen at a relatively early stage. Integration between CCTV, access control and intruder alarms mean that the boundaries are becoming blurred between the security technologies . Of even more relevance is that CCTV evidence produced by camera systems has always been contentious but now with the advent of IP CCTV and integrated CCTV systems mean that the police and the courts are desperately seeking guidelines and regulation to ensure that evidence that is forth coming from the new IP surveillance systems can be used in the courts  and this is very much in the public interest.

Government interference?

Government intervention can only be justified if it is profoundly in the public interest and with CCTV software being used more and more, guidelines are are must to ensure forensic integrity is maintained and all evidence is 100% acceptable however it may need to be used.

Complaints procedure for CCTV systems defined by the CCTV regulator.

The right for the public to be able to complain is only a step forward if there is a real understanding in the public domain as to how IP CCTV works . So if education is part of Andy Rennison’s  remit then this cannot be viewed as bad thing.

Conclusion.

Within the industry we have to look at this in a positive way. No publicity is bad publicity and if it means that high standards are enforced then only the most professional companies will be able to take on the new challenges set out by the new CCTV regulator. We look forward to the way this develops with interest . Your thoughts are welcomed. Do we need this kind of regulation or can the industry be relied upon to govern itself ?

Home office appoints interim CCTV regulator

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New CCTV regulator appointed.

Andy Rennison has been appointed by the home office as the interim CCTV regulator. His role has been defined as one that will set standards and regulation for contemporary CCTV systems.

What is involved?

The job will include setting up a quality standards framework that will ensure that images are delivered that improve security, reduce crime, and create safe environments for the public and the business community.

Why now?

Essentially to enable CCTV to be used in the public domain it must be treated in the same way forensic evidence is processed by the police and the courts and to this end the aim is to ensure quality images are recovered and these are processed correctly during the  enhancement and analysis stage.

A modern standards framework.

The new regulator will also work towards a modern standards framework to guide us in the responsible use of CCTV and set regulation that will suit the public interest. With IP CCTV bringing new installers into the market place standards are crucial to ensure experience and high standards of installation are rewarded

Complaints process.

A complaints process will also be put in place to ensure the public feel that CCTV is being used correctly and this will also enable them to appreciate the benefits that the use of CCTV systems brings to us all. The interim process will take up to 12 months and its hoped will have the wide support of the public , police, courts and of course the government.

Much awaited detail and clarity.

As we all know business drives the CCTV market and the market place is moving quickly to embrace new IP camera technology and integrated CCTV systems. This brings us much awaited detail and clarity but also this change brings many new challenges especially from a forensic and evidential point of view . So to allow us all to go forward we need to take stock now, set standards and regulation that can be implemented and used by all to ensure CCTV continues to drive crime and unsociable behaviour away. This will give the public, police and courts the utmost confidence in this new IP world.

Integrated CCTV System

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Integrated CCTV systems.

What are the elements involved in a fully integrated CCTV system?  Starting with the a basic CCTV system we will always have the cameras , the DVR and the monitor. this is what people generally understand when they ask to have a CCTV system installed.

Lots of applications.

We can have an internal CCTV system, an external CCTV system or we can have a mixture of both. Until recently CCTV systems tended to be restricted to a fairly small number of cameras usually up to about 16. Of course there has always been a need on bigger sites for more cameras but there was always the restrictions. The number of frames per second per camera that a DVR could process for instance. The more FPS the more expensive the DVR tended to be to accommodate. Then of course we have the picture quality. Analogue CCTV cameras have always been restricted as to how many lines they can produce to make up the image we see on the screen.

Better picture quality.

Although cameras have advanced to allow more lines,  420 TVL would be typical for instance. It does not stop there, we are then restricted by the monitors and the picture quality they can produce . With the introduction of IP we now have the exciting development of HD CCTV and this means mega pixels and in turn a huge advance in picture quality that we can expect from our recorded images in the future.

Integrated CCTV solutions provide so much more.

Integrated CCTV systems though consist of more .They can be hybrid CCTV systems part analogue, part IP. They can be Integrated to access control systems and linked to central stations. They can be linked to external alarm systems. Sensors, fixed beams and so on to give us many different security solutions and the ability to generate alarms.

CCTV in the future.

Most integrated CCTV systems of the future however will be able to incorporate analytics to generate alarms. This could be used to warn of a terrorists threat such as abandoned luggage and suspicious behaviour etc. The CCTV systems can be integrated to ANPR software that will allow number plate recognition to control barriers and access control and the  police are able to track suspicious vehicles across the country by using this ANPR technology. CCTV systems can now integrate to biometric readers to allow faces to be linked to finger prints this offers companies a huge upgrade of security within their organisation.

In summary.

In summary CCTV systems on their own will be a thing of the past. Integrated security in its many forms is the way forward for the future. IP cameras and the improved picture quality they bring together with analytics and more flexibilty are just around the corner , things are moving fast!

IP CCTV

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IP CCTV.

It’s the buzz word currently in the CCTV industry. Everyone is talking about it but why?

It’s getting cheaper.

Yes the main thing is it is becoming affordable now and can certainly be considered for most applications involving integrated security.

Integrated CCTV.

Again a new buzz word. This is because most systems installed within the next 2-5 years will effectively be a mixture of analogue and IP cameras the reason behind this is because most customers out there will want to upgrade to IP but still have to include their legacy equipment wherever practical to give them a cost effective security solution.

What is better IP or analogue?

That actually does not matter . The move is slowly but surely moving to IP camera solutions because everything else out their is using IP and needs Internet connectivity to function in today’s market place.

Conclusion.

So we wont stop the march towards IP cameras and integrated CCTV systems very soon all security including access control and intruder alarms will cease to function using the old traditional ways. The future is here today!