1 November 2022 - Security Buyer Magazine

Oosto’s latest software

Industry Sectors, News Desk, Technology / Rebecca Morpeth-Spayne

Oosto’s Vision AI platform optimises its neural networks for smart cameras, near-edge devices and access control systems Oosto announced the latest release of its Vision AI software platform, which includes significant video analytics enhancements for video surveillance hardware and access control systems. The version release is accompanied by the company’s introduction of its proprietary edge device, the new OnPoint touchless reader tablet. This output allows security teams to further reduce organizational risks associated with outdated physical security systems, better manage controlled access, and identify safety threats. Oosto is harnessing the power of edge computing, facial recognition, and Vision AI to bring physical security into the modern age. Edge computing in smart video surveillance offers many advantages including improved response times, a smaller physical footprint (because fewer servers are required for video processing), improved scalability, and even built-in failover so that if a network failure occurs, edge devices continue operating without pause. With Oosto’s latest edge enhancement, the Vision AI platform offers a “no-compromise” solution that de-risks video analytics at the edge while maintaining high performance and accuracy. Oosto leverages state-of-the-art Kubernetes technologies to protect its algorithms by containerizing the application (vs. running the neural networks directly on edge devices). Performance-wise, Oosto’s neural networks have been optimized to support low-power edge devices while still offering superior performance and recognition accuracy. Based on internal benchmarks, Oosto’s algorithms are now seven times more efficient in terms of watts-per-video stream than the company’s next nearest rival. “It was only a matter of time before real-time video surveillance and access control systems would harness the power of the edge,” said Dieter Joecker, Chief Technology Officer, Oosto. “With our recent enhancements to our Vision AI platform, Oosto is transferring compute workloads from expensive on-premise servers to the edge but, perhaps more significantly, we’re doing this without sacrificing recognition accuracy, security and performance in real-world scenarios or expanding the physical footprint of the system.” Many organisations are increasingly moving critical processes from central servers to a variety of edge devices and its adoption is growing across industries, use cases and geographies. In fact, the global edge computing market is expected to grow to $155.9 billion (USD) by 2030, a compound annual growth rate of 38.9% (source: Research and Markets, September 2022). This shift enables edge devices such as smart cameras, gates and access control systems with local decision-making to open gates for authorized employees or send real-time alerts to security teams when a person-of-interest enters a commercial space. A few of the key enhancements offered in Oosto’s version 2.6 release include: Optimised Neural Networks: Oosto’s neural networks have been optimized to operate on a wide variety of edge and near-edge devices. Historically, video images required compute-intensive GPU servers. Today, Oosto’s neural networks for watchlist alerting can support very large datasets (which are often required for smart cities and other related use cases) and enable image-rich watchlists to be automatically pushed to mobile personnel in the field. OnPoint Reader: The new Oosto OnPoint reader is an edge device that can function autonomously and can grant/deny access to employees and visitors even during a network failure. OnPoint readers leverage facial biometrics and edge computing to quickly and accurately recognize authorized personnel, even with obscured faces. The OnPoint touchless reader eliminates surface contact and incorporates 3D liveness detection to prevent spoofing (where a visitor uses a picture or video of an authorized employee to circumvent security). Near-Edge Processing: Oosto is launching an updated near-edge device (e.g., NVIDIA Jetson) that operates on a much smaller physical footprint and is equipped with Oosto’s state-of-the-art neural network models for video analytics. While the latest version of the Vision AI platform still requires a central server, it can now interoperate with a number of leading GPU-less mini-servers. Smart Camera Integration: Oosto is pioneering the concept of “camera as a sensor” by embedding our state-of-the-art neural networks (SDK) into the latest AI-enabled CCTV cameras. Because the image processing and face vectoring happens on the camera, these smart cameras reduce the need for computing requirements on the server side and enable powerful capabilities such as watchlist alerting, frictionless access control, tailgating detection/prevention, and other video analytics capabilities. Genetec VMS Integration: Oosto’s latest release also provides Genetec VMS customers with a single pane of glass to view real-time alerts of security threats (i.e., individuals spotted on a company’s watchlist) by accurately identifying persons of interest in real-time, even under adverse conditions (e.g., acute camera angles, people in crowds, less-than-optimal lighting conditions). Oosto’s integration enables surveillance operators with a complete history of all POI detections (video playbacks) within Genetec Omnicast™ VMS to facilitate and expedite investigations. By leveraging edge and near-edge technologies, Oosto is helping to revolutionize, modernize and de-risk physical security while dramatically lowering the total cost of ownership for video surveillance and access control systems. To read the full exclusive see our latest issue here. Never miss a story… Follow us on: Security Buyer @SecurityBuyer @Secbuyer Media Contact Rebecca Morpeth Spayne, Editor, Security Portfolio Tel: +44 (0) 1622 823 922 Email: editor@securitybuyer.com

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Accuracy through steam, dust, and time

News Desk / Rebecca Morpeth-Spayne

Ajax Systems announces the new FireProtect 2 lineup and unveils the first release that includes seven models of fire detectors. The re-engineered detectors feature a patented smoke chamber that is ultimately dustproof and impenetrable for insects, thermistors that ensure rapid detection of temperature spikes, long-lasting battery life, and many accompanying hardware and software improvements. Due to the wide application of the FireProtect detectors, we gathered valuable experience in fire safety. And what do we see? We see the overregulated and inert markets. We see the same players who do not risk changing their products for years. We see how professionals work with outdated equipment and how users get minimal fire protection and the same minimal features. We’ve accepted the challenge and devoted a year to develop a fire safety road map in an Ajax system. Sergii Shcherbakov, Product Manager, Fire Team, “The first release complies with EN 14604:2005/AC:2008, EN 50291-1:2018, and Q mark regulations and fully meets the needs of the EU residential fire safety market, which is growing by €80 million annually. At this point, Ajax has something to offer: detectors with sealed batteries for homes in the Netherlands and Germany, detectors with carbon monoxide sensors for Scandinavian countries, where many people heat their homes with gas and other fuels. And many more options for fire detection systems installers worldwide.” Detectors for each task The FireProtect 2 lineup features detectors of two enclosure types. Depending on size, they are equipped with different sensor combinations. Detectors with a bigger enclosure feature a smoke chamber plus a temperature sensor, and an advanced version also features a CO sensor. The smaller ones have no smoke chamber and feature up to two sensors: a sole temperature sensor, a sole CO sensor or both “under the hood”. Detectors have different battery options. The RB models feature replaceable batteries that provide up to 7 years of operation and SB models work 10 years from sealed batteries (can’t be replaced, require entire detector replacement). Future-proof hardware A dedicated team of developers spent a year reaching an entirely new level of technology in residential fire safety with FireProtect 2. They equipped the detectors with a unique, patented smoke chamber that is ultimately dustproof and impenetrable for insects — no need to clean it regularly. In the smoke chamber, FireProtect 2 has a dual-spectrum optical sensor that can distinguish smoke from water steam, thanks to the blue and infrared LEDs. FireProtect 2 features a patented smoke chamber with a dual-spectrum optical sensor. Even if, somehow, the dust gets into and settles in the smoke chamber, it does not affect the detection. The optical system is designed so that dust and insects cannot be in two beams simultaneously and thereby cause an alarm. Moreover, the updated HazeFlow 2 software algorithm processes data received from the sensors, reducing the risk of false alarms to almost zero. To quickly distinguish the temperature spike, detectors are equipped with two thermistors. They give a significant advantage when synthetic materials burn. So FireProtect 2, with smoke and temperature sensors, is ready to detect a fire as fast as possible, even if it starts imperceptibly. The extended version — with an additional carbon monoxide sensor — detects the CO concentration at a 50 ppm level. And the built-in 85 dB buzzer alerts about the high level of CO with a different sound. So the type of danger is immediately clear. With years of operation from replaceable or sealed batteries, FireProtect 2 hardware ensures accurate and robust fire safety. Improved enclosure for installers’ and users’ comfort New detectors inherited Ajax signature features and received few salient improvements. As before, there is no need to disassemble the detector during installation. With an upgraded SmartBracket panel, an installer can effortlessly fix the detector and level it at 90 – degree angles after mounting. Considering the square shape of the detector, it is a true perfectionist’s dream. SmartBracket helps to level FireProtect 2 after installation. Moreover, the button on the enclosure to silence the alarm/testing became large and mechanical. Users can quickly press it even with a mop. On the enclosure, three LEDs indicate an alarm, a malfunction, and the regular operation of the detector. The detectors have tampers on the mount and the smoke chamber. So dismantling the detector means an instant push notification on users’ smartphones and an event sent to a security monitoring station. Technologies saving lives and nerves FireProtect 2 detectors use proven-by-time security technologies. The Jeweller radio protocol establishes a secure, encrypted communication range with a hub at a distance of up to 1,700 meters without a range extender. And twice as much with it. To read the full exclusive see our latest issue here. Never miss a story… Follow us on: Security Buyer @SecurityBuyer @Secbuyer Media Contact Rebecca Morpeth Spayne, Editor, Security Portfolio Tel: +44 (0) 1622 823 922 Email: editor@securitybuyer.com

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Genetec shows cybersecurity remains top concern

Middle East News Desk / Ghyslaine Cordrey

New Genetec research shows cybersecurity remains a top concern for physical security professionals worldwide Almost half of all respondents activated an improved cybersecurity strategy in 2022. As cybersecurity awareness month becomes a focus of discussion in October, new research conducted by Genetec Inc. (“Genetec”), a leading technology provider of unified security, public safety, operations, and business intelligence solutions, shows that cybersecurity remains a top concern for physical security professionals going into 2023. Based on insights from over 3,700 physical security leaders from around the world, the report revealed that almost half (49%) of the organisations surveyed had activated an improved cybersecurity strategy this year, and more than a third of all respondents (36%) are looking to invest in cybersecurity-related tools to improve their physical security environment in the next 12 months. When asked about the challenges faced when managing employee and visitor safety, more than half of the organisations selected cybersecurity as their main challenge. This was particularly evident for organisations with over 100,000 employees, with 62.3% of them indicating that cybersecurity was their top challenge, compared to 52.1% for companies with under 100,000 employees. Of the many capabilities related to cybersecurity and data protection deployed by physical security teams in the last year, cyber-hardening of physical security hardware and access control management were the most popular, with 40% of respondents implementing new measures targeting those capabilities. “It’s reassuring to see physical security professionals prioritising their organisation’s cyber security posture,” said Mathieu Chevalier, Principal Security Architect at Genetec. “As the threat landscape continues to evolve, leading with a defense in depth strategy remains the best game plan that an organisation can have. Businesses will need to put in place cybersecurity best practices and choose technology partners who offer higher levels of automation to stay on top of potential threats. They will also need to scrutinise their entire supply chain and demand continuous verification, rather than just hardening networks and systems.” To help its customers be more cyber resilient, Genetec has developed features that are embedded in its security platform, Genetec™ Security Center: The Security Center Firmware Vault keeps cameras secure and up to date by alerting customers when updates are available, automatically validating firmware compatibility and allowing customers to push it directly to the camera from the platform. This helps to reduce the likelihood of falling victim to known vulnerabilities. StreamvaultTM appliances are cyber hardened, right out of the box. More than 200 security settings are preconfigured, to ensure every part of a customer’s infrastructure is protected. The Certificate Management feature in Security Center 5.11 simplifies the task of managing the lifecycle of certificates, allowing users to effortlessly keep their devices connected and running smoothly. The Genetec Update Service (GUS) alerts users to new product updates, allowing them to automatically download or install on their own schedule, reducing the effort required to manage updates and be protected from attack. Finally, the Security Score widget is a dynamic hardening tool that checks the security of the system in real-time. It lays out guidelines and then monitors whether the different elements of the system comply. For more information on cybersecurity best practices, visit the Genetec Trust Center. Survey methodology Genetec Inc. surveyed physical security professionals from August 25 to September 21, 2022. Following a review of submissions, 3,711 respondents were included in the sample for analysis. A full State of Physical Security report will be issued in December 2022. To read more news and exclusive features see our latest issue here. Never miss a story… Follow us on: Security Buyer @SecurityBuyer @SecbuyerME Media Contact Rebecca Morpeth Spayne, Editor, Security Portfolio Tel: +44 (0) 1622 823 922 Email: editor@securitybuyer.com

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