.
We should be utilising Dual SIM card devices to improve security and resilience...
As anyone in the Electronic Security industry will be aware, there have recently been many reported intermittent failures across all of the current Major Network Operators (MNO's) such as T-Mobile and Vodafone
Some of this has been the result of MNOs upgrading their services to support 4G signalling (In some cases re-purposing 2G bandwidth for 4G services). Other outages have been due to planned maintenance w
...Is 2014 the year when we will see the death of the remote control and the introduction of 24hr monitoring inside every living room?
For many years TV manufacturers have made the bulk of their profits from the selling of increasingly minimised hardware at reasonable profits. This has been supported by innovations such as increasingly larger screens followed by LCD,LED,HD,3D and 4K providing yet another “next new thing” to allow them to sell a combination as yet another new TV to those who alw
Are we ready for the next generation networks?..
In some ways the traditional notions we hold of privacy are currently holding us back. They are preventing us from taking full advantage of the possibilities that technology is making available to us right now.
I genuinely foresee a point in time where we will overcome such social stigmas (this really is all it is) and experience the benefits that will come, only from truly embracing all that technology can offer us.
So how do we get from point
Change is coming, like it or not...
There is currently a movement by many businesses within our industry to get involved with much more than just 'vanilla' alarm installations. What does the near and distant future hold for those involved with service delivery, manufacturing, installation or the monitoring of such systems? Are we truly on the way to Security 2.0?
It is a clichéd term, but we are currently on a one way street towards our industry either embracing other technologies and service
Ghost in the machine...
With around three quarters of remotely accessible CCTV systems allowing intruders free access to invade privacy and compromise entire corporate computer networks, is it time to say 'enough is enough' to manufacturers and insist upon firmware changes to improve security control?
This is not isolated to consumer level CCTV platforms only. Many 'professional' DVRs & NVRs are installed with default administrator accounts unchanged or additional accounts created and syst
Security Flaw
Some of you may be aware that last year there was some exposure given to a vulnerability in Trendnet camera firmware allowing access to their consumer webcam devices despite password protection being enabled.
They claimed to have released a patch within a month to solve the issue and to have contacted every customer to advise them to update their devices.
This is (despite the assurances of Trendnet) still a common issue, to help highlight it a real time map was produced showing
Bigger = Better?
Many barriers currently exist for businesses which are planning to run their own Alarm Receiving Centre (ARC).
In the coming months we could potentially see some of those barriers crumble and a whole new way of doing business materialise.
Winners & Losers
Traditionally setting up an ARC from scratch has been an expensive and time consuming process, which can rely upon expertise in the field to implement and is surrounded by very little shared information or open
Crossing of paths...
Alarm Transmission Systems (ATS) are increasingly adding capabilities that would traditionally have been performed by dedicated devices, for example CCTV verification.
At the same time Control and Indicating Equipment (CIE, or control panels in plain English) feature built in IP communication functionality and are giving us access to Home Automation integration and more.
This type of blurring of what would previously have been clear and distinct roles that equipment play
Unmanned Aerial Vehicles
Some press exposure was given recently to the news that Secom are actively looking to utilise ‘drones’ for the private security market on a rental basis. [1]
This appears to relate to the American market with the rental price given in dollars, yet is the UK market also ready to consider the possibilities?
The usage of drones, also referred to as Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (‘UAVs’), in the military sector has been known about and discussed widely for quite a while now. H
Collaboration
Our current generation is without doubt the most "connected" generation yet. We have numerous tools available which allow us to convey our thoughts instantly in every possible media format and yet we still occasionally struggle to communicate with each other effectively.
I want to look at some specific examples of platforms for collaboration and see how our industry might be able to put them into useful practice as well as considering our motivation for contributing towards
App-something?....
The recent launch of the Windows 8 operating system has become the flagship of a new thrust in technology culture that is here to stay if we like it or not.
Windows are trying to push their desktop experience into the App based smartphone sector whilst at the same time crossing paths with Google who are busy working on selling their App based platform to desktop users.
At the same time Apple is looking to futher improve communications between their many available device
Innovation
It is easy with hindsight to look at some developments and think 'why didn't I come up with that?'
We are currently living at point in time where technology is developing rapidly across a wide spectrum of disciplines, this is at the same time as we are bringing billions more people online to join the global discussion. Will this inevitably lead to progression or will these new minds need first to assimilate all of the current and existing ideas in order to further innovate?
I belei
Augmented Reality
There was a glut of press attention given recently to a free Android and iPhone application called "Chestburster" which allowed users to see a 3D ‘alien’ type creature emerge and come to life when viewing a particular static image along with gory sound effects. This image could be downloaded from their website and placed; for example, on a t-shirt / computer screen or as a printed image.
Whilst this was very much a niche ‘toy’ to demonstrate the possibilities it is a pow
Summary
Many specific industries in the UK are currently being targeted for online attacks in order to access the information which they hold. This information is rapidly becoming a new commodity in these changing times.
The financial sector saw a 3000% increase in the volume of attacks directed specifically at them in the first quarter of 2012. [1] [2]
The electronic security industry is a definite target due to the ‘low risk, high yield’ target nature of ARCs & Installers for potent
