Are you getting the most out of your security system? In this day and age there are three main components for a secure home or office – surveillance, physical locks, and alarms. In this first part of three, surveillance is the focus. While many people have learned the value of surveillance, they don't really take advantage of the technology available today. Clients often ask Prestige for options they don't really understand. Is motion detection important? How about alarm system integration? Event monitoring? Email alerts? Analystics? Pan/Tilt/Zoom cameras? Before long the list of options becomes endless. Instead of bogging down in the tedium of countless options, most of which may not even be appropriate, Prestige asks its clients to think about what their priorities are for their own security. Most of the time, companies will set up camera systems that only record – this is only half the battle when you might be away for a week or more. If someone breaks in, a simple recording might not be enough when they are long gone. For that reason it is important to take a look at some of the options available to enhance modern home surveillance.
Motion detection is nothing new in the world of surveillance – it's simple to set up, works well, and reassures your safety with updates. The downfalls of motion detection lie in its simplicity however. The basic foundation of how motion detection works is by checking the differences between frames of a recording and between different zones in the image. When a change is detected an email, text, or push message is sent out. This is a great place to start with surveillance, but it can be easily fooled. Dogs, cats, trees moving in the wind, even the errant butterfly coming too close can trip up motion detection leading to false alerts and wasted time. Of course these factors can be minimized through scheduling, masking, logical exclusion/inclusion, and other simple features, but the truth remains that motion detection is not infallible. Prestige suggests our clients only rely on motion detection in areas that have very predictable traffic and very little breeze – indoor areas, front doors, and covered patios are good choices for motion detection.
Alarm system integration can be another great tool in the home surveillance toolbox. While more costly and time consuming to set up than motion detection, it cuts down on false positives and brings improved accuracy to the table. With fewer false alerts and less wasted time come improved detection and response rates. By combining contacts, beams for detection, and motion tracking where appropriate, integrating the alarm system with the surveillance becomes a very effective method of improving security. This is also a particularly effective method when combined with a surveillance monitoring service. Surveillance monitoring provides the safety of human security while eliminating the need for guards on site and is much more cost effective. With the efficacy of an integrated surveillance system, monitoring allows a surveillance company to check alerts and determine the best course of action before dispatching anyone.
While motion detection and alarm integration are good solutions, especially in conjunction, analytic camera systems bring a much higher level of safety and capability to home and commercial surveillance. Analytic cameras can do much more than detect motion – they can track objects and people, determine whether motion is abnormal, even discern if a sound is a car backfiring or a gun shot. The systems are more expensive and take longer to program, but are indispensable for clients combating higher risk or for large commercial spaces. These systems are especially valuable for communities, towns, and even cities. With the use of analytics a theft or break in can be tracked automatically through a suburb – all nearby cameras will pan, tilt, and zoom to follow the suspect(s). This is the same technology that is deployed in Dallas, Washington DC, and is currently being installed in Miami. Analytic cameras can even be selectively deployed and programmed, casting a community wide safety net without sacrificing personal privacy.
With these technologies available in both residential and commercial surveillance, don't leave your home, business, or community unsecured with sub-par performance. If you are interested in surveillance cameras for your home or business and want only the best, or even if you require consultation to find the right solution, contact Prestige.