Solutions

PSIM Technology For Transport Management Systems

PSIM in use for Traffic Management Integrated control room technology using Physical Security Information Management technology can help traffic run more smoothly in complex urban environments. As surveillance based security systems have become more capable of performing more complex functions with the increased use of IP technology as a platform, so the control and operation of such systems has also become more demanding. Video Management Systems were developed to facilitate this demand for integration and improved manageability and continue to be the main platform on which most IP surveillance systems are built. However, complex environments like major ports and docks, rail terminals and airports require a significant leap in technology to be able to effectively manage all of the different sensor inputs from smoke alarms, intruder detection systems, door status sensors and dozens of other devices that are attached to the security network, both analogue and digital. It was in such environments that the technology of PSIM (Physical Security Information Management) was developed. PSIM goes a step beyond VMS and combines data from surveillance and other inputs to create a holistic overview of a security environment along with the intelligence to provide control room operators with decision paths based on alarm conditions or combinations of events. Some of the workflow can even be automated, further reducing the dependence on human intervention. PSIM for Traffic Management Intelligent Transport Systems ( ITS ) are also benefitting from such advances in technology and provide the kind of challenges that PSIM is designed […]

Gatwick Airport Unveils New Generation Biometric Gates

London Gatwick has officially opened the its new generation of ePassport gates using facial recognition. UK Immigration Minister Mark Harper said ePassport gates have proved popular with travellers. More than 10 million passengers have used them across the UK in the past year with numbers now operating at 1 million a month. London Gatwick now has the largest single bank of ePassport gates at any port in the UK. The latest installation totalled 15 gates , according to supplier Vision-Box, of Portugal. Harper said: "Keeping the UK’s border secure is our priority. At the same time we want to welcome legitimate visitors and trade which contributes to the UK economy. Using the latest technology helps us to do both and is popular with passengers. The e-Passport gates here at London Gatwick Airport provide both a fast and convenient way for tourists, business visitors and Britons returning home to pass through the border securely." The launch was also attended by Stewart Wingate, CEO of Gatwick Airport Ltd. He said: "Gatwick is delighted to be the first airport in the UK to offer this innovative new technology. It will make the journey of arriving passengers with chipped passports much more efficient." ePassport gates first went live in UK airports at Manchester Airport in 2008. This bank of gates replaces the first generation which were opened at London Gatwick South in June 2011. The gates which can be used by anyone with a UK or European ‘chipped’ passport who is aged 18 […]

Russian Upper House Approves Law On Biometric Passports With Fingerprints

Russian Federation passport 15:05 18/12/2013 MOSCOW, December 18 (RAPSI) – Russia’s Federation Council on Wednesday approved the law on issuing biometric foreign passports with fingerprints starting January 1, 2015. The law gives the federal executive authorities and their territorial branches, as well as diplomatic and consular missions, the right to collect and process additional biometric information of passport holders. Currently, Russian biometric foreign passports only contain one biometric parameter, a 3D photo. It is planned to collect fingerprints of all Russian nationals aged above 12 years. This information will be stored in the chip embedded in the passport to ensure maximum protection, reads the explanatory note to the bill. The goal is to simplify the authentication of passport data and to prevent, expose and preclude the use of passports for criminal purposes. The law is to become effective in Russia on January 1, 2015 and for diplomatic and consular missions outside Russia, as soon as they are equipped to issue the new passports, but no later than January 1, 2016.

Frost & Sullivan: Rapid Indian Infrastructure Expansion To Accelerate Adoption of Video Surveillance-as-a-Service Solutions

Mumbai, Maharashtra, India, Wednesday, December 18, 2013 — (Business Wire India) As services have only just begun to roll out, the video surveillance-as-a-service (VSaaS) market in India is still at a nascent stage. Nevertheless, the deployment of cloud-based models, Government efforts to improve IT infrastructure, and rising awareness on the benefits of robust surveillance solutions will spur implementation of VSaaS. Considering the critical nature of providing video surveillance services, cementing the first mover advantage in this market is crucial for market participants. New analysis from Frost & Sullivan ( http://www.electronics.frost.com ), Strategic Analysis of Video Surveillance-as-a-Service Market in India , finds that while there were only 20,898 camera sites which could have been serviced by VSaaS solutions in 2012, the addressable market for VSaaS will rise steeply post 2016 due to government policies on electronics coming to fruition and the completion of several infrastructure projects to reach 441,742 units in 2018. “Increased infrastructure spending and the projected growth of multi-brand retail will fuel the VSaaS market in India. The cost and business benefits for end users, including better streamlined surveillance expenditure for enterprises, will further boost VSaaS popularity in the country” said Frost & Sullivan Analyst. Moreover, the transition to more efficient video compression technologies will enhance the value for customers and encourage VSaaS usage. The availability of robust bandwidth, along with storage will become key differentiators for the market. However, low penetration of broadband in India and relatively slow uptake of video surveillance will pose a challenge to […]

Global Biometrics Market To Reach $8.7B In 2013, $11.2B By 2014

dhs-biometrics December 16, 2013 –  According to new research from BCC Research , the global biometric technologies market is expected to reach $8.7 billion in 2013 and will increase to nearly $11.2 billion next year. In addition, BCC projects the market to grow to nearly $27.5 billion by 2019 and to register a five-year CAGR of 19.8% from 2014 to 2019. According to the report, Biometrics: Technologies and Global Markets , technological advances, consumer and commercial acceptance as well as demand of the technology and cost reductions will drive the growth of the market for the foreseeable future. BCC says the new report gives an overview of global and regional markets for biometric technologies and dvices, as well as analyses of market trends from 2013 and estimates for 2014. The report also studies the product life cycle and technology life cycle of various types of biometric devices and the methods employed by different manufacturers and users in maintaining ecological balance. Everyone is in agreement that the market is set for profound growth. The Biometrics Research Group has projected that the global biometrics market will grow to $15 billion by 2015, from its 2012 estimated value of $7 billion.  Leave a Comment comments

Panasonic?s Cameramanager.com Ranked In Deloitte’s Technology Fast 500 EMEA List

Published on 13 Dec, 2013 The Technology Fast 500 awards act as an industry benchmark signifying a company’s accomplishment to shareholders and venture capitalists The Cameramanager.com team joined Panasonic Europe in July 2013 Panasonic System Communications Europe is delighted to announce that Cameramanager.com , a leading provider of Video Surveillance as-a-Service (VSaaS) in Europe, has been ranked in the 2013 Fast 500 Fast Growing Technologies Companies in EMEA by Deloitte. Panasonic recently made the announcement of the acquisition of Cameramanager as it extends its cloud-based solutions to the business and consumer markets. As part of the acquisition, the Cameramanager.com team joined Panasonic Europe in July 2013. “This acquisition is an important strategic step towards enhancing our smart and connected services offering in the European and CIS market,” said Laurent Abadie, Chairman and CEO, Panasonic Europe. “With Cameramanager.com’s bespoke software and cloud-based solutions complementing our existing security business, we will be able to significantly enhance our presence in this space, by bringing together technical know-how and software skills and equipping us with the necessary assets to respond to future demands in cloud services”. The Technology Fast 500 awards act as an industry benchmark signifying a company’s accomplishment to shareholders, venture capitalists and industry analysts alike and are a fantastic way for companies to build on their eminence. Deloitte provides audit, tax, consulting, and financial advisory services to public and private clients spanning multiple industries.

Aware Deploys Biometrics Software In Saudi Arabia For Visa Issuance

aware logo December 4, 2013 –  Aware has announced that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has begun the deployment of several of the company’s COTS biometrics software as a component of the Kingdom’s update to its visa issuance management process. Specifically, the new system makes use of Aware’s Biometric Services Platform (BioSP) as well as its Universal Registration Client (URC) and its related APIs. According to the company, BioSP is a modular service-oriented application to implement workflows and to manage data exchange between government departments. URC is a biometric enrollment application that will operate on hundreds of workstations at consulates and visa service centers globally to collect biometric data from potential visitors to Saudi Arabia. For this project, Aware serves as the principal subcontractor to Fujitsu Arabia. Reported previously , Aware also recently announced that it had supplied products and services to Fujitsu for a similarly-scoped biometric visa applicant screening system in Canada. “The new system in Saudi Arabia highlights the scalability of Aware’s biometric services platform, designed to handle as many as sixteen thousand biometric enrollments in a single hour,” Rob Mungovan, VP at Aware said. “This deployment serves as yet another example of Aware’s COTS products and subcontracted services being used by an integrator to successfully field an advanced, biometrics-enabled visa issuance solution.   Leave a Comment comments

Windshield-Mounted Device Makes Fast Food Payments Even Quicker

Windshield-mounted device makes fast food payments even quicker Physical wallets are gradually disappearing as new technologies enable consumers to pay through more automatic methods, and we’ve even previously seen companies such as Uniqul hint at cash and card-less payments with facial recognition. Although we’re not quite there yet, a new innovation called iDriveThru is enabling hands-free fast food payments at selected New York takeaways using RFID car windshield tags. The system — which uses the E-ZPass transponder that many motorists already use to pay toll booth charges automatically — is currently in use at the five drive-thru Wendy’s restaurants in Staten Island. Customers first need to link their credit, debit or prepaid card to their E-ZPass through the iDriveThru website. Upon arriving at Wendy’s, the tag’s data is then read by sensors, offering visitors a personalized greeting on the video above the intercom. Once they’ve made their order, the card details are read from the tag and the payment is taken automatically. In addition, customers earn ten reward points for every dollar they spend, with 500 points being redeemable for a USD 5 coupon at Wendy’s. Although iDriveThru isn’t currently affiliated with any toll agency and New York-based consumers can’t pay for food through their Metropolitan Transport Authority top-ups, the technology shows how payments can be made more convenient and seamless with RFID tags. It’s easy to see how motorists could perhaps be charged for other products and payments by adapting the devices even further, while local authorities could […]

Digital Ally Receives Initial DVM-250 Order From Kansas City Transportation Group

LENEXA, KS — (Marketwired) — 12/02/13 — Digital Ally, Inc. ( DGLY ), which develops, manufactures and markets advanced video surveillance products for law enforcement, homeland security and commercial applications, today announced that it has received an initial order for 100 DVM-250 Video Event Recorders from Kansas City Transportation Group (“KCTG”). Operating under the names “Yellow Cab”, “10/10 Taxi”, and “Super Shuttle”, KCTG manages a fleet of over 400 transportation vehicles in the Kansas City metropolitan area. KCTG is part of the transportation division of Veolia Transportation (“Veolia”), the largest non-governmental provider of transit services in North America , with over 5,000 vehicles, 21,000 employees in the United States and Canada , and annual revenue approaching $1 billion. Veolia, which manages many modes of public transit, provides transportation by charter bus, commuter rail, paratransit, private sedan, taxi and airport shuttle services. It is the North American business unit of Veolia Transdev, a global provider of public transportation solutions that is partly owned by Caisse des Depots, a leading French financial institution. “Our immediate objective is to become the preferred provider of event recording solutions to the 400-plus vehicles that comprise KCTG’s fleet in the Kansas City area, and thus we view this initial 100-unit order as a ‘first step’ in an expanding relationship with a regional leader in public and private transportation,” stated Stanton E. Ross , Chief Executive Officer of Digital Ally, Inc. "The initial installation of 100 DVM-250 event recorders, along with the infrastructure to wirelessly move […]

Zwipe Launches Biometric Access Card With Fingerprint Cards Sensor

zwipe logo December 2, 2013 –  Zwipe  has just launched a biometric access card, with fingerprint touch sensors from Fingerprint Cards . According to the company, the new card is multi-functional and is ISO 14443 compliant. Fingerprint data is stored on the card itself. “Providing secure personal ID authentication in an easy-to-use portable device has been our goal,” Kim Kristian Humborstad, CEO of Zwipe said. “Together with FPC’s touch sensor, we have achieved this in our Zwipe Access biometric card. The card provides a secure environment, protecting user data while still being able to communicate easily with access control systems using standard interfaces. FPC’s fingerprint sensors deliver the performance and functionality that our card product requires in an application where low power consumption and compact size are crucial.” “The access control market using cards and tokens is expanding constantly and the challenge is to combine security with user convenience,” Thomas Rex, EVP Sales & Marketing of Fingerprint Cards said. “Zwipe’s biometric card is the solution to this and is a state-of-the-art product that really pushes the limits to what is possible to do on a card today. The use of a touch sensor provides an enhanced user experience and is in line with the worldwide trend of integrating touch sensors into portable devices.” Reported previously , Fingerprint Cards also recently launched a capacitive fingerprint touch sensor for Android and Windows that had a major effect on the company’s share price almost instantly. According to a recently-published report, the overall electronic […]

Global Biometric Standards-Setting Body Formed

News analysis: Global biometric standards-setting body formed The Natural Security Alliance, a French-based international open source biometric standards-setting body that counts BNP Paribas, MasterCard and Carrefour Banque among its members, has launched what it claims is the world’s first association grouping, the Open Alliance, dedicated to propagating shared wireless biometric authentication to protect transactions. Up until now, the French-based organisation has not tried to corner the international standards market, reports Neil Ainger , but with the launch of the Natural Security Alliance’s open source group that is now changing. Jean-Pierre Viboud, group chief executive of Oney Banque Accord in France has been appointed as the open group Alliance’s first chairman, overseeing a collection of banks, card schemes, retailers and vendors all dedicated to developing and encouraging a global open source wireless biometric authentication standard. The shared protocol will be freely available to all and can protect transactions around the world. According to Viboud all open Alliance members, with the initial founding board including AS 24 (TOTAL oil group), Crédit Agricole, Paycert, SIX Payment Services and Swiss Capital International among many others, share a strategic commitment to delivering mission-critical authentication and payment solutions based upon biometric technology. “The Alliance was formed to provide a collaborative space for all professionals who are interested in biometrics and new payment systems to share and develop ideas for an open standard,” he said. “We believe that this information sharing and access to the specifications is one of the main benefits for our members. As […]

‘Soft’ Biometric Cameras Are Watching: Govt. Intelligence Hopes To Use Cameras To Recognize People By The Shape Of Their Ears

Facial Recognition Research Intensifies Research on facial recognition technology is being stepped up to include ‘soft’ biometrics, such as using ears as a unique element of identificaiton. (Photo: Igor Stevanovic / Rhonda J. Miller) Facial recognition has become an increasingly common element in security surveillance, enabling identification of faces in images taken from a distance and in a crowd. But facial recognition is just a step along the way to more and better identification techniques being sought by the U.S. government’s Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity (IARPA).  The agency has challenged top research teams to revolutionize how machines recognize people with a competition announced Nov. 8, according to New Scientist magazine.  Like Us on Facebook The announcement on the IARPA website, dated Nov. 8 said, “Intelligence analysts often rely on facial images to assist in establishing the identity of an individual, but the sheer volume of possibly relevant video and photographs can be daunting.  While automated face recognition tools can assist analysts in this task, current tools perform best on well-posed, frontal facial photos taken for identification purposes…IARPA seeks dramatic improvements in unconstrained face recognition by funding rigorous, high-quality research drawing on a variety of fields to develop novel representations to encode the shape, texture, and dynamics of a face and new ways to use these techniques for faster and more accurate search and retrieval.” The typical approach requires sorting through frame after frame of camera footage to find ones that offer a good chance for identification, then to […]

Bank Robber Apprehended Using Fixed License Plate Recognition Cameras From Vigilant Solutions

LIVERMORE, Calif., Nov. 25, 2013 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ — Vigilant Solutions announces today that its fixed license plate recognition (LPR) cameras were credited in the apprehension of a man wanted for a recent bank robbery in Great Neck, New York. Commissioner John “Jack” Miller explains, “A Chase bank branch in Great Neck was robbed on September 27th, and a woman witnessing the robbery provided information on the subject involved. Using video surveillance from nearby businesses, we were able to locate a vehicle and subject matching the woman’s description. This information coupled with our Village Camera system yielded a license plate number. The license plate number was then entered into our license plate recognition system to provide notification to the department when the vehicle was seen by one of our fixed LPR cameras, provided by Vigilant Solutions. We implemented our LPR program almost five (5) years ago, and it will soon consist of around fifty (50) fixed cameras, along with several mobile systems.” “Roughly one week later,” continues Commissioner Miller, “the vehicle passed one of the fixed LPR cameras, generating an alert that the suspect vehicle had entered the village. We notified other area police departments on the peninsula who helped to locate the vehicle. Within about 45 minutes we had the suspect in custody, and he was charged with first degree robbery and first degree use of a criminal firearm.” Commissioner Miller concludes, “The system will soon cover all entrances to our village. While it is typically used to […]

Fernandina Beach Police Department Implements License Plate Recognition System

Longwood, FL (PRWEB) November 24, 2013 The Fernandina Beach Police Department has implemented a four-camera mobile automatic license plate recognition (ALPR) system from NDI Recognition Systems (NDI-RS). Installed on one of the department’s patrol vehicles, the ALPR system will scan license plates and check the plates against “hot lists” of vehicles that are of interest to law enforcement officers, including Amber Alerts, Silver Alerts, suspended licenses, and other types of alerts. In addition to alerting officers in the patrol unit when the cameras spot a wanted vehicle, the NDI-RS solution captures plate reads, along with location data and color pictures of each vehicle, and that information is fully searchable using NDI-RS’s Vehicle Intelligence Server and Communications Engine (VISCE) back office software. “In addition to the assistance that NDI-RS’s solutions provide for traffic enforcement, the Fernandina Beach Police Department will be able to analyze the information captured by the ALPR solution to assist with ongoing criminal investigations,” said Christopher McKissick, Director of Sales for NDI Recognition Systems. “NDI-RS’s ALPR solutions are a strategic tool to help law enforcement protect citizens, and can help identify criminal activity as it occurs, as well as providing crucial intelligence to solve cases.” About NDI Recognition Systems: NDI Recognition Systems (NDI-RS) is a global provider of automated license plate recognition (ALPR) solutions for law enforcement, homeland security, and critical infrastructure security, as well as other market sectors. With an installed base in over 40 countries, NDI-RS designs and manufactures turn-key, end-to-end LPR solutions including mobile, […]

Fujitsu And PulseWallet Team Up For Biometric Payments

pulsewallet November 20, 2013 –  Fujitsu Frontech North America  and PulseWallet have announced a new relationship utilizing Fujitsu’s PalmSecure biometric technology for biometric payments. According to the companies, PulseWallet is paperless, storing transactions, transaction history, membership cards as well as promotions in a virtual customer profile. Now, under this new partnership, PulseWallet terminals aim to replace consumer credit and debit cards with palm-scanning technology. “From the very beginning, we were looking for an extremely secure and highly accurate form of strong biometric authentication technology to integrate with our solution. Customer registration has to work smoothly for all consumers and verification at POS must occur quickly,” Aimann Rasheed, co-founder and CEO of PulseWallet said. “We evaluated other forms of biometric authentication and we were most impressed with Fujitsu’s PalmSecure technology because of its speed, accuracy and flexibility.” PalmSecure sensors use near-infrared light to capture a user’s palm vein pattern without the need for contact with the sensor. “We are very proud to be partnering with PulseWallet and that they have chosen PalmSecure technology as a value-added benefit to their solution,” Randy Fox, senior director, currency handling and identification product solutions at Fujitsu Frontech North America said. “We are also extremely supportive of their green initiative. Fujitsu has been an eco-friendly company for over 30-years, with a true commitment to developing and delivering solutions that limit impact on the environment.” Payment systems are widely regarded to be the next big wave of biometric integrations, and many biometric wallet applications and solutions are […]

Google Disallows Facial Recognition in Glass Apps

Worried about so-called “Glassholes” automatically identifying the faces of people around them? Google says it doesn’t want that to happen, either. The company tonight posted an update to developer policies for its wearable device Google Glass that explicitly disallows facial recognition apps. It explained in a Google+ update: “As Google has said for several years, […]

US Researchers Working On Biometric System To Completely Replace Passwords

by CBR Staff Writer | 14 November 2013 Researchers claim the use of biometric technology to eliminate the requirement of passwords would is a likely next step. Researchers at Purdue University are developing new biometrics technology, which would allow users to log into computers using iris and fingerprint scans rather than typing passwords. Being developed at the university’s International Center for Biometrics Research, the technology will enable logging into a computer or activate a smartphone by swiping their fingerprint over a sensor which will not require frequently changing passwords. International Center for Biometrics Research director Stephen Elliott was cited by Associated Press as saying that iris and fingerprint scans, as well as facial and voice recognition, are just a few of the tools that can boost security while making lives easier. “I think the average person would tell you they have too many passwords and it’s a hassle to change them all the time, and therefore they use the same password for lots of things, which inherently makes that easier to break,” Elliott added. According to researchers, soldiers in Iraq carry handheld devices that enable scanning fingerprints, retinas and faces and evaluate them with identities in the database Researchers noted that the use of biometric technology to eliminate the requirement of passwords would be a natural next step.

Bank of America Looks To Biometric ATMs In New Patent Application

biometric-atm November 15, 2013 –  The Bank of America has pushed through a patent application, which describes a biometric ATM system. Reported in ATM Marketplace , the patent was submitted to the USPTO in 2012, and published recently in 2013. Specifically, this patent application  outlines a system for authenticating users with a combination of a pin-code and fingerprint biometrics. The design of a biometric ATM and the patent application certainly isn’t very specific, and at this point it looks like the BofA is staking out some territory for development, and doesn’t want to leave much room for competition. “[A] fingerprint scanner for use in the systems and methods of the invention may use optical fingerprint imaging, ultrasonic sensors, capacitance sensors (passive or active) and/or any other suitable method to capture the digital image of a fingerprint,” is just an example of some of the unspecific language contained in this application. “Any suitable method for PIN validation and fingerprint validation may be used to validate the input PIN and fingerprints.” It’s been widely acknowledged that payment systems and ATMs are a coming wave for biometric integrations, and it’s interesting to see the BofA making a move. There are a few places where biometric ATMs are already a reality. Reported previously , the Central Bank of Nigeria has teamed up with Dermalog for biometric POS systems as well as for biometric ATMs. Likewise, in Kenya, Tracom Services has launched a new line of fingerprint ATMs in Nairobi.    Leave a Comment comments […]

NEC Establishes ‘Safer Cities’ Strategy For Global Expansion Of Public Safety Business

NEC Establishes ‘Safer Cities’ Strategy for Global Expansion of Public Safety Business NEC Corporation (JCN Newswire) 2013-11-07 Tokyo, Nov 7, 2013 – ( JCN Newswire ) – NEC Corporation has combined its competitive technologies, products, and services to establish “Safer Cities,” a new strategy for global expansion of its public safety business, while launching sales of globally available solutions in seven business domains. Aiming to contribute to the solution of various social challenges, NEC announced a shift of its business focus to Solutions for Society in its 2015 Mid-term Management Plan announced in April this year. NEC will offer advanced social infrastructure utilizing ICT to realize a safe, secure, efficient, and equal society through this management plan. NEC is also promoting its safety business as one of the pillars of the global growth strategy for its Solutions for Society business. To date, NEC has offered a wide range of safety solutions that combine state-of-the-art technologies, such as biometrics, sensors, and big data processing technologies. In addition to these solutions, NEC is currently developing common solution models, to fast track the global expansion of its safety business, while enhancing its overseas system integration capabilities and global customer base. Also, in April this year, NEC established a Global Safety Division (GSD) in Singapore to promote its safety business. Furthermore, in September, it established the NEC Laboratories Singapore (NLS) as the center of its global solutions research in Asia. Through NLS, NEC has formed flexible research collaborations with local research institutions and […]