Verticals
Shoppers Getting Ripped Off By Tiny, High-Tech Cash Register Spy Device
6 hours ago Police Picture # 2 Crooks who steal credit and debit card numbers have found a devious new way to snag this information. They’re using a small and relatively cheap piece of off-the-shelf technology to compromise computerized store cash registers. We know about this because a band of brazen thieves was caught on security cameras installing these high-tech skimmers on cash registers at the Nordstrom store in Aventura, Fla., two weeks ago. The skimmers are built into standard Ps2 cable connectors that plug into the back of a computer where customers can’t see them. They’re only about an inch long — and look so innocuous that even if employees saw them they might not suspect anything. “It’s a little piece of plastic, usually purple, that fits into the port where your keyboard connects to your computer,” explained security analyst Brian Krebs, who first reported this story on his KrebsOnSecurity blog. “It intercepts any data that is sent on that communication channel, whether it’s keystrokes or somebody swiping a card through a terminal.” Ps2 Keystroke loggers have been available for years. They sell for as little as $40 and are marketed as “professional surveillance products.” Krebs said this is the first time he’s ever heard of them being used to skim card information from a retailer. Nordstrom confirmed that it had found and removed “unauthorized devices on a small number of cash registers” at their Aventura store. “We take this situation seriously and have been working closely […]
Source www.today.com
Cambridge MA Blocks Surveillance Cameras
How one Mass city watches the watchers, and how others should follow suit On February 2, 2009, the Cambridge City Council voted in unanimous opposition to the installation of eight Department of Homeland Security cameras at major intersections on the basis that “the potential threats to invasion of privacy and individual civil liberties outweigh the current benefits” of accepting the DHS funds. While six such cameras were installed all the same, the council and a vocal citizenry has since successfully opposed their activation. At a follow-up meeting earlier this month, all nine Cambridge councilors reaffirmed their position: the cameras must remain off until police prove beyond doubt that their department has the capacity to balance investigative methods with civil liberties. Such aggressive civilian oversight of law enforcement should serve as a model not only for the Boston region, but for the whole country. Since 9-11, police chiefs, sheriffs, and commissioners have had an open invitation to request any range of surveillance and tactical gear from federal coffers, often without accountability checks to ensure that deployment squares with the Bill of Rights. Between DHS, the Department of Justice, and the Department of Defense, local overseers can secure every conceivable toy that they could ever covet without spending a dime of their own. From drones, to armored vehicles, to Long Range Acoustic Devices, which are essentially giant human dog whistles, it’s a veritable buffet via federal grants. Since these checks are written by the feds, such arrangements are often executed without […]
Source digboston.com
Ingersoll Rand Security Technologies Canada Works To Keep Educational Facilities Safe
| 16.10.2013, 19:51 | 117 Aufrufe | 0 | MISSISSAUGA, ONTARIO–(Marketwired – Oct. 16, 2013) – Ingersoll Rand Security Technologies (IRST) Canada is pleased to announce its commitment to safe schools with the launch of a suite of information resources to help school boards, educators, college security, physical plant managers and construction professionals involved in educational facility design and maintenance enhance the safety of students, staff and visitors. “With the start of the new school year, it’s important for those who have a role in protecting students to be well prepared,” says Mark Wilson, General Manager, Ingersoll Rand Security Technologies Canada. “We have developed these resources to help guide those with responsibility for school safety. We want this year – and every year – to be a safe school year.” The resources can be accessed free of charge at www.doorsecurity.ca/safeschools (free login required), and include: Security and Safety Assessments for Colleges and Universities Security and Safety Assessments for K-12 Schools Five case studies featuring K-12 Schools Ten case studies featuring Universities and Colleges Virtual K-12 Campus Tour video Virtual University Campus Tour video The Convergent Campus – Integrating Security Technologies the Right Way video The suite also features on-demand webinars featuring Paul Timm, President of RETA Security, Inc. Timm is a renowned school security expert, boasting credentials that include Physical Security Professional (PSP), as well as experience as a SCAT Member (NOVA) and Illinois Terrorism Task Force (ITTF). The first, School and Campus Safety for Students and Educators, focuses […]
Source www.wallstreet-online.de
Grocery Store Shelves Could Soon Watch While You Shop
Supermarket Decision Supermarket giant Mondel?z International is developing “smart shelves” to identify consumers’ age and gender while tracking their shopping habits. The company (formerly Kraft Foods), which makes Oreos, Trident gum, Wheat Thins, and a host of other snack foods, wants to use the technology — expected to be on supermarket shelves by 2015 — to better target their advertising, The Wall Street Journal’s Clint Boulton reports . “When people walk by, it’s a missed opportunity,” Mondel?z CIO Mark Dajani told the Journal. “We must know how the consumer behaves in the store.” Here’s how the technology would work: Sensors would be placed in the aisles where Mondel?z products are displayed. Using facial recognition technology provided by Microsoft’s Kinect , the devices would identify the age and gender of consumers perusing the aisles and track which people are most likely to purchase certain products. The data collected would be sent to Mondel?z in real-time. “Knowing that a consumer is showing interest in the product gives us the opportunity to engage with them real-time,” Mondelez spokeswoman Valerie Moens said in an e-mailed statement. The company plans to use the d ata collected to better target its advertising and discount offers to the groups most likely to buy certain products. The technology could also be used to alert the grocer when it’s time to reorder certain products. The sensors would not collect any photos, video or other personal information regarding consumers, according to Moens. “Privacy is of utmost importance, so Smart […]
Source www.businessinsider.com
On Proliferating State And Local Surveillance Technologies
Over at Security States, I have this piece up , about the proliferation of city- and state-operated surveillance technologies—and the need to pair collection rules for these technologies with effective use and access rules. The piece begins: The New York Times reports today that “ Privacy Fears Grow as Cities Increase Surveillance .” The main theme is that municipal police and law enforcement agencies around the country are deploying new and more sophisticated data gathering and analysis technology, some of it bought with counter-terrorism funds, stoking privacy concerns among residents and watchdog groups. As with much of the early reporting of National Security Agency surveillance programs disclosed by Edward Snowden, the Times piece is heavy on what the systems collect and how they store and combine information. Only near the end of the piece, however, does it address accompanying rules and guidelines being developed to regulate such issues as who can access this information, for what purposes, under what supervision, and with what checks. Rapid technological development and lower price-tags for it are inevitable, and the most important question is whether regulation for how surveillance technology and data may be used can keep up. It is no surprise that local governments are deploying technologies like video surveillance systems, license plate readers, drones, networks of sensors, and systems for aggregating and analyzing the information streams they produce. The New York Police Department has been out in front of other cities in this regard, on account of its size, resources, threats, […]
Source www.lawfareblog.com
IBM’s Smart Cities Program Learns As It Goes
In Miami-Dade County, a network of sensors and scanners are quietly collecting data about the area
Oncam Grandeye 360-Degree Technology Chosen To Protect Ireland’s Shannon Airport
Oncam Grandeye, the global innovator in technology, security solutions and 360-degree surveillance cameras, has been awarded a contract for the Shannon Airport Authority. Glasgow-based Video Management Systems (VMS), which selected Oncam Grandeye’s technology, will be the local integrator on the project, and the cameras will be controlled and managed through Titan Vision, VMS’ IP CCTV video management and PSIM solution. Shannon Airport is located on the western-most part of Ireland and is considered to be the gateway between Europe and the Americas. It handles approximately 3 million people a year, and nearly 50,000 metric tons of freight gets transported through its cargo area. The facility is enormous, with 40 check-in desks, 5 baggage carousels and 14 boarding gates (including 6 air bridges). There are nearly 40 aircraft parking stands. The car-parks can hold more than 5,000 cars. John Francis, the security manager at Shannon Airport, faces myriad challenges, and he tackled the terminal first. 360-degree cameras have been placed at the boarding gates in the large, congested area used by low-cost airlines. The main reason for surveillance here is health and safety. “We’re looking for slips and trips,” says Francis. Other cameras are positioned in the arrivals area, which houses vending machines, ATM’s, car-hire desks and pay stations for the car park. “The PTZ (pan-tilt-zoom camera) was always looking the wrong way when something happened, and was sometimes left zoomed in by an operator,” he said. “This is never the case with the 360; we see everything.” Shannon needed […]
Source www.finanznachrichten.de
Retailer Strategies For Loss Prevention
In the increasingly competitive retail space, there is a constant need to implement, expand and improve loss prevention programs to secure assets, decrease shrinkage and increase customer safety. With that, budget cuts in the manned loss prevention (LP) staff industry in all store ranges ? from mom and pop shops, to big box retailers ? […]
Minuteman Gets $7M Mobile Video Surveillance Project
Within a year, hundreds of Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) buses will be equipped with what Minuteman CEO Joseph Lynch calls “one of the most advanced multiband wireless IP video systems ever installed in mass transit.” The first group of buses will start transporting passengers the second week in November. “The contract is for the […]
Making Video Verified Response a Priority
What is Priority Response? Video-verified alarms have only been on the mainstream market for a handful of years. After they started showing up more frequently a few years ago, law enforcement began to see how unique and beneficial they really were. Officers around the country, such as Dye, decided to get behind Priority Response. Now, […]
VIEVU Partnership With Motorola Solutions For Line Of Body Worn Cameras
VIEVU, the industry leader in body worn video (BWV) for police, law enforcement and other security organizations, today announced its partnership with Motorola Solutions, enabling Motorola to add a small form-factor, highly secure body worn video (BWV) solution camera to their existing security product line. The advancement of video technology offers new tools to law […]
The Missing Link In Border Security
Comprehensive, large-scale border security that fits within a nation?s budget has been a major challenge to technologists. This is especially true for the U.S. Southwest border where, so far, technology has come up short. A new system based on existing technology may hold the promise of providing what has been the missing link in border […]
Cooling Crime Hotspots With Mobile Surveillance Technology
How Glenwood Police Department uses portable video camera platform as roving security zone Like many small town police departments seeking to maintain neighborhood safety, the Village of Glenwood, Ill., needed to squeeze every ounce of value from its law enforcement tools. Budget-wise, a city-wide surveillance solution was out of the question. The chief of police […]
San Leandro Moves Ahead With More Security Cameras; Hints At Limiting Data Retention
San Leandro City Council approved to move ahead with expanding its video surveillance system, however, with hesitation over the one-year retention period of information collected by the cameras. The council approved, 5-2, directing staff to formulate a plan for additional cameras at two undetermined location. Mayor Stephen Cassidy and Councilmember Ursula Reed both dissented. The […]
Video Surveillance And Business Intelligence: A Growing Trend In Retail
Video footage doesn?t lie. Why do you think NFL football teams gather every Monday morning and break down game film from the previous day? They do it to learn what they did right and what they did wrong in order to ensure success for the next game. So why can?t retail stores do the same? […]
Stop, Frisk, and Record
From New York City to Rialto, CA: Police Body Cameras Issues include whether a mandatory worn-video appliance would compromise police duties and effectiveness; would politicize basic law enforcement; would provide social activists with a diversionary platform; would open the door to extensive past and present complaints leading to backlogs of lawsuits; would end up benefitting […]
State Denies Public Access To Another Iowa Juvenile Home Security Video
The Iowa Department of Human Services is refusing to release another security camera video that allegedly shows a youth being mistreated at the state-run Iowa Juvenile Home. During the past year, The Des Moines Register has requested three separate videos that allegedly show state workers at the Toledo home physically abusing or improperly restraining youths. […]
Israeli Wireless Communication For Russian Safe City Video Surveillance Project
Radwin announced that its wireless broadband systems were deployed by the City of Nefteyugansk in Siberia, Russia for a major Safe City project. The RADWIN 5000 point-to-multipoint systems were chosen to provide real-time video transmission from high-definition video cameras installed throughout the city back to a central command center. Teleincom and ROILCOM, leading system integration […]
Man Videotaped PIN Input By Customers At St. Charles Bank’s ATM
Svetoslave T. Tanev was charged with forgery in St. Charles County and trafficking in stolen identities in St. Louis County. A man was charged with setting up a video camera at an ATM to record people as they punched in their PINs outside a St. Charles bank. The video camera was found Sept. 19 on an ATM at Enterprise Bank and Trust, 1001 First Capitol Avenue in St. Charles. One man, Svetoslav T. Tanev, 27, of Arlington Heights, IL, was charged Sept. 19 with forgery in St. Charles County Circuit Court. Officer Erik Lawrenz said St. Charles police saw video surveillance footage of the car used by the men who set up the camera. Officers soon located the car in the 1300 block of Bass Pro Drive near Bank of America. Lawrenz said officers do not know if they planned an operation at First Bank of America. The men were staying at a hotel in the same area, Lawrenz said. Police found more than 100 credit cards, an encoding machine and $12,000 in cash in a St. Charles hotel room occupied by Tanev and a second man. Tanev also was charged with trafficking in stolen identities in St. Louis County. Creve Coeur Police said an armored truck driver was refilling an ATM at the US Bank branch at 126880 Olive Blvd. in Creve Coeur when he saw a device attached to the top of the machine. Police found a small video camera trained on the ATM’s keypad to allow […]
Source stcharles.patch.com
IACP Sets Policy Standards For ALPR/ANPR
s reported by NDI Recognition Systems, an IACP report on license plate recognition offers agencies information to help set policies and operational standards. Automated license plate recognition (ALPR) technology has been adopted by approximately 23 percent of U.S. law enforcement agencies, according to a report released by the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP). […]