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2021 ‘refocuses priorities’ for physical security

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The realities of COVID-19, and the subsequent shift to work at home, has emphasized the value of technology that can provide greater insight and control.

That’s according to results from Genetec’s ‘Physical Security in EMEA 2021’ report, based on insights from over 1,500 physical security professionals.

The report takes a closer look at how physical security teams across Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) are leveraging technology to manage both short term needs and long-term priorities.

In the UAE, according to a recent report from Mimecast, 81% of respondents had received specialised work from home related cybersecurity training since the start of the pandemic – above the global average of 64%.

As a result, video analytics, access control and identity management were all identified as strategic technologies for 2021.

Cyrille Becker, Managing Director of Europe at Genetec, said: “Last year we saw a seismic shift in the way companies approach security. The access control boom within facilities, showed that the physical security industry is capable of streamlining innovative solutions—particularly when there’s a demand for enhanced safety. As we enter a new chapter, the industry must continue to adapt to changing requirements and invest in the latest enabling solutions to help make our workplaces safer, healthier and more secure.”

Cybercrime is primed to reach record heights in 2021, with the rise of work-from-home and the growing adoption of IoT, as 48% of MEA respondents believe in the prioritisation of the implementation of better business continuity plans. Against this backdrop, 67% of respondents are planning to prioritise the improvement of their cybersecurity strategy in 2021.

Christian Morin, Vice President of Cloud Services and CSO at Genetec, said: “The rise of cybercrime has highlighted cyber and physical security measures can no longer be treated as separate conversations. Physical security professionals must partner with their counterparts in IT to understand the true limits of the security perimeter and mitigate against risk. This requires solidifying a resilient cyber-physical security framework, to ensure trusted devices are integrated in the network and subsequently configured, updated and managed throughout their operational life.”

Physical security departments have traditionally been slower to adopt the cloud, however, the survey results indicate the situation is rapidly changing. With almost two thirds of respondents reporting the pandemic has somewhat (51%) or greatly (12.5%) accelerated their cloud strategy in relation to physical security. This can be linked to the move towards Smart Cities, a rapid transition which has been witnessed within the Middle East, a region investing greatly into a new age of digitalisation.

In January 2021 Genetec EMEA surveyed physical security professionals based in Europe, Middle East and Africa – you can download the full report here.

Are these the key physical security trends for 2021?

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Innovative applications of security technology, focus on privacy, growing cybersecurity concerns, hybrid cloud adoption, and increasing scrutiny into vendors are among Genetec’s top five predictions for the physical security industry in 2021…

Innovative security solutions will help businesses thrive post pandemic
While the world remains optimistic for 2021, organizations will need to remain creative about how they use, update, and redeploy their security systems across their facilities. This will allow them to start thinking more broadly about the role of physical security and what it can do beyond traditional applications to deliver more value. We have already seen proof of this resilience and resourcefulness over the last few months with many organizations quickly adapting to the new needs and challenges posed by COVID-19, using their physical security technology as a strategic tool in the fight against the pandemic. In many ways, the extraordinary difficulties brought on by the current situation have put an increased focus on the role and importance of the physical security industry. And once the pandemic is finally in the rear-view mirror, we believe organizations will continue to look at their physical security technology and related data as both strategic and enterprise-shaping.

Businesses will focus on privacy protection
In an effort to keep people safe during the COVID-19 pandemic, many organizations rushed to implement ‘fever detection’ devices and other new sensors without necessarily having the time to consider privacy implications. Public privacy concerns related to COVID-19 contact tracing and other social challenges will continue to grow. These sensitivities will require the physical security industry to address privacy head-on and find appropriate solutions.

Rather than hindering the development of new technologies, privacy will prove to be a driving force in the pursuit of responsible and innovative design, encouraging forward-thinking, ethical developers to embrace Privacy by Design methodologies. This involves proactively embedding privacy into the design and operation of IT systems, networked infrastructure, and business practices from the first line of code to the third-party vendors selected for partnership and integration. And, in the physical security industry, building a software solution from the ground up with privacy in mind means that organizations won’t have to choose between protecting individual privacy and ensuring their physical security. Privacy should always be the default option rather than the other way round, and security technology developers who take it seriously will gain distinct advantages, notably their customers’ trust.

Cybersecurity risks will continue to rise
While cybersecurity has been an issue for some time, it will unfortunately continue to be a vital concern in 2021. From schools and hospitals to private businesses and governments, there’s been a rise in cyber-attacks over the last year. In Q3 of 2020 alone, Trend Micro reported that there were almost 4 million email threats and over 1 million hits on malicious URLs related to COVID-19. 

Much of this can be linked to the overnight shift to remote work, which left companies scrambling to keep business running while also trying to secure corporate assets. This shift highlighted the fact that the traditional IT perimeter no longer exists. Businesses, organizations, and governments will need to take decisive steps to strengthen their cyber posture, or risk undermining the safety of their intellectual property, sensitive data, and personal information. Choosing trusted vendors and deploying physical security solutions that come with layers of cyber defense is critical. Security teams understand that built-in encryption, multi-factor authentication, and password management are the first lines of defense. Beyond that, taking advantage of other features such as cybersecurity risk scoring, system vulnerability alerts, and automated reminders for firmware and hardware updates are significant advantages in this heightened risk environment. 

Greater focus on trust in the supply chain
Physical security technology has become an integral part of an organization’s IT strategy and is, thankfully, now under the same level of scrutiny as other elements of an organization’s technology stack. Some governments are already discouraging the use of certain products from security manufacturers, citing trust and security vulnerabilities. End users, especially in the enterprise space, are taking more time to scrutinize the manufacturers, suppliers, and distributors with whom they choose to work. This includes asking vendors more pointed questions about how they manage emerging threats, how forthcoming they are about product vulnerabilities and their partner ecosystem, and what their data and privacy policies are. For a physical security solution provider to be considered a reputable, reliable partner to their customers, they are going to have to meet more stringent requirements as part of the procurement process. 

Demand for hybrid cloud solutions will continue to grow
According to Forrester’s recent report, Predictions 2021: Cloud Computing Powers Pandemic Recovery, global public cloud infrastructure will grow 35% to a market value of $120 billion over the next year. As online usage and remote work spiked during the pandemic, a global shift towards digital transformation, already underway, greatly accelerated. 

In order to thrive, physical security professionals will need to follow the lead of IT departments. In the coming year, physical security leaders should let go of the either/or division between cloud and on-premises security systems and embrace a hybrid deployment model in their physical security infrastructure. This will allow them to implement specific systems or applications in the cloud while keeping existing on-premises systems. 

With a hybrid cloud approach, security directors will become more agile in making decisions about how they can enhance scalability, redundancy, and availability to suit their organization’s evolving needs. They will also be able to quickly migrate to newer technologies, minimize hardware footprint, boost cybersecurity, and reduce costs. Cloud offerings need to become an essential option to quickly adapt to changes and ensure business continuity.

Guest Blog, Paul Dodds: Delivering security and privacy with video surveillance systems…

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Paul Dodds is the country manager UK & Ireland at Genetec Inc. Paul has over 14 years security industry experience across installation, manufacturing and distribution. Having trained as an electronic engineer and installer, Paul has held senior positions with Xtralis, Honeywell and ESI

With recent high profile cases in the media, it seems that the public is both increasingly aware of and concerned about the relationship between security and privacy. And while it’s often discussed as an either/or scenario, those of us in the security industry know that there are many more variables to consider than that.

After all, people are reassured by the presence of security devices like cameras and access control panels. Being aware of physical security installations can make us feel safe in locations where we might otherwise feel vulnerable. At the same time, however, no one likes the idea of being monitored while going about daily tasks.

The fact is that recent advances in technology are making it easier for us to secure our businesses, organisations and communities with new ‘privacy enabled’ encryption and masking features that also uphold our right to privacy by default.

Image masking for privacy

A really exciting advancement is ‘Foreground Masking’, a new technology that allows organisations to mask individuals in video by default. With Foreground Masking, the system captures two images. The first is a full-resolution or non-blurred image that is immediately encrypted and stored.  If the footage is ever required for an investigation, a copy of the full resolution, non-altered video data can be retrieved once the appropriate permissions have been acquired, albeit local, municipal, or federal order.

The second image is auto-redacted or blurred to obscure the identity of anyone seen on the video. Organisations can set their systems to blur or pixelate entire figures in their video footage. It is this second image that is seen by security operators or used on monitoring displays.

This advancement represents a shift in how we think about capturing video. Where once footage was broadcast as captured and then redacted after the fact to protect the identities of innocent civilians, Foreground Masking obscures identities at the source and then to provides unmasked copies only once a compelling reason to reveal them is established.

Authentication with multi-factor smart card credentials

Another advancement in security technology is the use of Credentialed High Assurance Video Encryption (CHAVE™), a protocol introduced by our technology partner Bosch Security Systems, Inc. Through the use of CHAVE™ enabled systems, like the one developed by Bosch, Genetec Inc., and Secure Experts, organisations can ensure that both live and recorded video is accessible to only a defined set of viewers.

CHAVE™ enabled systems provide secure identification and authentication through multi-factor smart card credentials. This IP video solution increases your system’s resilience against unauthorised access, malware, brute force cracking, and other exploit techniques.  In addition, it also helps to ensure privacy as only authorised and trained security personnel have access to video footage.

End-to-end encryption

A third tool that supports individual privacy by helping to maintain the security of a security system is end-to-end encryption. More specifically, this protocol is based on Secure Real-time Transport Protocol (SRTP), which hardens surveillance content against cyber-attacks and unauthorised interception.

SRTP encryption for content archiving, as well as for content in transmission between servers and their clients, protects the integrity and privacy of surveillance content from the ‘edge’, or the camera, all the way to the Archiver and Security Desk.

As the public is catching up with our concerns, those of us in the security industry have been hard at work developing tools and solutions that will deliver both security and privacy.  With new Foreground Masking technology that masks identities by default, CHAVE™ enabled technology for authenticating users and access and SRTP encryption for protecting the data from the time it leaves the ‘edge’ all the way to the archive in a security system, we are able to provide the security that organisations and citizens need while ensuring the privacy that they want.