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Zenitel, a provider of intelligent communication solutions, announced the launch of two new door entry intercoms: the Turbine Extended Intercoms TEIV1+ and the TEIV4+. The new pro...
Physical security is essential for a modern production facility, users don’t want just anyone entering the building or accessing secure areas. But what about production mach...
Xesar is simply versatile. With the smartphone as an additional access medium, Xesar is now becoming even more versatile in its range of solutions and remains very simple to us...
Doordeck, a cloud-based access control software company, has joined the Board of the PSIA. The company has an innovative product that enables smartphone NFC keyless entry for build...
Healthcare security articles
Milestone Systems, a global pioneer in video technology, is at the forefront of the video security industry, emphasizing responsible technology innovation across its operations. Th...
Just like fighting against the spread of disease in a clinical environment, healthcare providers must mobilize, coordinate with interconnected partners, and apply sufficient budget...
Aqua Security, the pioneer in cloud-native security revealed new research that shows how credentials, API tokens, and passkeys – collectively referred to as secrets –...
MOBOTIX ONE is an extremely robust and maintenance-free video system 'Made in Germany' that impresses with both its application-oriented design and its high-quality components: fib...
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Editor’s picks
Migrating to the Cloud can be a cultural shift for some organizations, especially when it comes to physical security systems. Challenges such as concerns about data security and compliance, cost manag...
Security professionals are recognizing the intelligence value of leveraging publicly and commercially available information. This information can now be accessed more effectively from typically hard-to-reach regions. Also, the technological capabilities have matured in our age of artificial intelligence, machine learning, and data science. Intelligence has historically been based on classified data. However, today’s unclassified data, including open-source intelligence (OSINT), is increa...
When a bomb detonated in the Port of Beirut, I had hundreds of employees under my care inside the blast zone. Within just two hours, I was able to determine who was impacted, understand their safety conditions, and share resources for on-the-ground support—all thanks to mobile technology. For Chief Security Officers, receiving calls like these launches a variety of protocols and necessary decision-making with the safety and security of people and assets as a top priority. And these calls...
These days, business is more collaborative, adaptable, and connected than ever before. In addition to offering new identities and access privileges, new applications and data also increase the attack surface available to cyber criminals, hacktivists, state actors, and disgruntled insiders. These new identities need to be handled carefully. CISOs must develop an identity management strategy that is consistent across on-premises, hybrid, and cloud systems. Good security is built on solid identity...
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Round table discussions
Factors such as stable demand and large contracts make the government market particularly enticing for security companies and professionals. However, entering and thriving in the government market presents a number of challenges. We asked this week's Expert Pa...
Suddenly, artificial intelligence (AI) is everywhere. The smart technology brings a range of benefits to our lives, from streamlining everyday tasks to making scientific breakthroughs. The advantages of AI and machine learning (ML) also include automating repe...
The design of buildings encompasses many elements, from the practical to the aesthetic. Well-designed buildings should be functional, and they can also be beautiful and inspiring. But can security systems and building design coexist and complement each other?...
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Case studies
In 1899, the Texas Legislature authorized the formation of the Southwest Texas State Normal School, which opened in San Marcos four years later. At the time, the school’s mission was to prepare Texas public school teachers, but over the years, it has undergone several expansions and name changes to reflect its evolution into the major multi-purpose university Texas State has become. From its humble beginnings located in a single building, Texas State’s original San Marcos campus has grown to cover a 485-acre campus that is home to 267 buildings, as well as an additional 5,038 acres of recreational, instructional, farm and ranch land. The university added a second campus in Round Rock, which has grown from 15 temporary buildings to a 101-acre campus with state-of-the-art facilities. Electronic key control systems Texas State’s student population has kept pace with its physical expansion, growing from 303 in 1903 to more than 35,546 in 2013 – marking the 16th consecutive year of enrollment growth for the university. Texas State reviewed its security policies and chose the need to execute electronic key Anticipating major physical and population growth to continue into the future, Texas State reviewed its security policies and determined the necessity of implementing electronic key control systems in sensitive areas. Based on its size, the understanding was that as many as 85 of these systems could potentially be needed as part of this initiative. Aggressive construction campaign Texas State was faced with a particularly challenging growth-related issue in September 2013, as its freshman enrollment surged to more than 5,000. Like many universities, Texas State requires its freshmen to live on campus, which it sees as a tool for retention. That policy seems to be working, with approximately 80 percent of freshmen living on campus technically returning for the following semester. To accommodate the growing ranks of on-campus residents, the university has pursued an aggressive construction campaign, building a new residence hall complex every two years to house approximately 600 additional students with plans to break ground this fall on a third new housing complex. In all, Texas State spent more than $190 million on new or renovated buildings, with more construction planned into the foreseeable future. Update key management policies Maintenance staff members would often reach for the key to a particular building they needed to access With a large number of individuals requiring access to so many facilities, the university recognized that key management had the potential to become a high-risk issue and determined to become proactive in reducing that risk. Maintenance staff members would often reach for the key to a particular building they needed to access, only to find it was already checked out. They would then be forced to go through the time-consuming – and frustrating – process of determining who had the key last and tracking that person down to retrieve it. The decision was made to update key management policies and practices to make them more efficient and effective. “We’ve been especially happy with the KeyWatcher’s access and reporting capabilities, and the system’s reporting tools make reviewing events and issues incredibly simple,” Kyle Estes Associate Director of Housing for Facilities Services Texas State. Options for key management systems To combat these problems and increase the security and effectiveness of its key management, Texas State charged its University Police Department and other stakeholders with undertaking an extensive review of the available options for key management systems on the market. This exhaustive process involved gathering research from printed materials and online research, having discussions with current customers of the various vendors, and listening to on-site presentations from the companies under consideration. At the conclusion of its review of key control cabinets and systems, Texas State chose KeyWatcher Touch from Morse Watchmans. This exhaustive process involved gathering research from printed materials and online research The main factors that led Texas State to choose KeyWatcher Touch systems were its robust feature set and competitive pricing. The school was also impressed by Morse Watchmans’ receptiveness to its specific needs – a six-digit user ID, for example – and ability to implement changes quickly. Access to support was also a main consideration, so Texas State appreciated that the system was produced domestically by a company with a 130-year history. Enterprise management capability Of the KeyWatcher systems to be implemented, the largest number were to be deployed for Texas State’s Department of Housing and Residential Life, which provides housing and services to approximately 7,000 residents in 25 facilities. The department also operates a facilities service group consisting of 110 full-time employees and a staff of 170 building paraprofessionals. The department also operates a facilities service group consisting of 110 full-time employees Because of the personnel changes the department experiences on an annual basis, the system’s enterprise management capability has been a valuable feature, as have its robust reporting capabilities, says Kyle Estes, Texas State’s Associate Director of Housing Facilities Services. Having keys available in each residence hall for use by maintenance staff has made the department more efficient and reduced their liability; staff no longer need to carry multiple master keys across campus for different buildings. Centralized management features “Because the system automatically generates a log of who has each key, we’ve been able to establish much better employee accountability for key usage,” Estes says. “The ability to set a maximum duration that each key can be checked out and to receive alarms when that limit is exceeded has eliminated the problem of having keys unnecessarily checked out and as a result inaccessible when someone needs them.” Ease of use and centralized control parts fed by the system’s web capabilities All KeyWatcher Touch systems deployed at Texas State are connected to the university’s network and interface with its card access and email systems. The ease of use and centralized management features provided by the system’s network capabilities have streamlined the once cumbersome process of generating reports and reviewing incidents. One particular feature, the ability to access the system from anywhere, has made the system even more effective, Estes says. Earliest adopters of KeyWatcher Touch As one of the earliest adopters of KeyWatcher Touch, the Housing and Facilities Department served as a test case of sorts for the system. Based on the success the department has had, combined with its continued rapid growth and expansion, Texas State University’s 85-system implementation is ongoing. As more systems are added, expansion will be a consideration moving forward, but Estes doesn’t anticipate that being a problem. “We’ve found that expanding these systems is fairly easy and doesn’t involve time-consuming processes that could delay implementation of key management for particularly sensitive areas,” Estes says. “Overall, the system has been very reliable, and the support staff has been very responsive and regularly available to help resolve the very few minor issues we’ve encountered in a timely manner."
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