Airports and Perimeter Security

The newscaster had my attention when she reported that a boy had flown from California to Hawaii stowed away in a plane's wheel well, enduring  five hours of near-zero temperatures and extremely low oxygen levels  in an unpressurized space at an altitude of 38,000 feet "Wow," I marveled as I'm sure viewers did  all over the world. "How could that be?"

When an on-site reporter detailed how the boy managed to slip through a web of manpower and technology, including  an extensive network of IP security cameras and a  workforce of 3,000, charged with handling security. It wasn't until she went into detail describing how he had managed to evade Sega-riding security officers and a foot patrol accompanied by  German shepherds made regular patrols while an overhead  camera swept the scene, including a corner of the airfield formed by the angle of a traffic-filled freeway and its exit ramp that I instantly recognized the locale. Simultaneously she confirmed it with the words  "The incident occurred at the 1,050 acre Mineta San Jose International Airport." My reaction changed instantly  from "How could it be?" to "I believe it."

Some Relevant Facts

Mineta San Jose International Airport was my home airport for fifteen years although it was just San Jose International Airport at the time. In fact when I first moved to the San Jose area in 1979 it was just San Jose Airport. If I wanted a direct flight to New York I had to drive to San Francisco since San Jose's landing field was too small for a a jumbo jet. If I did fly on a smaller jet there was no such thing as a jet port because there was no such thing as a big terminal. One had to trek out onto the field and ascend the shaky metal steps that had been rolled up to the plane's door.

Sometime in the mid-80's when Silicon Valley made San Jose a bonafide destination, American Airlines made San Jose a hub, built their own terminal, scheduling international flights and the rest is history. Other airlines added direct flights to the airport, and in 2010 San Jose International Airport once again underwent a major overhaul, making it a state-of-the-art facility.

But one thing remains, Highway 101 still  borders the west perimeter of the airport and its freeway ramp still forms a portion of the south perimeter.

Only a six foot high fence topped with barbwire separates air traffic from road traffic. It is one of these fences that the young stowaway scaled. I said to myself, "If there's an airport in need of tight perimeter security it's certainly San Jose."

This incident brings up the question, Are American airports doing as much as they can to maintain security outside terminals? Rafi Ron, former security head at Israel's Ben Gurion Airport, possibly the most secure airport in the world, told the Associated Press, of his own experience. "We were investing all our resources at the front door which was the passengers and their bags.

 And we left the back door open. And that was the perimeter and access to the aircraft."

Perimeter Security

Perimeter security is an attempt to monitor sprawling areas. "Attempt", because, as any security official will tell you,no system is foolproof. That's why perimeter security solutions make use of several different surveillance technologies

IP Camera Video Surveillance

In years past, installing hard-wired security cameras was an expensive and labor-intensive project with the need for digging trenches and running cables. However the installation of today's wireless IP camera surveillance systems call for neither. Since each camera occupies a node on an Ethernet network, with its own IP address, they merely need to mounted and connected to the airport's network. Additional cameras can be added quickly, and should a camera need to be moved, relocation is all that's needed.

Once added, the cameras can be monitored from any PC or mobile device.

However, keeping one's eye on all this video is a monumental task, as Mr Paul attested. "What happened at San Jose can happen, as we speak, at other airports, because nobody can watch all these monitors." This is why video management software is so important as part of a total surveillance solution.

Video management software

Pan Tilt zoom cameras can be programmed to range back and forth, covering a specific area of the airports boundaries, and with Video Management Software  installed can alert security, should motion be detected, or a parcel that wasn't there on one sweep of the area appears on the next. In both cases, a pushed video alert would stream the video to the PC or video wall at the security stations and/or to roving guards' mobile device screens so they can respond immediately.  

Thermal Imaging
Thermal imaging cameras can provide "insurance" coverage. Since they function by detecting heat, conditions that interfere with the light needed by conventional cameras, do not interfere with thermal imaging. They are able to provide coverage through dust, glare, the uneven lighting available at dusk and dawn, or even in the darkness of night. Using special adaptive analytics,VMS, and video encoders, footage can be recorded and stored, or should security be breached, push alerts can go out to security as noted above.

The Experts Weigh In

 The San  Jose Mercury News included the response of  Jeff Price, a professor at Metropolitan State University in Denver and an author who has written extensively on security. "You've got enough layers in the system. It's just a matter where it seems the system didn't work."

The Mercury News also quoted Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University's Director of Terrorism, Intelligence, and Security Systems Richard Bloom as commenting "This doesn't mean we should radically change the way we do airport security. It's just that with all these layers of security, none of them is 100% accurate. Each has its own vulnerabilities."

This was apparent because after the boy was discovered wandering the airfield in Hawaii, he told authorities that he had gained entry by climbing a fence. And indeed, review of the stored video back in San Jose revealed footage of what appeared to be the youth on the field. Apparently no one monitoring the video feed had noticed him.

Stating the Obvious

While stored video can be invaluable in reconstructing a forensics scene, it can only be effective in real time if  someone is carefully monitoring their screen.

Turn Around Senator Blumenthal

If you recall, Kintronics Blog by Virginia recently featured a post about a joint press conference in Grand Central Station held by New York Senator Chuck Schumer and  Connecticut Senator Richard Blumenthal, in which they called for digital or IP camera systems on all Metro North and Long Island Railroad commuter trains in light of a tragic train derailment killing 3 on December 1, 2013.

We also provided an update when the National Transportation Safety Board agreed and the Metropolitan Transit Agency, which oversees the rail lines, began the procedure to seek bids from companies who could design camera systems and digital or IP recording systems to be installed in over 1,700 rail cars.

It just so happens that this morning your blogger heard snippets of a morning news report about Senator Blumenthal's nearly being hit by a Metro North train while holding yet another news conference about train safety, this time on a train platform in Milford, Connecticut.

Since it was news to me, I decided to Google it. I found that the incident had rolled through the media like a roaring train (sorry about that!) The New York Daily News, Fox 5 News, Huffington Post, and London's Daily Mail, to name but a few of many media outlets, had not only written about the near-miss, but provided video accompanied by just the type of commentary you'd expect in an incident like this. Most gave advice about staying off the yellow warning line marking the edge of the platform. My favorite is that contributed by Time Magazine. Check out the video and the advice.

My own take on it is that maybe the Senator needs to have his hearing checked.

Anyone seeking advice on how IP cameras or other IP security products can protect their home, business, or school can call Kintronics at 914-944-3425 to speak to a sales engineer, or fill out an information request form and we will get back to you with our answers

It's a Bird, It's a Plane, it's a Drone

The old "It's a bird, it's a plane, it's superman" may soon be updated to "It's a bird, it's a plane, it's a Google drone." This week the Wall Street Journal reported that Google acquired a company called Titan Aerospace, a New Mexico company that makes solar-powered drones.

What does a solar powered drone look like?

 Take a look at Titan's Solara

 What might Google want to do with drones?

• Since the 350 lb Solara is purported to be capable of staying aloft  for five years at a time, thanks to a combination of solar panels that keep it aloft during the day and an on-board battery pack, at night, it can definitely capture lot of current images for Google Earth and Google Maps

• Google is also working on an endeavor called Project Loon in which they will send balloons into the atmosphere. These balloons (not your average party balloon) will then beam the Internet to areas of the world who until now have remained in the Internet dark. With an operating range of over 6,500 square miles at a cruising altitude of 65,000 feet,, the Solara can definitely launch its share of balloons.

Can they do this?

Not quite yet, and not quite everywhere. Congress passed a law in 2012 that charged the Federal Aviation Administration with integrating conventionally powered drones into American airspace. To this end, back in January, the FAA selected six universities and government agencies to test civilian versions of the aircraft the military and CIA have been using in Iraq and Afghanistan. 

Drones come in all sizes ranging from less than a pound to over 30,000 pounds, so safety standards must also be established. Likewise just because drones are unmanned, as their formal name unmanned aerial vehicle attests, doesn't mean they are un-operated. Licensing standards must  be established for the pilots who "man" them from the ground.

Since the law has set 2015 as the go-to date for getting the UAV's up and circling, it looks like the FAA has a tight schedule.

What Can We Expect after 2015?

The FAA has estimated that within five years of authorization, at least 7,500 commercial drones will be inhabiting the atmosphere. According to Bloomberg Businessweek, the FAA has approved 423 applications filed by educational, law enforcement, and military entities. What they intend to do with the drones is presently unknown but most likely related to surveillance.

As UAV technology evolves, drones outfitted with high resolution IP camera surveillance systems would seem to be more adept at monitoring remote pipelines and power lines than the helicopters now serving in that capacity. Other possible IP camera systems applications include

• search and rescue operations
• fire monitoring
• weather reporting
• disaster recovery
• border patrol
• asset tracking
• narcotics raids

Kintronics does not sell drones but we do consult on and sell IP camera security systems so if you have any questions call us at 914-944-3425 or fill out an information request form and one of our sales engineers will reply with the requested info

Bureaucratic Woes Can Affect Security

Usually when security cameras are mentioned in the news, it's because of what they recorded. However last month, several news reports centered around what they didn't record How could they? They weren't running, and haven't been for some time. Both situations point up the necessity of updating and maintaining IP camera surveillance systems.

Hoboken, NJ

One incident was, and continues to be tragic. On March 31, a young man went on a post midnight jog along the Hoboken waterfront. His fate has yet to be discovered. The police know his route through the business district because he was caught on several security cameras maintained by merchants and restaurants however once he approached the public riverside promenade, where at least two city-owned network

cameras are mounted,  the trail turns cold. The reason? Out of a municipal surveillance network of ten cameras, installed in 2004, none are working, nor have they been since 2010.

According to an NBC NY I-Team report, the cameras went offline four years ago when a contract the city had with the company responsible for system maintenance expired. Due to an irregularity in the bidding process it was never renewed. A spokesman for the mayor told reporters that an engineer was called in a couple of years ago and his advice was "this system is old and not maintained and the recommendation was that they really weren't usable."


Pittsburgh, PA

A similar situation exists in Pittsburgh, PA.  According to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, nearly a quarter of the $1.4M worth of surveillance cameras bought in 2009 with a Department of Homeland Security Grant have

been taken offline because either they are not transmitting at all, or are providing fuzzy images. Why? Due to a bureaucratic snafu, the contract to renew maintenance went unsigned. When the contractor was never paid for work they had continued to do, work ceased.
However unlike Hoboken, 75% did continue to function, and fortunately so, since a combined surveillance video from public and private security cameras were instrumental in providing footage that led to the recent apprehension of a suspect in a double homicide.

The Foreseeable Future

In Pittsburgh, Mayor Bill Peduto's reaction, as reported by CBS Pittsburgh?  "It's a big concern. Anytime we spend a lot of money and buy equipment that's supposed to be used for the public, especially for public safety and  it's not being used or turned on, it raises a lot of questions."

At present the situation is on track to being remedied. Cameras  may soon be back on the job since the city council is expected to approve paying the contractor. How long that will take depends on the bureaucratic path the check must travel.

Meanwhile in Hoboken,  two weeks ago, the city received notification that it had been granted a FEMA Port Security Grant. The mayor's spokesman said the money will most likely go to purchase eight new cameras to monitor the waterfront.  Why most likely?  The city council must vote on whether to accept the grant!?!?

Let's hope when it comes time to replace what they have, both cities will select IP camera systems which

offer ease of maintenance and remote focus lenses and PTZ controls Also since IP camera security systems are network attached, they are highly scalable meaning cameras can be added or replaced without any effect on the whole system.



Kintronics can answer any questions you might have about security products. Call us at 914-944-3425 or fill out an information form and we'll get back to you with all the info you need.

A Tale of Two Cities

Recently  two U.S. cities, a continent apart,  found their way into the news. Both are in the preliminary stages of putting together a policy that would allow them to tap into video footage from privately owned digital and IP camera systems in order to aid police in their investigations.

While the proposed laws appear similar at first glance, there are substantial differences. One is seeking voluntary compliance, and pertains to cameras already in place, while the other is mandatory, requiring certain citizens to install cameras or face a fine, or possibly a stint in jail.

But these cities, White Plains, New York, and San Jose, California, do have one thing in common. This author has called each home at different phases of her life.

San Jose
Back in January, the San Jose Mercury News reported that a city council member had submitted a proposal that would ask anyone with a security camera to voluntarily register it for inclusion on a security camera database to be maintained by the San Jose Police Department.  Should a robbery, assault, or any other crime be committed in the neighborhood, the police could then be able to remotely tap into the feeds of IP camera security systems, or if the cameras happen to be analog, owners would hand over discs containing the actual video.

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White Plains
In February, the White Plains Common Council  unanimously passed Ordinance 4.25 which requires certain merchants to install and maintain digital video and IP camera surveillance systems to record and store high resolution video of everyone who comes onto the premises, and to make it available to the White Plains Police Department should they need it while investigating a crime in the vicinity.

Affected businesses include

• pharmacies
• pawn shops
• businesses licensed to sell alcohol
• check cashing concerns
• licensed second hand dealers who buy and sell precious metals 
• bars and any business that stays open between midnight and 4 A.M.

A Bit of Background
San Jose, whose population has doubled since 1970 when the first seeds of Silicon Valley started crowding the almond and apricot orchards that dotted the city. Although, like all cities it had its pockets of  crime, overall, San Jose, not long ago, was reputed to be one of the country's safest cities.

 Recent years, however have seen crime rates soar. Accordingly many homeowners have equipped their properties with security cameras.

It was the footage from several of these cameras that was key in helping police identify a prime suspect allegedly responsible for the fires in Liccardo's district.  However, since they had to go knocking on doors to find people with cameras, who knows how many fires might have been prevented had police been able to access them immediately following the fire. This gnawing question  led  Liccardo  to submit the proposal whose fate has yet to be decided.

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White Plains, while nowhere near the size of San Jose, is the county seat for Westchester County, an

affluent northern suburb of New York City. White Plains' downtown business district had fallen on hard times in the 1970's and '80's due to the rise of shopping malls and big box stores luring customers to surround areas. In the past 15 - 20 years developers, including Donald Trump have built luxury high rise apartments and hotels,





and Mamaroneck Ave, once a shopping street is now lined with upscale sidewalk

cafes, restaurants, and lively bars and clubs.







One thing remains constant, however. The downtown area always was and still is plagued by crime. As in San Jose, it was a member of the Common Council who came up with a camera sharing idea. However this law is mandatory and gives business proprietors  until  February 2015 to equip their establishments with digital or IP camera security systems capable of recording quality video with resolution sufficient to distinguish facial features, and to share it with police upon demand

Citizen Concerns

Some critics of the San Jose proposal complain that the plan would set a precedent of privatizing surveillance. Others do not like that the police would have 24/7 access to the footage and while sorting through it would be able to monitor private areas.

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What makes White Plains' law more controversial than San Jose's is that it's mandated and only applies to certain citizens, namely the approximately 250 businesses who will have to invest an estimated $1,000 to $2,000 for cameras and digital or IP recording systems. The cost of non-compliance is a possible jail sentence of up to 15 days plus a fine of $250 a day until the system is up and running.

Official Take

Officials on both coasts have been quick to chime in with their support.

According to the McClatchy News Service, San Jose retired judge La Doris Cordell has gone on record saying she sees the proposal as a natural extension of existing technological advances that already provide the police with video. She cites the smartphones with which witnesses readily record and volunteer video to the police, and the body-worn cameras with which San Jose will soon be outfitting police officers.

As for the privacy issue, she discounts it, seeing it not so much an "intrusion on privacy" but rather as a way for San Jose residents to "know what's going on in their neighborhoods."

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Meanwhile White Plains Police Chief James Bradley was an early supporter, as evidenced by work-session remarks to the Common Council, ( reported by local paper, Journal News) saying that the use of video "is one of the growing trends in our profession. It has helped us solve a number of high profile crimes more quickly.......When a case is in court, juries ask for DNA and video."

Since San Jose has yet to yay or nay the proposal, and the White Plains Ordinance will not take effect until February 2015, the question of how it all will play out cannot be answered. Meanwhile, should you have questions about IP cameras, IP access control systems, or IP intercoms, you can visit the Kintronics website and fill out one of our information  request forms, or if you prefer to call, the number is 914-944-3425