Access Control: From Keys to Cards to the Uniqueness of You

Remember when access control was limited to fitting a key into a lock and turning? You know the drill. You probably used one to lock your door this morning, and you'll  use it again when you go home this evening. Turn it one way you retract the deadbolt that holds the door closed and gain  access. Turn it the other way, you fit it back into place, denying access to anyone without a key.

The First Lock and Key
The first key unlocked the first lock close to 6,000 years ago in Egypt. The Egyptians used a very simple wooden locking mechanism composed of several small pins inserted into a wooden bolt close to its locking slot. When the pins were in place, gravity held them down, locking the bolt.When a small wooden toothbrush-type key was inserted, it reached the pins and raised them, unlocking the bolt.

This rudimentary locking mechanism was a good first step to access control but it was vulnerable to blunt force and the key was heavy and bulky.

Locks and keys have worked for us through the ages. They are easy to install, universally available, and offer simple secure access control. But they are hardly ideal. Who among us has not lost a key? Keys can break off in the lock if too much pressure is applied. Then you need a new key .....and maybe a new lock.
And there's no way to revoke a key's "security clearance." When a roommate moves out you can't take her off an authorized list nor can a new home owner or renter be certain they hold the only keys. In all these instances, security demands getting the lock changed. And with it comes a new set of keys.

Access Cards

Keys and  keyholes may still be sufficient for residential use, but are all but obsolete at most workplaces, having been replaced by IP access cards and card readers. But cards, too, are going through a flux of change.

Barcode

A bar code is made up of a pattern of lines and spaces of varying widths and sequences. 
It may or may not contain alpha - numeric characters. The information contained in this computer code is scanned into  memory and resides on the card. When presented to a barcode reader at an entryway, it will unlock the door if the employee seeking access is authorized.

Bar codes were the first type of code to be used in access control. They are easy to create, simple to use, and cost little to produce. In fact, a user can print his own barcode using a PC-based application and apply them to blank cards and badges. This plus is also a minus. Since the barcode is there for all to see, anyone who sees it can reproduce, or counterfeit it. One way to get around this fault is to cover the barcode with opaque film of some sort,so that it must be read with a UV bar code reader but this adds to the cost.

Magnetic Stripe

When most people think of swiping a magnetic stripe, they think of their credit card. Swiping a magnetic access control card is no different The magnetic stripe, actually a piece of coated magnetic recording tape, holds information that identifies the holder as someone authorized to enter the facility just as a credit card holds account information.





Magnetic stripe access cards and badges are one of the most economic solutions since they are easy to produce. However since swiping them puts them through the reader, they wear out and need periodic replacing.

Add to this the fact that they are easy to forge and you can see why, although they are good for companies requiring  only simple access control, they are not the answer for facilities with a need for tight security.

Proximity Cards

Proximity cards, like those used in IP access control systems, fill both the voids left by magnetic stripe cards.

They contain a microchip holding encoded identity and authorization data and an antenna to transmit it at the point of entry. When the employee approaches the door, he presents his proximity card, activating a so-called wake up field that powers up the electronics in the microchip so it can send the encoded identity data to the reader via the antenna.

The proximity card never comes into contact with the reader so it can last indefinitely. The reader, since it can be hidden inside the structure, is resistant to vandalism and tampering, making proximity cards a secure, durable means of access control.

Biometric Card

Keys, barcode badges, magnetic stripe and proximity cards all share a common security deficiency. They will permit access for whomever is presenting them whether that person is the rightful owner or someone who has stolen or found it. Biometric cards fill the gaping need for identity authentication.

The biometric card places the authenticating technology on the card. In many solutions ,a fingerprint scanner

resides on the card,  enabling the card, itself to read the cardholder's fingerprint in seconds. Users authenticate themselves right there on the card. If the fingerprint matches the encrypted fingerprint, the card system opens the lock, granting access.

Access control systems using biometric fingerprint and thumbprint authentication provide a higher level of security than systems that just verify a card anyone might be carrying. They do away with the possibility of a stolen or lost card being used for unauthorized access.

Biometrics in Development

While the fingerprint is the most prevalent form of authentication at the time, the technology is moving on, with facial recognition technology in the lead, as well a  futuristic-sounding solution  that can measure and recognize the card holder's gait as he approaches the reader. If all measures up the reader will unlock the door.
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Can the day be far off when all we have to do is approach and request "Beam me up, Scotty."?

Kintronics is the place to call if you're interested in finding out how IP door access control and IP surveillance camera systems can keep your facility safe and secure. Call 914-944-3425 to speak to a sales engineer or just fill out an information request form.

Will IP Camera Systems Change the Flow of Baseball?

We just finished watching the All-Star game which means we're halfway through the 2014 baseball season. So it remains to be seen what sort of impact the introduction of the expanded replay review will have on the pace of the typical baseball game. Commissioner Bud Selig, in announcing its approval at the January quarterly owners' meetings, had this to say.
 "This is really big. I'm proud of the changes we've made..... because they won't disturb the game as we know it.....Yes there will be some differences but because of our own technology, we've been able to do this."

IP Technology?
The technology to which he refers, brings up a question. Are they using IP camera systems? It sure would seem so, but since MLB is tightly closed mouth on exactly what technology they've employed, we can't say for sure. What we can say is that MLB put a lot of muscle and manpower into setting up the video camera systems in time for opening day.  Consider these numbers:

32,178 person hours and 682,788 person miles went into shipping and installing 42 tons of equipment at 30 ballparks, and running 172.14 miles of cable.  And don't forget that back in New York City at the operations center, 37 HD monitors had to be mounted.

The Rules and Regulations

Each manager is able to dispute  a call by requesting a video review. To do so, he must "verbally inform the umpire in a timely manner." Each manager starts a game with one allowed challenge. If it's upheld, he's allowed another. If it's overturned he gets no more. So will this further slow what's already a slow sport with interruptions and calls to "go to the videotape"?

The limit on the number of challenges is intended to keep with the rhythm of the game, but still there are a lot of instances in which a review can be requested. Approximately 90% of all plays will be subject to replay review including

• a home run
• ground-rule double
• boundary calls
• plays at first base
• force, tag, and trap plays

Tying It All Together with Technology

To insure impartiality, on-field officials do not review the video and make the call. That is carried out in the 900 square foot replay operations center in New York City on the top floor of a former Nabisco factory, now the fashionable Chelsea Market. Current MLB umpires rotate through duty there, reviewing video feeds.  In order to accommodate the innovation, two additional four-man umpire crews have been hired.
In the interest of uniformity, cameras have been mounted at the same twelve angles at each ballpark. So no matter which ball park the ops center umpires are viewing they are seeing the play from the same advantage.

Once the review has been completed, the on-field crew chief and at least one of his umpires is called to the

designated communications center where they use hard-wired headsets to hear whether the replay review umpires have upheld or overturned the disputed call. The crew chief then relays the news to the team managers.







The Bottom Line
Most team managers have shown a willingness to give it a try. According to the Associated Press, manager Bruce Bochy of the San Francisco Giants  says "It's about getting it right, and with our technology today we can do that in a way I don't think interrupts the flow of the game."

But getting back to our original question of Baseball as we know it, just as some NASCAR racing fans consider car crashes part of the viewing experience and hockey fans, the fight, are the impartial cameras denying baseball fans the sometime comic scenes of volatile manager's disputing umpire calls. For instance,

  Billy Martin and his dirt-kicking tirades

Or

 Baltimore Oriole's Earl Weaver's turned around baseball cap

No, it doesn't appear managers have mellowed any. They're still arguing ball/strike calls which are not subject to expanded replay review, and so far, more have been ejected along with players and coaches than this time last year. But in their favor, thanks to the impartiality of the video, roughly half the out/safe calls they challenged have been overturned.

One fact that's never challenged is the expertise Kintronics sales engineers bring to the table in helping customers choose  IP camera security systems that best fit their needs. If you are thinking about installing  IP cameras, video management software, or PA over IP, give us a call at 914-944-3425, or fill out an information request form.

A Report from the Field

Here's another in our continuing series of reports from the field; the field of view that is. We like to look around the country to see how various cities are coming to appreciate the benefits of IP camera surveillance systems and how they're putting them to work.

Syracuse PD - Home Grown Cameras

You've heard of baby booms, well the Syracuse NY police department is in the midst of a camera boom. They began installing surveillance cameras in 2011 and the total number has grown to over 40, and counting. If all goes as planned, Syracuse will add 20 more by summer's end.

The police call their camera network the Criminal Observation and Protection System, or COPS for short. Believing in transparency, the city lists the location of all its cameras on a special COPS Cameras map.

According to the city's website, Police Chief Frank Fowler says they're not done yet. He plans to continue deploying cameras as long as funding holds out. He may be installing as fast as he can, but a growing number of homeowners are taking matters into their own hands and installing their own cameras on their property. Other residents, some pro and some con, wonder if, like the cities of San Jose, California and White Plains NY (which we previously reported on), Syracuse PD will eventually seek to tap into these private camera feeds

- which brings us to Grand Rapids, MI

Grand Rapids, MI - Imported Video Feeds

Like many cities, Grand Rapids has sought to rejuvenate their downtown area with new restaurants, bars, and music venues. And like many cities, they have found that when after-dark activity increases, criminal activity does, too. The most recent example was a shooting incident that injured three youths after a Bruno Mars concert, and another one outside a downtown drinking establishment.

According to a post on www.mlive.com, a Michigan local  news site, the Grand Rapids PD and  Kent County Sheriff's Dept has beeb putting  Dept of Homeland Security funding towards expanding their surveillance camera presence in the downtown area with new and upgraded security cameras. Inspired by   how footage from privately owned security cameras helped authorities apprehend the Boston Marathon bombers, they are also looking to supplement their own real time surveillance capabilities by enlisting the help of downtown businesses who have mounted cameras on their buildings.

Prior to this program, when investigating an incident, police had to request footage from businesses whose outdoor cameras might have captured part of it. But with the new program in place, they'll be able to tap into the video feeds from cameras whose owners have agreed to participate in the voluntary,opt-out-at-any time project. So far 100 businesses have signed on and made their cameras feeds available to the police.

According to the Kent County Emergency Management Coordinator the agreement only applies to outdoor cameras, and they will not be used for "day-to-day" but only " in the event of an emergency. There would have to be an event serious enough to trigger us to monitor the cameras."

Speaking of serious events .....Dayton Ohio, has an ongoing one.

Dayton Ohio - No Dumping

Over the past three years, the Dayton Dept of Public Works has spent over $1million  to clean up illegally dumped refuse. In 2013,  in an effort to stem this practice, the city installed 23 mobile, motion-activated, day/night cameras to monitor 46 sites where the most dumping  occurred.

Each day, DPW staff reviews approximately 600 images to see people discarding old recliners, plumbing fixtures and piles of trash on abandoned lots, some even backing  trucks filled with building materials and debris, dumping them onto empty lots or abandoned properties."It's an on going battle," the director of  the Dayton DPW told the McClatchy News Service. "When we put cameras up, we see less dumping at that particular site."

Surveillance cameras may not have put an end to illegal dumping but they have resulted in dozens of prosecutions for illegal dumping and unlawful transporting of tires, leading to 20 misdemeanor convictions, and five cases of property seizures. City commissioners are satisfied enough to approve spending $14,000 from this year's budget to purchase and install 18 more surveillance camera systems

IP security camera  systems can be used to monitor situations like these,  as well as to monitor everyday retail operations, to keep track of assets, or as a resource in new-hire training.To speak to a sales engineer about the best camera for your application, call Kintronics at 914-944-3425, or fill out an information request form.

IP Security Cameras Tell the Truth, the Whole Truth, and Nothing but the Truth

It 's been nearly two years since militants, armed with grenades and anti-aircraft weapons, stormed the diplomatic mission in Benghazi, killing the US ambassador to Libya and three others, but the man suspected of orchestrating the attack was captured in Benghazi in mid-June. Last week, Ahmed Abu Khattala
appeared in federal court in Washington DC court to face formal charges of conspiring to provide material support and resources to terrorists, resulting in a death.

Fraught with Controversy

Perhaps as a sign of this contentious era, this incident of terrorism is not only tragic for its loss of life and destruction of property but it has been mired in domestic political infighting as well. Those on the receiving end of criticism include

• President Obama for his national security policies
• Hillary Clinton for how she responded  to the ambassador's call for security
• Susan Rice, the then UN Ambassador for her press appearances where she followed State Department talking points proclaiming the attacks spontaneous rather than a concentrated terrorist attack.

And now that a suspect is in custody, there's a new swirl of controversy including

• the choice of Washington DC as a venue for the hearing since the prisoner must be escorted through city streets whereas if the prisoner were tried in the federal courthouse in New York or Virginia, the facility has an attached prison.

• no consideration being given trying him before a military tribunal at Guantanamo Bay as an alternative to a criminal trial.
• Since it is a criminal case, the fact that Khattala was advised of his Miranda rights.

A Trial for the Books

Senior federal prosecutors and FBI agents occupied the first two rows of the courtroom at the United States District Court ( not your everyday courtroom spectators). This may be because, as the former United States Attorney for Eastern District Virginia put it, "This trial won't be a walk in the park."

 That's putting it mildly:

• In contrast to a typical trial where crime scene investigators have promptly vetted the scene of the crime for forensic evidence, security concerns in Benghazi following the attack prevented FBI investigators having access for over two weeks.

• Whereas your typical trial relies on witnesses who come forth voluntarily or are subpoenaed, the hostile environment in Libya, first of all, made tracking down, let alone questioning witnesses difficult, and what cooperative ones were found will have to be flown in from Libya and may not stand up well to cross-examination.
• While intercepted electronic conversations have yielded evidence that could be valuable, their classified nature precludes most of them from being presented at a public trial.

Surveillance Cameras to The Rescue

According to the New York Times, In addition to eyewitness accounts, the prosecutor is expected to rely on IP camera security systems video. Thanks to Video Management Software, Justice Department investigators were able to analyze over one hundred hours of video that allowed them to construct a narrative of the period leading up to the attacks, the actual attack, not only on the mission, but on the CIA annex as well, and the time following the siege.

As to how valuable the cameras' eyewitness accounts will be, the former United States Attorney has this to say " The Department of Justice bats nearly 1,000 percent in these kinds of extraterritorial cases but that's because they put so much diligence on the front end of the investigations."

Kintronics has faith in IP camera systems as well. If you are interested in finding out how IP surveillance cameras can served your home or place of business, call 914-944-3425 to speak to an engineer, or fill out an information request form.