The past few years have seen a significant increase in the capabilities and scalability of IP video surveillance. With these benefits, companies and organizations can see more of their facility in high resolution under widely varying lighting and environmental conditions.
In this article we will take a look at some of the advancements and how they impact your security plan.
Benefit #1 Resolution
Cameras are now capable of resolutions that exceed 4K quality. That does not mean that same thing as being able to watch your favorite TV show in 4K. What it does mean is that you can get much more detail from the field of view of the camera when you need to extract evidence for an investigation.
A wide field of view will now allow you to observe the same area with fewer cameras, assuming you aren’t seeking more detail. In other words, fewer high-resolution cameras is equal to more low-resolution cameras. However, if what you seek is more detail from each camera, you’ll need just as many high-resolution cameras with the same field of view.
Benefit #2 Light Sensitivity
The wide range of new starlight cameras is a significant benefit for security. Low light capability has improved, even for the highest-resolution cameras. The alternative to low-light capability is to install visible or covert infrared lighting.
However, this improved low light sensitivity still has its limits. Extreme low light cameras will eventually deliver a monochrome image, even with infrared illumination, when they push the boundaries of their data sheet limits. The positive for security professionals is that these cameras will remain in “color mode” longer as it gets darker than older cameras could, thus providing more data to be used as evidence.
Benefit #3 Ease of Access
When security systems were referred to as CCTV systems, your ability to view a camera was limited to how far you could run a dedicated wire to a dedicated monitor to view the camera. Today, and for quite a while, IP video surveillance allows you to view cameras as far away as your network connectivity and policies will allow.
With that flexibility comes a very substantial caveat: cyber security. This topic is leading the discussions today about IP video surveillance. Any device attached to a network is subject to a hack attempt. These hacks can result in a security breach or as a bridge to the organization’s internal operational network. It is critically important to be aware of cyber vulnerabilities of these devices as their security may vary widely from manufacturer to manufacturer.
An Intelligent Vision
To help keep your security team and facility as safe as possible while operating at maximum efficiency, Vision Security Technologies will design, engineer, install, and maintain security solutions that protect your entire facility. Contact Vision today to get started with a customized, integrated, and scalable safety and security solution.
