Campus ID News
Card, mobile credential, payment and security
FEATURED
PARTNERS

Trends in Campus Security

Zack Martin   ||   Oct 26, 2009  ||   ,

Every year half of all organizations suffer a security breach, said Michael Peele, associate engineer for facility and security systems at Georgetown University in Washington D.C. “Of those, 99% had both firewalls and anti-virus protection in place,” he adds. “There has been a shift from glory motivated vandals to those seeking financial gain,” he told attendees at a National association of Campus Card Users sponsored webinar on campus security trends.

One of the goals in implementing a security system is to reduce your vulnerabilities. “Threats are everywhere. You should remove data from where it doesn’t need to be.” The simple cure, he adds, is to physically secure, encrypt and firewall everything and use a separate network for security related data, such as CCTV, VoIP and access control files.

Still, having the best computer security means nothing if campuses don’t have physical security protecting facilities. “Which is why you need card readers on your doors,” says Peele.

Still, no matter how sophisticated or state-of-the-art your campus security system is, if your staff hasn’t been properly vetted, the money spent on security could be wasted. He suggests background checks on everyone who might be able to access your computer servers. “Your staff is your number one weak point. Perform background checks on all security staff, executives, management, auditors.”

No security system should be installed without a plan. “You should plan any security system in excruciating detail,” said Peele. “Start out by creating a model security facility without regard to budget or technology. Look at the existing structure and your model and prioritize with an eye towards closing the gap.”

Features of an integrated security management system include alarm management, access control and video surveillance. Integration and convergence of all these pieces includes monitoring, alarm management, computer aided dispatch and emergency response.

While video surveillance on campus has become increasingly popular, it’s most often used as a forensic tool after the fact, said Peele. Even if someone is watching, a guard can only monitor about eight screens at a time. After just 12 minutes of monitoring, he will miss 45% of activity. “After only 22 minutes the operator will miss 95%. Don’t assume someone is watching the screen,” he adds.

He suggests employing a video analytics system which analyzes activity and notifies security if there is something out of the ordinary. “You tell it what to look for, for example someone hopping a fence or someone going in a certain direction,” said Peele. “When the event the software is monitoring occurs, an alarm will sound.”

The analytics software could work for pedestrian safety, jaywalkers, running red lights, long lines in the cafeteria or bookstores, even students sneaking into the cafeteria, he added. Video analytics can be used with what he calls “dark screen monitoring. All the screens can be dark until you have actionable intelligence.” When the event occurs, the screen comes to life, showing the video of that event, said Peele.

He also suggested colleges be aware of Homeland Security Presidential Directive 12 and Federal Information Processing Standard 201. Both involve identification credentials being issued to federal employees and many of the new products in the market reference these initiatives.

“(FIPS 201) is an excellent resource for best practices,” said Peele. “These standards cover everything, including how to do background checks, the format of your ID card, whether bar code, mag strip, or contactless, the placement of the chip, etc.”

Related Posts

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter

RECENT ARTICLES

High school bathroom

Bathroom breaks tracked by campus ID and mobile app

At California’s Fresno High, a new app is authorizing and monitoring trips to the bathroom in an effort to increase students’ time in class and decrease gathering in halls and bathrooms. Of course, this has not gone over well with students. Raising your hand and asking the teacher if you can go to the bathroom […]
Atrium Ozzi container

Atrium clients track check-out and return of reusable containers at OZZI kiosks

The push to reduce or even eliminate single-use containers from campus dining is now easier for Atrium clients. Thanks to a seamless integration between Atrium and the OZZI reusable container program, the processes for both students and dining services is streamlined. Atrium clients have been using OZZI for years, but the two systems were independent. […]
HID report snapshot

Security industry’s top trends include mobile IDs, MFA and sustainability

The 2024 State of the Security Industry Report from HID Global studies trends and changes in the security industry. This year six major themes emerged surrounding mobile identity, multi-factor authentication, biometrics, AI, and sustainability. The research includes data from more than 2,500 individuals – partners, end users, and security/IT personnel – from around the globe. Respondents […]
CIDN logo reversed
The only publication dedicated to the use of campus cards, mobile credentials, identity and security technology in the education market. CampusIDNews – formerly CR80News – has served more than 6,500 subscribers for more than two decades.
Twitter

Feb. 1 webinar explores how mobile ordering enhanced campus life, increased sales at UVA and Central Washington @Grubhub @CBORD

Join Jeff Koziol and Robert Gaulden from @AllegionUS as we explore how mobile credentials and proptech are changing on- and off-campus housing.

Load More...
Contact
CampusIDNews is published by AVISIAN Publishing
315 E. Georgia St.
Tallahassee, FL 32301
www.AVISIAN.com[email protected]
Use our contact form to submit tips, corrections, or questions to our team.
©2024 CampusIDNews. All rights reserved.