Category: Feature

Around the world, education institutions are rolling out education video solutions to improve learning outcomes, boost campus security, and drive operating efficiency. Discover the top benefits of smart solutions for education, and how your institution can achieve them with Hikvision Education institutions are constantly striving to deliver excellent learning outcomes for students, but achieving these goals requires innovation across all functional areas, from teaching and learning models to the delivery of digital services. Within the scope of digital transformation, one of the most interesting areas of innovation is smart education solutions which can deliver unique and compelling benefits for educational institutions. It combines high-resolution video imaging and management platforms with AI and Machine Learning to deliver highly immersive presentation and remote learning models which help to deliver higher student achievement levels. What’s more, smart education solutions can be used to increase security for staff and students on campus, and to protect their wellbeing through out the day. Smart solutions such as these can also help institutions to significantly reduce their administrative workloads and costs by providing real-time visibility across entire campuses. With alerts for incidents, accidents, and even IT failures, academic and administrative staff can act quickly and decisively, and free up time for value-added and student-facing work. There are three main areas where smart applications and scenarios are delivering clear benefits for education institutions. Education solutions can increase student safety and wellbeing When it comes to ensuring student safety and wellbeing, schools and colleges need to prevent bullying and ensure that students are not running in the corridors or engaging in other dangerous behavior. Other incidents, such as large groups of students crowding into classrooms, can also cause safety risks, requiring immediate action to be taken. Another major requirement for some educational institutions is to ensure that unauthorized visitors cannot access the campus – either by breaching the site perimeter, or by walking in the main entrance. With smart education solutions, alerts can be generated automatically if students are at risk. Authorized visitors can also be recognized and admitted instantly, while strangers are stopped in their tracks, ensuring that students are protected at all times. Education solutions can help students achieve their learning potential Today, digital technologies provide major opportunities for immersive and remote learning experiences, helping to make education more accessible to children and adults from all walks of life. When it comes to helping students learn faster and achieve more – both on campus and remotely – smart education solutions have a key role to play. Technologies such as smart cameras, digital touchscreen displays, student tablets, digital platforms for content sharing, and APIs for seamless integration with the leading video conferencing platforms ensure that students can maximize their learning potential, whether they are sitting in the classroom, or joining in remotely from home or from another location. Education solutions can improve operational efficiency To maximize time spent on teaching and student welfare, educational institutions need to streamline and automate time-consuming, manual administration tasks. Smart education systems can help by integrating operational, security, and IT performance insights, and making them available to academic staff and administrators in real time. Based on these insights, academic and administrative staff can quickly identify issues and security risks, and act fast to mitigate them. Find out how with Hikvision Education institutions around the world are partnering with Hikvision to maximize campus security, optimize remote and virtual teaching and learning models, and boost their operating efficiency. With our highly efficient, ‘all-in-one’ hardware and software architecture for education, institutions can create bespoke solutions that meet their current business needs, and adopt additional applications quickly and easily in the future.  

Milind M Borkar – Consultant UnityIS, in the cloud, addresses today’s workplace requirements simply and efficiently, for any business security need. Whether you are on-site or off-site, connect to UnityIS from any Internet connected device. With UnityIS, manage not only the fundamentals of access control such as credential management, monitoring and control of all doors, custom reporting, real-time system event transactions and alerts, graphical device display, but also the advanced capabilities. These capabilities, already included within the easy-to-use UnityIS interface, include Occupancy Control, First Man In/ Last Man Out, and Granular Lockdowns. With Occupancy Control, define limits within a specified area in a facility with alerts to maintain limited capacity. The First Man In/ Last Man Out functionality provides a multitude of options that allow, for example, the unlocking of specified doors, turning on lights and HVAC upon a successful entry of designated personnel. With UnityIS, manage lockdowns/ unlocks remotely from a global level down to a single door. This granularity allows for a lockdown or unlock of a single room or multiple rooms, a department, a building, multiple buildings, the entire facility. All of which can be performed with a click of a single button within UnityIS. UnityIS works with most video management systems by allowing the operator to associate cameras to access control devices. Live and recorded video can be viewed from the live event stream, graphic maps or a video grid. Additional third-party products can be integrated with UnityIS through our REST API. UnityIS works with a variety of OSDP and Wiegand readers that support biometric, Bluetooth/ NFC, 13.56MHz, and 125kHz. Additionally, issue guest passes remotely via email straight to a visitor’s mobile device, without using physical credentials. UnityIS offers the most comprehensive access control in the cloud today. With no software to load, no maintenance to perform, and a simple subscription model, you can stay focused on your business.   Founded in 1997, IMRON Corporation began developing software to some of the largest manufacturers in the security industry. In 2003, IMRON expanded its business model and began selling complete solutions of software and hardware to integrators and dealers under the IMRON brand. The UnityIS software platform has won several awards over the years and offers distinct features that are unmatched by industry competitors. We pride ourselves in staying ahead of the competition, to maintain our position at the forefront of technology and innovation.   IMRON solutions integrate to non-proprietary open hardware platforms and offer support to more open access control platforms than any other solution in the market today. Because of this, customers are no longer at the mercy of hardware vendors who have gone out of business or have been affected by supply chain issues. This gives customers choices when projects must be completed in a timely manner. When customers have choices, everyone wins. IMRON Corporation’s products have been installed in and field-tested at thousands of sites worldwide, across every vertical and scale. IMRON’s prime emphasis on both customer responsiveness and product innovation are crucial to our unmatched product innovation. Our focus on the customer ensures both the highest ‘convergence’ of technology and customer acceptance, both of which are keys to our success.  

Prakash Prabhu – Chief Business Officer & Co-Founder, VisionBot In the past few articles, we have discussed about Computer Vision and how it can address the challenges faced by many diverse processes across multiple Industries. With the staggering amount of video content generated by billions of video sensors across the globe, the capabilities of CCTV video surveillance systems are now being transformed by fundamental shifts in how video data is gathered, stored, accessed, and analysed. VIDEO Cloud is enabling a massive transformation in the ease of monitoring and analysis for data driven Digital Enterprises Visionbot™ – Enabling the Convergence of the VIDEO Cloud and AI/ ML for Computer Vision applications VisionBot was incorporated, with a focus to address the demand for VIDEO driven digital enterprise. VisionBot AI enabled Computer Vision, helps augment performance of workflow processes and enables improvement of overall Operational efficiency of an Enterprise. It cost-effectively manages distributed visual sensors at scale, analyses the massive volumes of visual data with artificial intelligence and distributes personalized, actionable information to decision makers. The AI enabled VisionBot VIDEO cloud computer vision platform was built for accessibility, affordability and availability. Bringing the benefit of cognitive Video AI for ALL is the most important part of our journey to address the Video driven roadmap for any organization. Generative AI will probably be the singularly adopted tool for generating adaptive video content to boost engagement and drive collaboration across enterprises and social engagement. What excites us is the reality of VIDEO becoming the primary driver of the creator economy. It is inevitable that video will remain an important tool whether for work, entertainment, and learning. VisionBot will be synonymous for all things related to the AI driven VIDEO cloud. This journey of VIDEO based transformation, has opened a lot of conversations around the technology, its challenges, and the benefits for the early adopters of the AI driven VIDEO cloud. What are the industry problems that are being addressed? Among all the workflow processes within any enterprise today – visual inspection and monitoring is still heavily dependent on human reporting. Human assessment and reporting are however subjective and is prone to errors due to fatigue and inconsistency/ non repeatability. It also slows down the overall process throughput which are otherwise completely automated. VisionBot AI driven computer vision helps companies to reduce operational costs and mitigate safety and operational gaps through custom object and event detection. Automates visual monitoring. Workflow automation and reporting. Improved accuracy of actionable object data. Our Generative AI models will be assistive for attainable goals to drive long-term video adoption. Recruiting early adopters, setting content strategy, and making sure enterprises have the right technology to support goals for a more effective use of video. Increase employee-created content. Drive content diversity. Choose the right generative AI Tools. Ready to scale.   A. How does this compare with traditional technique/s? 1.Traditional Rule-based automation systems are rigid Traditional rule based video content analysis has been incorporated in cameras (Edge) and server-based analytics server on the premise. Rule-based automation is a system that applies manmade rules to store, sort, and manipulate data. To work, rulebased systems need a set of facts or sources of data and a set of rules for manipulating. We sometimes refer this rule to as an ‘If-else statement’ because it must follow instructions. 2. Rule-based automation need humans to identify all scenarios in advance If you want to create a rule-based system capable of handling 100 different actions, we must write 100 different ‘if-else’ rules. Any need to update the system and add more event alerts, then we need to write a new rule. The system does not work on its own or make intelligent decisions. Rules-based systems will also not change or update, and will not ‘learn’ from mistakes, so accuracy levels do not improve. 3. Cognitive analysis based intelligent automation can accommodate wide scopes In comparison with rule based systems, VisionBot AI driven computer vision which is intelligent automation that with the help of artificial intelligence, helps to automate more activities. Artificial Intelligence includes three broad areas of computer-vision/ image-recognition, (NLP) natural-language processing and (ML) machine learning (to predict outcomes). With a combination of these capabilities, we can build automation that is more human-like with model training. Companies today face several challenges: increasing efficiency, improving decision-making, staying competitive, ensuring customer loyalty and compliance are just some of many obstacles that businesses face, cognitive automation is effective in overcoming these key challenges by supporting companies in optimizing their day-to-day activities and their entire business. The benefits that result from cognitive automation also include improved compliance and overall business quality, greater operational scalability, reduced turnover, and lower error rates. All of this has a positive impact on business flexibility and employee efficiency. Based on our experience, we believe that a company can expect savings of over 50% on its production activities and a reduction in the relevant costs. B. This is relevant for large corporates, not for MSMEs? While large-scale enterprises have long begun using new technologies like machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI) to streamline their business processes, SMEs (Small and Medium Enterprises) are still lagging behind in their effort to embrace the digital data driven enterprise. Primary Reasons for slow adoption: How VisionBot mitigates this for MSME High cost of deployment: CAPEX: VisionBot subscription model allows all companies to adopt Video based AI in to their organization processes at near zero costs. On the contrary, their existing investment in Video surveillance devices are used more effectively for organizational effectiveness apart from pure surveillance and safety. Fast changing technology landscape: VisionBot AI driven video cloud which is hosted on AWS/ AZURE, ensures companies get the best of computing hardware, data security and scalability without the need to hire a technical expert for cloud or AI technologies. Fear of getting locked in: VisionBot AI driven video cloud is ready with a wide model set of object detection behaviours and user configured event alerts. Users can flexibly select and change between different…

Anil Puri CMD, APS group A first generation serial entrepreneur, thought leader and an action catalyzer rolled into one – Anil Puri is a rare combination of a visionary, an innovator and a strategic thinker. He has used this combination to innovate and implement on-ground many new business ideas. His rich experience in various businesses has enabled him to nurture & mentor innovative ideas and scale them up Introduction The evolution of physical security industry is constantly getting accelerated due to emergence of new technologies. As we move into the future, it’s important to stay ahead of the exponential curve and be aware of the latest trends. The past three years have been a whirlwind of disruption as we’ve navigated the security and logistical challenges of COVID lockdowns and the resulting return-towork plans. One doesn’t feel like that their organization has gotten back to normal? Let’s be honest – looks like, there won’t ever be a return to normal. Public and private life has permanently changed, and we need to start thinking about security differently. New risks will always present themselves with fresh challenges to security professionals. Resultantly, security professionals need to continue learning, evolving and re-evaluating the physical security strategy of their organizations. Contrarily, there will always be need to assess any emerging technology and procedures that sprout as an outcome of disruption or evolution. Dynamic shifts over the past few years in the way the world does business, forced companies to use technology in new ways, hence evolution continues. Factors shaping the Security landscape Technology continues to shape the evolution of the security sector. The innovations in AI, biometrics and the cloud have changed the face of how security systems are specified, installed and operated. While other industries may be farther along, physical security solutions will quickly catch-up as they will need to support overall IoT solutions by moving to the cloud. Added services is the new normal for security. The move to being remote across vertical markets has accelerated the need for security solutions. As a result, as-a-service adoption has become increasingly prevalent. Smarter devices, products, and services are starting to provide more than the traditional safety, security, and threat identification offerings. New technologies bring the value add of business intelligence and data science. Many technologies such as AI enabled cameras are evolving to offer data capture in addition to traditional security. These security solutions can help users make smarter business decisions, drive additional revenue, and create greater efficiency in addition to providing better safety and security. Beside emergence of new technologies, regional and global Geopolitical situations, COVID enforced WFH, hybrid work culture, rampant cyberattacks by hackers on physical & IT infrastructure and data, labour shortage and fear of economic recession further accentuated by the reported resurgence in the Omicron BF7 strain are some of the salient factors leading the change in security landscape. Salient Emerging Trends Trend 1. Convergence of Physical & Cyber Security Now that the security industry has made nearly every sensor, system, software and server/ recorder and device interconnected and remotely available; the question that clients ask is not just, “How does this help protect my people, assets and information?” but is, “While you promise to improve my security, what cybersecurity risks does your system create for me?” Undisputedly, today cyber security is more than critical to the overall resilience of an organization. Whatever be the size of business, the growing threat from more and more sophisticated hacking techniques is very real in 2023, and can cause major damage to businesses, public sector services, or increasingly, critical national infrastructure. Businesses are looking to invest in cyber security-related tools to improve physical security in 2023. There is now much greater awareness that with so much of the security infrastructure connected to the network, a siloed approach between physical and cyber teams is no longer conducive. Both have to engage with one another, as a ‘zero trust’ approach appears to have emerged, where every connected device is cyber-reviewed with the assumption that they are all potentially vulnerable. Cameras, access control points and connected alarms are by no means excluded from this approach. While a more holistic, automated approach to defending against threats will take precedence, so too will proactive security architecture planning and procurement. In 2023, business continuity requires rigorous product selection & implementation. Same goes for the physical security industry hardware and software updates, high reactivity maintenance, expertise and strong collaboration between customers and all solutions providers on site. The continued push to secure networks by IT professionals and network vendors will create even more cyber security awareness in 2023. While security professionals are highly aware of the geo-political risks posed by untrustworthy state-owned manufacturers, the continued push to secure networks by IT professionals and network vendors will create even more cybersecurity awareness in 2023. We expect companies to follow policies that prevent authorities from installing Chinese state-owned surveillance systems in sensitive sites. One can anticipate continued adoption of zero trust practices which validate every transaction between devices and people. Cybersecurity as a pillar of corporate responsibility will become an emerging trend as businesses seek to safeguard business continuity for their customers. Hence Cyber-Physical Security Convergence is an agenda high on the horizon. Companies are also looking at the quiet quitting, moonlighting on one hand and the proliferation of cloud, 5G and edge computing, IoT, mobility and automotive, digital supply chains as well as reduced dependence on VPNs on the other; hence necessitating a clear focus on ever preparedness and cyber resilience. Cybersecurity leaders will have to keep abreast of all global developments, especially in the AI act, digital services and market acts of Europe, the new regulations across the Middle East, Japan, Thailand and several others. With the trends of globalization continuing, in 2023 and beyond especially for those handling sensitive end customer and employee data. There must be careful consideration of aspects such as customer/ employee/ stakeholder consent and rights, data storage, retention and transmission policies, and clear guidelines in case…

Colonel B. S. Nagial (Retd.) On 27 March 2023, United Nations Counter-Terrorism Executive Directorate (UNCTED) hosted an insight briefing on the blind spots in technology-driven counter-terrorism decision-making processes and proposed methods to mitigate these blind spots. UNCTED’s meeting focused on using predictive technologies to improve counter-terrorism initiatives, especially border security.1 One of the main takeaways of this briefing was that while predictive and probabilistic algorithms, human and signals intelligence, big data analytics, and facial recognition capabilities offer opportunities for countries’ efforts to address the scourge of terrorism, they also present many challenges.The United Nations Security Council (UNSC)’s guidance given out in its resolution 2396 (2017) on the assistance of biometrics in counter-terrorism and the necessity to enhance standards for using and collecting biometric data in counter-terrorism, the limitations in technology-driven counter-terrorism were outlined, and the suggestions for overcoming them have been elaborated therein. During his opening address, David Scharia, Director and Head of the Technical Expertise and Research Branch of UNCTED, said that the briefing was aimed at assisting countries to identify methods to upgrade technology-assisted decision-making processes in the context of counter-terrorism. This briefing featured a presentation from Professor Krebs, a Professor of Law at Deakin University, Australia, and a UNCTED’s Global Research Network member. The presentation was titled: Fact and Fiction in Technology-Driven Technology. This presentation elaborated on how counter-terrorism efforts in the airport and border security have gradually evolved towards preventative counter-terrorism. The benefit of predictive and probabilistic technologies lies in their ability to provide vast amounts of immediate, relevant information, process it, and identify connections and inconsistencies. However, Professor Krebs noted that attempts to prevent terrorist attacks by identifying suspicious individuals, including from data collected on terrorism watch lists and databases and from law enforcement cooperation, could also create false predictions about people and incorrectly assess the risk they pose. This could, in turn, negatively affect the principles of human rights, equality, and privacy, to name just a few. She further explained how technological limitations, limitations surrounding human use, and cognitive biases could cause decision-making errors in counter-terrorism risk assessments. She ended her presentation with a few suggestions for improving predictive counter-terrorism. Professor Krebs cited the need to develop transparent data practices and decision-assisting technologies, develop strengthened and clarified evidentiary standards, and provide capacity-building training to assist in de-biasing national and international decision-makers. Predictive technologies can be utilised to improve counter-terrorism initiatives in many ways. These technologies leverage such as data analysis, machine learning, and artificial intelligence to process and analyse large volumes of data, identify patterns, and make predictions that can help prevent, detect, and respond to terrorist activities effectively Here are some ways in which predictive technologies can be employed to improve counter-terrorism efforts: Early Warning Systems: Predictive technologies can analyse diverse data sources such as social media, communication networks, financial transactions, and travel patterns to identify potential warning signs of terrorist activities. By analysing these data in real-time, predictive technologies can help to identify suspicious activities or behaviours that may indicate the planning or execution of a terrorist attack. Early warning systems can provide timely alerts to law enforcement agencies, allowing them to take preventive measures and disrupt terrorist activities. Threat Assessment: Predictive technologies can analyse vast amounts of data to assess the threat level of individuals or groups suspected of being involved in terrorism. This can include analysing their social media posts, online activities, travel patterns, financial transactions, and other relevant data. By using machine learning algorithms, predictive technologies can identify patterns and indicators that may suggest the likelihood of an individual or group engaging in terrorist activities, helping law enforcement agencies prioritise their resources and focus on high-risk threats. Risk Prediction: Predictive technologies can use historical data and machine learning algorithms to predict the likelihood of specific locations or events being targeted by terrorists. By analysing patterns of past terrorist attacks, including location, timing, and modus operandi, predictive technologies can identify high-risk areas or events that may be vulnerable to terrorism. This information can help law enforcement agencies take preventive measures such as increased security measures, surveillance, and crowd management strategies to mitigate the risk of terrorist attacks. Social Media Monitoring: Predictive technologies can monitor social media platforms to identify and track individuals or groups promoting or inciting terrorism. By analysing social media posts, comments, and interactions, predictive technologies can detect patterns and keywords that may indicate radicalisation or recruitment activities. Social media monitoring can help law enforcement agencies identify and intervene with individuals vulnerable to radicalisation or engaging in online extremist activities. Border Security: Predictive technologies can be used to analyse data related to travel patterns, passports, visas, and other relevant information at border checkpoints. By leveraging machine learning algorithms and data analytics, predictive technologies can help identify potential terrorists or individuals with suspicious travel patterns, false documents, or other indicators of terrorist activities. This can help improve border security measures and prevent terrorists from entering or exiting a country. Resource Allocation: Predictive technologies can help optimise the allocation of limited resources, such as personnel, budget, and equipment, in counter-terrorism efforts. By analysing data on previous terrorist activities, response times, and resource utilisation, predictive technologies can help law enforcement agencies allocate their resources more effectively and efficiently. This can improve the overall operational readiness and effectiveness of counter-terrorism initiatives. However, it’s important to note that predictive technologies can provide valuable insights and support counter-terrorism efforts. But these technologies are not foolproof and must be used ethically and with appropriate legal safeguards to protect civil liberties, privacy, and human rights. Human oversight, accountability, and transparency should be maintained in using predictive technologies for counter-terrorism to ensure responsible and effective deployment. Challenges Associated With the Use of Predictive Technologies in Counter-terrorism. While predictive technologies in counter-terrorism could be promising, but presents several challenges. These challenges could summarise as under: Ethical concerns: Predictive technologies in counter-terrorism raise ethical concerns, such as bias, discrimination, and privacy. If trained on partial data, predictive technologies may be biased, leading to discriminatory outcomes, especially against certain…

3xLOGIC has developed a comprehensive ecosystem of integrated security and access control products that perfectly complement each other and, in turn, provide greater value. Richard Joslin, Senior Director of Global Sales for 3xLOGIC, explains why it makes sense to use one supplier that can meet all requirements. As a leading provider of intelligent security technology, 3xLOGIC’s product ecosystem simplifies the lives of customers and adds value to any deployment. Our video surveillance and access control systems provide an entire endto-end security and business solution that can be tailored to each customer’s needs through a single point of contact. Beyond security The word ecosystem perfectly encapsulates 3xLOGIC’s longstanding approach. It drives us to develop products that can be easily integrated, scaled, and are fully tested prior to being installed – making the process of system design and specification simpler and more reliable. An ecosystem is all about interconnection and at the heart of 3xLOGIC’s offering is the VIGIL Video Management System (VMS). This centralised software platform allows the monitoring of 3xLOGIC’s VIGIL range including National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) compliant cameras, network video recorders (NVRs), software, advanced imaging devices with artificial intelligence (AI) based capabilities, recording appliances, mobile apps, accessories, and mounts. Life changing Data has changed our lives, the way we communicate and the way we interact – the more data you have the better informed you are and the more meaningful business decisions you can make. New data is becoming available every day, making it easier for business leaders to optimise their operations, find efficiencies, protect their buildings and assets, and solve problems. 3xLOGIC has developed a range of on-premise and mobile solutions that can maximise the effectiveness of data and offer value beyond protection. These include VIGIL Client, which offers remote and/ or local live and playback viewing of all video and data collected by a VIGIL Server. Meanwhile, VIGIL Central Management provides information such as which cameras are online, NVR recording status, disk usage, server connectivity, storage resiliency, redundancy and alerts, while VIGIL Smart Search functionality enables individuals to quickly identify and review events. Perfect harmony Integrating access control and surveillance technology makes both elements more effective. Viewing them through the VIGIL VMS and reporting interface and monitoring and analysing data through its software, allows users to view real time events and associated playback video, as well as run reports on events and alarms. Using access control and surveillance technology from the same manufacturer also eliminates disruption and finger pointing between two different system providers if things go wrong. It can also increase safety, for example, if a student loses their access card and can’t get into their accommodation after a night out, an operative can identify the individual quickly, verify them, and let them into the building. Track and trace 3xLOGIC’s innovations deliver transformational business value by mining data and converting it into actionable insights – enabling greater visibility and fresh perspectives. Organisations need to focus their attention on high value application specific data that can lead to positive changes. As such, they are increasingly looking for ways to optimise the use of available data through solutions that provide actionable business intelligence that can be used to increase profit. When it comes to safety of human assets and protection of the public while visiting a premise, 3xLOGIC leads the way via interaction with many types of sensors and external systems. For example, in the US, Active Shooter incidents pose a real threat not only to employees but also to the general public, particularly in areas where crowds might gather. 3xLOGIC’s patented Gunshot Detection Sensor can easily integrate with Access Control Systems for quick lockdowns; Video Management Systems for video verification of an emerging threat; external Alarm Systems for rapid notification of monitoring personnel; and Mass Notification Systems for quick and effective notification of large groups of people as well as First Responders. In an active shooter incident, time is a precious commodity. Giving even just a few seconds quicker notification and providing real-time, accurate situational intelligence can mitigate the damage caused by the shooter. 3xLOGIC’s TRENDS analytics and reporting software makes security management easier, more efficient and more powerful than ever. It turns data into meaningful information – collating, deciphering and presenting it in a way that makes sense by showing present and historical data in a business context. This not only gives insight when you need it, but also offers a fresh perspective to help solve problems that you might not even be aware of. A great example of this is heat mapping, which makes it possible to see where people are going, identify patterns of behaviour, ascertain the popularity of certain items and identify peak times for customer numbers. This information means that products can be positioned effectively, while wait times can be reduced to stop customers leaving a queue. Not only does this provide a better customer experience, but it also means that additional security resources can be allocated to specific areas as and when required, while key performance indicators (KPIs) can also be defined to optimise efficiencies. Up in the sky In terms of product ecosystem development, all eyes continue to be on the cloud. 3xLOGIC recognised the potential of the cloud early on through the development of solutions such as the VIGIL CLOUD, which extends the functionality of the VIGIL VMS. VIGIL CLOUD can be accessed via a standard web or smartphone app. A user can easily view live and playback video from cloud cameras, bookmark cameras for quick and easy access from the main dashboard, check camera health status, export footage clips and collect and package related video events together in case files that can be easily retrieved at a later date – anytime, anyplace, via any device. The cloud also makes collaboration easier, which is especially important considering how hard it can be to share large video files with colleagues. The next step is video in the cloud, which is already established in the US and now coming…

By Colonel B. S. Nagial (Retd.) Threat to the security of a nation is a matter of grave concern not only to Armed Forces and Para Military Forces or political leadership but also to every citizen, irrespective of profession or vocation. While those at the helm of making arrangements to meet the threat must study and follow its development very closely, every citizen must also be well aware of the matters related to the nation’s security. Today, war is no longer confined to a clash between two armies in isolation of the people. It involves the whole nation. The security of a nation involves two aspects: external security and internal security. These are two essential aspects of a nation’s security. While external security refers to protecting a nation’s borders and sovereignty against external threats, internal security refers to maintaining law and order within the country and protecting citizens against internal threats. External security protects a nation’s borders, territorial integrity, and sovereignty against external threats such as military aggression, terrorism, espionage, cyber-attacks, etc. It involves using military, diplomatic, economic, and political means to deter and counter the external threat. External security also consists of forming alliances with other countries to strengthen the country’s defence capabilities and promote regional and global security. Internal security refers to maintaining law and order within the country and protecting citizens against internal threats such as terrorism, insurgency, communal violence, organised crime, cybercrime, etc. It involves using law enforcement agencies such as police, paramilitary, intelligence, and other security forces to prevent and counter internal threats. The primary responsibility for internal security lies with the police and other law enforcement agencies. Internal security also involves the promotion of social harmony, the protection of minority rights, and the prevention of radicalisation and extremism. External and internal security is crucial for a nation’s stability and prosperity. While external security protects a nation’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, internal security ensures the safety and well-being of its citizens. A balanced and coordinated approach towards both aspects is necessary for maintaining national security. India’s Internal Security situation Contrary to popular belief, the threats stemming from the internal security situation in India are enormous and intricate. Faced with various challenges, India’s experience in dealing with these challenges is mixed in nature. No nation in the world has faced such a magnitude of problems as India has encountered and is still coping with them. Though difficulties posed by internal security have been largely overcome, they have not been wholly routed from Indian soil. Because of the seriousness of the issue, an attempt has been made to acquaint ourselves with India’s Internal Security situation. As per the Ministery of Home Affairs of India’s annual report 2022, the internal security of India could be classified into the following categories: Terrorism in hinterland. Left Wing Extremism(LWE) in certain parts of India. Insurgency in the Northeastern States. Cross-Border Terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir. Terrorism in Hinterland Terrorism in any city or town deep inside the country is called hinterland terrorism. Terrorism in the Indian hinterland results from a complex set of interrelated factors. India’s rendezvous with terrorism and violent extremism is deeply rooted in history, partly due to the religion-based partition in 1947, which divided the sub-continent into India and Pakistan. The sub-continent witnessed the most shocking ethnic riots in modern history, marked by extreme violence and acts of terrorism. Instead, seeds of terrorism were sown with the Arab Invasion of India and culminated in the demand for a two-nation theory. However, India moved away from the horrors of the past and carried on the path of development both of nation and human resources. But Pakistan has not come out of the two-nation theory and still holds this ideology. Since 1947, Pakistan has left no chance to weaken India internally. To understand the significance of the threat posed by terrorism, we need to go back to Afghanistan War in the 1970s and 1980s. The former USSR intervened in the internal affairs of Afghanistan to support the pro-communist regime against the Muslim Mujahidin. The Muslim Mujahidin appealed to world Muslims to support them in Jihad against USSR. Muslim volunteers came from around the world to Afghanistan to form part of this jihad. Most of these Mujahidin were trained and funded by the US through Pakistan. Pakistan conveniently and cunningly diverted these funds to launch terrorism against India. When USSR left in 1989, there was chaos in Afghanistan. The Muslim volunteers from around the world were divided into three groups: one group remained in Afghanistan, and members were united under the guidance of Osama Bin Laden to form Al Qaida. Members of the second group returned to their native countries and joined/started Islamic Fundamentalist Terrorist organisations. The third group dispersed to the western world to spread Islamic Fundamentalist ideology. After its defeat in the 1971 war, Pakistan primarily launched a policy to bleed India by thousand cuts. It started waging a proxy war against India by targeting significant cities. Khalistan terrorists also used this strategy following the insurgency in Punjab. Examples of this kind of terrorism include the 1993 Bombay blasts, the 2001 Parliament attack, the 2002 Raghunath Mandir and Akshardham attacks, the 2005 Delhi Blast, the 2006 Mumbai Train blast, the 2008 Gujrat and Jaipur serial blasts and Mumbai Attcak, the 2016 Pathankot &Uri attacks, the 2019 Pulwama, etc. Left Wing Extremism in India Left Wing Extremism (LWE) is embedded in the communist political movement, which started in 1920 and has grown in numerous streams since then. However, their basic ideology is to establish a classless society in India, but they differ in achieving their ends. Communist Party India (CPI) adopted the electoral process in 1951. A few radical elements broke away from the CPI in 1964 to form CPI (Marxist). And when CPI-M adopted electoral democracy, a more radical Maoist faction within CPI-M initiated the violent Naxalite movement. In 1969 Charu Muzamdar formed a new group called CPI-M&L based on Marxist and Lenin philosophies. By 1972 the communist…

Automated Visual Inspection & Content Analysis for Manufacturing – Automotive Prakash Prabhu – Chief Business Officer & Co-Founder, VisionBot In this feature, we will discover benefits of automated visual inspection, content analysis and deep learning methodologies for Manufacturing enterprises. Computer vision driven automated video content monitoring for future digital factories Computer vision can be used in manufacturing for quality assurance by automatically inspecting products for defects or deviations from specifications. This can be done using techniques such as image processing and deep learning to analyse images or videos of the products. Computer vision is a type of technology that is revolutionizing the way that we think about retail. By using machine learning algorithms, computer vision is able to ‘see’ the world around us and make sense of it in ways that were previously impossible. Computer vision can be used in manufacturing for quality assurance by automatically inspecting products for defects or deviations from specifications. This can be done using techniques such as image processing and machine learning to analyse images or videos of the products. This can help to improve the accuracy and efficiency of the inspection process and reduce the need for human inspection. Some examples of computer vision application in manufacturing include: Identifying defects on a surface of a product Computer vision can be used to identify defects on a product surface by using techniques such as image processing, pattern recognition, and machine learning. This can be done by capturing an image of the product surface, pre-processing the image to remove noise and improve contrast, then using algorithms to detect any anomalies or defects that deviate from a standard pattern. Some common defects that can be detected include scratches, cracks, chips, and blemishes. The results can be used for quality control and to improve the manufacturing process. Checking the alignment and orientation of components Computer vision can be used to check the alignment and orientation of components by using image processing and computer vision algorithms. This can be done by capturing an image of the components and using algorithms to analyse the image and determine the relative positions and orientations of the components. Some common algorithms used for this include feature detection, template matching, and edge detection. The results can be used for quality control and to improve the manufacturing process by ensuring that components are properly aligned and oriented. This can help to reduce defects and improve product reliability. Measuring dimensions and tolerances Computer vision can be used for measuring dimensions and tolerances by analyzing images of objects and using algorithms to extract dimensional information. This can be done using techniques such as edge detection, blob analysis, and pattern recognition. The system can be calibrated using a known reference object, and then used to measure the dimensions and tolerances of other objects. The results can be used for quality control, to ensure that products meet specified dimensional requirements, and for process improvement, by using the data to optimize production processes. The use of computer vision in measuring dimensions and tolerances can increase accuracy and efficiency compared to manual measurements. Detecting missing or misplaced parts Computer vision can be used to detect missing or misplaced parts by analysing images of a complete assembly and comparing it to a reference image of the expected assembly. This can be done using image processing techniques such as object detection, pattern recognition, and machine learning. The system can be trained on a set of images to learn what a complete assembly should look like, and then use this knowledge to identify any missing or misplaced parts in new images. The results can be used for quality control, to ensure that all necessary parts are present and properly assembled, and for process improvement, by using the data to optimize production processes. The use of computer vision in detecting missing or misplaced parts can increase accuracy and efficiency compared to manual inspection. Monitoring assembly processes for compliance with standard procedures Computer vision can be used to monitor assembly processes for compliance with standard procedures. This is done by using cameras to capture images and videos of the assembly process, and then using computer vision algorithms to analyse the images and videos in real-time. These algorithms can be used to detect deviations from standard procedures, such as incorrect assembly sequence or incorrect parts being used. This information can then be used to alert operators to take corrective action or to record non-compliant actions for further analysis and improvement of the process. Tracking and identifying products throughout the manufacturing process Computer vision can be used for tracking and identifying products throughout the manufacturing process. This is done by using cameras to capture images and videos of the products at various stages of the manufacturing process, and then using computer vision algorithms to analyse the images and videos in real-time. These algorithms can be used to identify individual products and track them as they move through the manufacturing process. This information can then be used to ensure that each product is processed correctly, and to track the location of products within the manufacturing facility. Additionally, computer vision can also be used to verify product quality, by analysing images of each product to ensure that it meets specified quality standards. Integrating Machine Vision with AI driven Augmented Computer Vision Objective of the integrated solution – To use automated visual monitoring and AI driven event notifications to monitor, detect and alert for real time observations, asset monitoring, predictive maintenance and centralized reporting of Visual monitoring and Machine Vision Images, alerts on incident/ event detection. VisionBot™ Cloud Automated Computer Vision for Automotive Manufacturing VisionBot™ Computer Vision is one of the many Artificial Intelligence solutions that will continue to transform manufacturing. Leading survey says computer vision will be very important, and 58% said that their firm is implementing, planning to implement, or interested in implementing computer vision in the coming year. It allows machines to extract meaningful information from image and, now, even video data by using sophisticated machine learning…

If 2022 was the year of India’s resurgence and resilience, 2023 can be termed as the year of economic fruition, internal security challenges and guarded optimism. Despite global headwinds, the prolonged war in Ukraine and increasing prospects of global recession, the India growth story will remain buoyant, and robust on the back of strong domestic factors. The World Bank opines that “while the deteriorating external environment will weigh on India’s growth prospects, the economy is relatively well positioned to weather global spillovers compared to most other emerging markets.”The year ahead will continue to be determined and shaped by geopolitical events. Their impact will cast a shadow on energy and food security, while also posing a risk of trade wars/barriers which India will have to navigate adroitly. Events like the price cap on Russian oil, and continued sanctions by the Western bloc, will create stress in our relations with some friendly countries. India as the newly elected President of G20, will need to be more objective and assertive in trying to solve the Ukraine imbroglio. Further deterioration of relations between NATO and Russia poses a strategic security dilemma for India. The political uncertainty and resultant instability in Pakistan is a matter of concern for India. The forthcoming elections in Pakistan will manifest in a hardening of anti-India stance and rhetoric by most political parties. The recent undiplomatic utterance against PM Modi by the Finance Minister of Pakistan has exacerbated the situation further, and any chances of talks on easing of relations between the two has suffered a major setback. With Pakistan battling internal insurgencies, and increasing problems on its Eastern borders, any adventurism on our borders is unlikely. A reasonably stable LOC and secure borders with Pakistan for 2023 can be thus be forecast. While events with China remained on low key for most of 2022, the year-end skirmish near Tawang demonstrated the fragility and volatility of the LAC with China. While the Indian Army stood its ground and deterred Chinese designs firmly, the political fallout of the incident would increase the existing trust deficit between the countries, and also seriously undermine political options for a quick resolution of the boundary issues. The increased hostility would play out in the Asia-Pacific region, and push India further into taking a harder stance in QUAD, and result in increased militarization of its maritime interests in the Indian Ocean region. Relations with China will continue to be strained but any large scale hostilities are unlikely. Notwithstanding the security concerns, trade with China will continue to grow, albeit to China’s advantage. Internally, the acrimonious electioneering towards the end of 2022 showed the increased polarisation and hardening of ideological stance by the ruling party, and the strident, but fractured opposition. This trend will not only continue in 2023, but is likely to deteriorate further with many high decibel elections due in the year. A degree of unrest and violence connected to political events cannot be ruled out. While the traditional internal security challenges like Maoism, and trouble in J&K are on the wane, societal unrest, strikes and large scale protests due to unemployment, reservations, and political affiliations are likely. The Maharashtra-Karnataka border issue has the potential of escalating as it has major political ramifications. The election of Prachanda as PM of Nepal is also an event of geo-political event of significance for India, and would need deft handling as some border tensions with Nepal could spiral out of control. Overall, 2023 could see a possible V-shaped economic recovery on all fronts despite various headwinds. The external security scenario, though challenging, will remain mostly stable. Internal tensions and strife due to high intensity elections is most likely and would need to be monitored. Climate change, sustainability and cyber threats will also pose challenges for business in 2023. In summation, 2023 will be the year of the coming of age for India both economically, as also on the geopolitical front, with it assuming presidency of the G20 and its attendant responsibilities. For India, 2022 began with the country seeking to refocus attention on multiple developmental fronts after waves of the COVID-19 pandemic subsided. Following a rollback of pandemic restrictions in late 2021 to enable economic recovery and a return to normalcy, the emergence of the Omicron variant and its eventual detection in India prompted another wave of lockdowns and restrictions across most parts of the country. However, the robust vaccine administration and lessons learnt from the second wave meant that the third wave was relatively benign, and several state governments realized the need to lift all restrictions in a gradual manner; and reorient lifestyles and business operations to coexist with the new realities brought by the pandemic. An outbreak of infections in neighbouring China and the emergence of a sub-lineage of the Omicron variant have prompted fresh fears of a fourth wave. The emerging new strains of the pandemic have already triggered testing, surveillance and masking protocols; but the disaster management capability built up over the last couple of years is likely to result in a more resilient posture for India in 2023. Notwithstanding the latest spike, businesses, governments, and citizens alike have learnt to live along with the virus, and would be able to cope with any eventual outbreaks in the coming year. On the geopolitical front, relations with China and Pakistan remained adversarial, but relatively peaceful up until December, when Indian and Chinese troops engaged in unarmed clashes at Tawang sector in Arunachal Pradesh when People’s Liberation Army of China (PLA) soldiers tried altering the status quo. Several injuries were reported on both sides, and the clashes threatened to unravel and reverse any gains made in September when both troops unanimously agreed to disengage from the Gogra Hot Springs region. Ties with Pakistan witnessed a relative thawing in 2022 after the escalations in 2019 and 2020, with the Pakistani government even considering requesting aid from India following the widespread floods in the country. However, it remains impossible to delink the issue of Kashmir from India-Pakistan…

Yogesh Agrawal, CEO & Co-Founder, Consistent Infosystems Pvt. Ltd. In today’s fast-paced world, keeping up with the competition requires a tremendous effort. If you don’t move fast enough, you could risk losing almost everything you started for. Let’s get straight to the point – it’s your digital speed we are referring to. If the performance of your desktop or laptop is sluggish, the loss of time means a loss to your business. Replacing that old laptop with a newer generation may seem like the perfect solution, but it’s not as cheap as you may think. Upgrading your existing system may be the right decision where you not only save on a huge expense but also boost your productivity by up to 200%, and more. So, what makes your system perform like an old haggard? Apart from the operating system, the hardware, namely Processor, RAM, and Storage, are also hand-inglove that drags down your system’s potential. While the processor can’t be upgraded as easily, the RAM (Memory) can be scaled to twice, or three times, its size. However, that’s just enough to work easily on extensive files and keep your operating system running smoothly. To have a high-performance system, your data needs to be moving faster between the storage and processor. If you are using an older technology mechanical hard drive, then you should switch to solid-state storage (SSD) to boost your system’s performance up to 10 times or more, depending on how old your current system is. We bet that your ‘not-too-old’ laptop would be definitely using a SATA HDD storage, and probably spinning at a speed of 5400rpm – right? If not, it would be a 7200rpm drive, at most. This means you are transferring data at speeds of up to 200MB/s (megabytes per second) to the max. If you switch to a SATA SSD, you can find promising data transfer speeds amounting to a whopping 600MB/s – an instant 3x performance boost. And if your system is compatible with an NVMePCIe, then you can push it to a humongous 3200MB/s or even higher. Now imagine your huge data – probably some RAW photos, large PSD files, bloated databases, or those latest gaming titles, that amount to gigabytes of data – being drawn in and out of the HDD. Swapping that mechanical HDD to a blazing-fast SSD or an NVMe is your only rescue. What is an SSD? Unlike the old HDD (Hard Disk Drive) which uses a spinning magnetic disc with moving heads and arms inside, Solid State Drives, or SSD, is a type of storage that uses non-volatile memory chips or flash and has no moving parts. HDDs with moving parts are highly prone to shocks and vibrations, while SSDs are extremely safe. Hard drives also consume a lot of power, while SSDs are highly energy efficient. Finally, SSDs perform at blazing speeds, which takes time because of the limitations of the spindle motor speeds and the moving arm. The two key components of an SSD are the flash controller and the NAND chips, which are optimized together in a way that they can deliver high readand-write performance to obtain sequential and random data requests from demanding applications. What are the types of SSDs? SSDs are available in multiple types, capacities, and form factors. SATA and SAS are the two traditional SSD form-factor types, while newer form factors include mSATA and M.2, and the high-speed NVMe. What are the benefits of switching to an SSD? Switch to an SSD and you will instantly notice a huge difference in your system performance. For example, your computer’s operating system Windows will boot up in under 10 seconds. Heavy or large software and databases can load faster than usual, saving time and reducing man-hours. Large files, such as documents, music, movies, archives, and alike, can load into the system’s memory within seconds. To sum it up, SSD has a lot of advantages – they offer faster read and write speeds, boost the system’s performance and cut down booting speeds by a substantial amount, have very low power requirements, are completely quiet as they have no moving parts, and come in different form factors to help with compact and ultra-portable computing systems. Is SSD secure? Do they have failure issues? The main disadvantage of an SSD is data recovery – while some may consider it as an advantage to prevent data theft. Recovering data from crashed or hardware-failed SSDs is extremely difficult and hence requires having a data backup plan in place. And yes, they have hardware failures too, but it’s the least if you compare it to a standard HDD. No moving parts mean SSDs can withstand drops and falls and are completely immune to magnetic fields, unlike HDDs which can lose data when a strong magnet is brought into proximity. Lastly, since they are electronic components, the performance starts decreasing after the drives start aging. A hard drive has a lifespan of up to 5 million write cycles, while an SSD can do an average of 100,000 cycles, in short. Are SSDs affordable? While the world’s largest SSD yet is a 100TB but is not yet ready for the consumer market. At present, SSDs on the market range in different sizes – 128GB, 256GB, 512GB, 1TB, 6TB, 8TB, and so on. The sluggish performance and low reliability of hard drives have got the industry switching to the faster SSD. This increasing demand for SSD drives is continuously helping drop the price, making it affordable for everyone. Future computers will see only SSDs as the storage as it helps reduce the overall size and weight of the computer while boosting the performance.