Anil Puri
CMD, APS group
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 of infringement. It is expected that customer privacy regulations will permeate even more, and at this scale it is likely that three-fourth of the world’s population will have their personal data covered under a privacy guideline by 2024.
AI and Cyber Physical Security Convergence is in motion. ‘Mobile-first access control’ solutions are a perfect example of the ‘cyber-physical convergence.’ These are powerful tools for increasing security and will no doubt get more attention in 2023. But their utility needs to be measured against their capacity to create new risks and amplify threats to your organization. Tightly integrating cloud-based and networked access control with physical security and building systems creates opportunities for a remote attacker to both steal valuable data and lock you out of your physical building – or for a disgruntled former employee to sidestep the physical security designed to keep them out.
Trend 2. Migration to Cloud
The evolution of the cloud has transformed the way systems and processes operate and where they’re managed. Outside the security, organizations and consumers are using the cloud every day for a multitude of reasons – whether it be to reduce on-site storage requirements, or simply for remote access capabilities. The security industry may have taken a little more time to adopt cloud-based platforms than the consumer market, but it’s clearly a growing segment, with companies basing their entire business models off the cloud. The traditional industry players haven’t exactly ignored it either, with almost all of them now offering a mixture of on-premise and cloud based solutions. Cloud proponents point to the flexibility to reduce on-premise storage requirements, as well as regular data back-ups and remote accessibility, while ‘Software-as a-service’ models support a transition of security budgets from CapEx to OpEx. That being said, on-premise solutions have not disappeared – nor do they look likely to in the coming years. Certainly for enterprise solutions, what we’re seeing is a shift towards a ‘hybrid’ model taking place, whereby processes are split between the cloud and on-premise where deemed appropriate. As businesses rationalise costs, concerns, and approach to cloud migration, we can expect an increase in demand for ready-to-deploy hybrid-cloud appliances. This infrastructure will support edge-computing workloads and make existing devices cloud compatible and help centralise access to systems and data across many sites. Indeed, the benefits of cloud-video surveillance are proving to have a high appeal for customers looking to achieve operational cost savings, initiate remote maintenance and access programmes, gain in-the-moment live operational intelligence, or generate live metrics and data that enables them to work in a more responsive and timely way.
Security professionals have been slower than other industries to adopt cloud technology, but that adoption is now accelerating as they recognize its importance in meeting new business needs. The cloud offers a range of benefits, including enhanced remote management, video-sharing capabilities, space-saving equipment and builtin cybersecurity. The ability to remotely manage security and access-control systems is handy, especially in hybrid environments. The cloud also provides automatic updates, ensuring you always have the latest security patches and product enhancements. And with built-in cybersecurity, it’s also more difficult for hackers to gain access or information since cloud based-systems provide encryption, monitoring and two-factor authentication.
Enhancing a company’s cloud-based biometric solution with edge computing (within the device) enables more rapid authentication and ensures secure access when cloud assets might be unavailable. The combination of cloud and edge processing gives companies the benefits of traditional premise-based solutions and the scalability and continuous improvements offered with cloud-based offerings. Adopting this strategy, the company believes, allows for more scalability, access to analytics, and immediate alerts to anything pertinent via text message or email. There is more customization and optimization with the cloud compared to traditional premise-based alternatives, making it a viable option that organizations should deploy for accurate, real-time data. Additionally, cloud storage of biometrics data on the edge ensures easy setup and profile management. Companies should partner with an access control provider that offers flexible options, including hosted cloud, native cloud and on-site options hosted within the customer’s IT infrastructure.
Trend 3. AI-Ready, Future-Proof Video Surveillance Platforms
We in security domain will surely be on the same page, if I say that monitoring space utilization always was and now has becomes increasingly important. As AI expands the frontier for security video analytics, the artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning program (MLP) have allowed video surveillance cameras to become a central feature in data collection. With the majority of the world engaging in enhanced digitized activities, a need for more sophisticated surveillance systems has arisen. This need is being met with a new generation of AI surveillance systems that are more intelligent and intuitive than ever. These ‘smart cameras’ are capable of face recognition, motion tracking, and intrusion detection – making them a vital tool for security teams to analyze areas in real time and with safe accuracy. Through a simple interface or a connected app(s), these systems can be monitored quickly and efficiently to identify adversaries or suspicious activity.
From a security perspective, AI-based applications enable operators to respond to potential threats faster than ever, while simultaneously reducing false alarm notifications that plagued earlier analytics models. The metadata generated from sensors allows for new opportunities. It has assisted search capabilities designed to drastically improve the effectiveness of post-event investigations, for instance. Outside of this, though, cameras are increasingly acting as a central data collection point, pushing the boundaries of a traditional siloed security device.
The next step for the security professionals that manage and operate these systems will be to develop actionable insights for other parts of the organization to profit from. From analytics to action will become a mantra for 2023. AI and machine learning may have aided the development of advanced analytics in recent years, but the focus moving forward will be on exploiting the actionable insights they deliver. Dashboards and Reports which collect AI metadata and present these data as insights that invite the end user’s decision will grow in popularity. In 2023 focus will shift from capturing video to gathering data. The challenge will be in how effectively organizations are able to utilize this data not only for security, but also for cross-departmental operations to increase efficiencies and revenue. Video surveillance systems capable of running AI help businesses scale their ability to analyze and act on data. Advanced uses include systems that can automatically detect and send real-time alerts of security threats and gather data to provide useful information like peak foot traffic or customer wait times.
In recent times, the use of video surveillance and AI-powered video analytics has found universal acceptance cutting across verticals and demographics. Let’s have a look at the trends and technological developments that will burgeon as the essential drivers for growth as an outcome of growing needs. Video Analytics has made up a leeway on account of the efficient utilization of Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning algorithms. AI and ML are efficient at solving real-world problems with actionable intelligence in the most complicated setups. With the development of technology and its increasing accessibility, the requirement for localized AI algorithms to offer solutions to real-life problems has expanded manifold. This particularly holds water in the case of certain domains and environments. It has also become essential due to the non-viability of the ‘One Solution Fits All’ likelihood at this stage of the technology lifecycle. Notwithstanding the large-scale manufacturing of cameras having higher processing power, there is still huge scope for achieving true ‘Analytics at the Edge’ architecture. Such a framework, if ever made possible, will make it feasible to calculate volumes of data and perform a number of analytical functions as and when needed by users. Till then, CPU or cloud-based video analytics programs shall carry on offering solutions for new domains and complex needs.
Video Management Platforms circumscribe sub systems such as access control, perimeter intrusion detection, fire & smoke detection etc. Apart from this, they also come up with powerful underlying computational efficiency that makes it essential to systematically capture, store and distribute video metadata for numerous use cases. Also, they help in streamlining operations with built-in analytics or decision support capabilities. Besides, it is also helpful in diminishing infrastructure costs, maintenance, integration challenges, and training requirements.
2023 will see significant adoption of AI-based analytics in cameras and video management systems (VMS) as more manufacturers provide this feature within their standard camera lines. There are simply too many camera streams for humans to monitor effectively, so AI-based analytics will be a catalyst that enables security departments to do more with less. This evolution will drive a significant shift in stance for physical security by enabling organizations to become more proactive in response to real-time events instead of reacting to past events. Focus will shift from capturing video to gathering data. The challenge will be in how effectively organizations are able to utilize this data not only for security, but also for cross-departmental operations to increase efficiencies and revenue. Processing at the edge will become more of the norm as the edge itself continues to get more powerful. New ways of harnessing distributed IoT power via containerization technologies will continue to gain traction. Container technology, like Docker and Kubernetes, and the concept of shared resources across multiple devices will increase the speed of processing, improve analytic plug-in integration, and increase the speed of firmware updates and the deployment of new analytics.
AI solutions, while in their infancy, are similarly double-edged at this early stage. On one hand, AI-based video surveillance analytics and active shooter detection systems have the potential to unlock the true safety and security potential of otherwise passive monitoring systems. On the other, AI is notorious for absorbing and amplifying human biases and thus increasing the impact of our human weaknesses. Even worse, such technologically advanced solutions may substantially underperform.
Miscellaneous other trends which may cause ripple effect in Physical Security
- Growth of multi-modal authentication.
- Mobile-reinforced security technology.
- Integrated access control.
- Frictionless technology will keep gaining momentum.
- The value of risk analysis will rise.
- AI-based analytics become standard at the edge.
- Privacy protection – A key issue with renewed momentum.
- Open AI platforms provide maximum flexibility.
- Hybrid-cloud deployments will grow alongside demand for cloud-connected appliances.
The matrix of mitigation of Emerging Security Challenges
- Risk of security demands outpacing organizational change.
- Continued security convergence and integration.
- A new focus on the long-term value of physical security.
- Long-term plans to support hybrid working.
- More cyber-aware employees, customers & criminals.
- Zero-trust leaps to physical security.
- Continued growth in analytics.
- Monitoring space utilization becomes increasingly important.
- Blended IT and physical security teams will be seen as essential.
- Modernizing access control will take precedence.
- Acceleration of cloud adoption, edge computing.
- Extracting physical security data will push digital transformation forward.
- Implementing better cyber measures and defenses will be a priority.
- Organizations will continue to embrace remote work and space utilization data.
- The rise of facial recognition technology.
Conclusion
The rapid proliferation of new attack surfaces means more opportunities for cyber threat actors than ever before, and this will only continue as new technologies are introduced. With waves of security threats and attacks on infrastructure and data, and constant technology shifts and evolution churning up the landscape even more, security officers in field have a lot to figure out and adopt.
Cloud-based systems are likely to become even more accepted owing to their scalability, flexibility, and readiness compared to on-premises solutions. Notwithstanding domains, organizations have embraced the cloud for a number of applications and business requirements. However, the physical security industry has been conservative and slow in pace to embrace cloud based platforms. Conventional industry experts have been careful but not uninformed about the requirement to provide cloud-based security solutions. Users assess budgets alongside drawing comparisons between CapEX (Capital Expenditure) and OpEx (Operation Expenditure). However, the hybrid strategy is getting accepted as a stepping stone towards the full metamorphosis of cloud services.
Successful businesses are preparing their operations for the future and want a video surveillance system that is AI capable and has the flexibility to run advanced analytics. Dynamic shifts over the past few years in the way the world does business forced companies to use technology in new ways. Video surveillance systems, once only used for security, are now a tool to help optimize business operations. Businesses want an AI-ready video surveillance system that will generate useful insights from gathered data. Yesterday’s security systems won’t always meet today’s expectations. The good news is that with innovations in the cloud, analytics, and technology, feature-rich and affordable video surveillance options are emerging.
Over the course of this coming year, I believe we will see an even greater growth in AI and analytic solutions being adopted into the end user market. Advanced analytics are enhancing and innovating not only physical security systems but also manufacturing and process driven applications, creating new market opportunities across many different verticals. As these systems mature, stronger integration and user experience will be a driving factor for market growth and will prove to be indispensable component of the physical security.
