How a CCTV System Can Safeguard Your Business

"Security" is a word with a very elastic definition, especially when applied to businesses. For an e-commerce-only firm doing all of its sales and transactions over the Internet, this term means safeguarding data, protecting customer and company credit information, stopping hackers and backing up all its computer records. A retail store of the brick-and-mortar type not only has these things to consider, but the rest of the "security" definition, as well - physical security, that is, for the buildings and the people in them.

Companies today need more than just an ethical workforce to prevent theft and good locks on the doors to provide after-hours break-ins. They also need a good way to document "security events," for a variety of insurance, business and legal reasons. There is one thing, and one thing alone, that can handle an assignment this broad, and it's a CCTV (Closed Circuit TeleVision) system. Since it comprises various subsets of "high tech" - computers, cameras, optics and sensors for light, sound, motion, temperature, etc. - it is a field where there is constant progress. It is also, thankfully, a field where prices drop as technology matures, something that warms the heart of every bottom-line-focused businessperson.

First things first
Do not get ahead of yourself if you are getting a CCTV system (CCTV Camera)for the first time. Ease into it by doing some reading and getting accustomed to the terminology. You need to learn at least a bit about cameras, wireless technology, DVRs and NVRs (Digital Video Recorders and Network Video Recorders), do-it-yourself packages, the role of the PC in computer-based systems and various other system components. Each of these areas uses terms - gigabytes and terabytes, frame rates and fps, flash memory and USB, and so on - that you or your designated security manager must understand. You won't be designing circuitry or building a PC, so there is nothing here that requires anything but average intelligence and a little studying.

So, you do your homework, and you decide to put a few cameras outside your building and a few inside, too, covering the sales floor, the entrances and exits, and the checkout lanes. You can feed all the cameras into a single computer in the back office, too, using the proper hardware - and then, with your off-the-shelf or customized surveillance software, you can manage all the "footage." (It is odd how some of the old terms from the early days of analog recording, like "footage" and "taping," are still in use.) You can archive as much or as little as you want, and you will be able to search for a particular event with the time code stamped on the images.

Multiple kinds of protection
Just the presence of a few pan/tilt/zoom cameras around your perimeter serves notice that your building is serious about security. The deterrent effect of visible cameras is so powerful that there is still a booming business in fake cameras, the best of which have multicolored blinking lights, can make panning movements and even emit an occasional "whirr" or "click" to simulate a lens zooming in or a shutter opening and closing. However, the fake cameras are a gamble, and are not recommended for business use except as "extras" after installation of real ones. Since, in this particular installation example, you are also installing inside cameras, adding a few dummies in non-critical areas can serve as a reminder to both shoplifters and employees that you are serious about stopping theft.

A CCTV system can safeguard your business in many other ways. With a video record of all events, you can document any accidents or other incidents involving customers, employees or both. Having the cameras can also reduce your insurance premiums, and having a safe, secure store environment can even become a selling point when promoting your business.

Back to business
Laws vary from state to state, but it is usually illegal to record audio without people's permission so you will probably be recording video images only. In fact, people have won lawsuits against companies that recorded audio along with the video, so it is something you should steadfastly avoid. The last thing you want to do when you are safeguarding your business is to implement a procedure that will blow up in your face down the line. Check local and state laws where you live for anything and everything having to do with building security regulations.

It is a bit facile to suggest that CCTV security "equals" business security, as some surveillance system advertisements do. A CCTV Camera is a very important, even central, component of your business and building security plan. However, it has to be tailored to your precise needs and situation (not to mention budget). Fortunately, there are many products to consider, many ways to put it all together and a wide range of pricing for both new and used equipment. Once you know what you want to do, you should be able to get your system installed in short order so that you can get back to business - with a newfound sense of security, hopefully!

Original Article Source: http://www.articles4reprint.com/Article/How-a-CCTV-System-Can-Safeguard-My-Business/280730

Painless Cctv Definitions To Make You Surveillance Technology Savvy

Shopping for home video surveillance, but stumped when you were asked about CODEX, cameo, or BPS? Knowing CCTV definitions will prepare you for your choice of the home surveillance appropriate for your home or office that is within your budget.

Know your CCTV surveillance system

Shopping for shoes means you know want you want - Brogues with a leather sole in black polished leather or English tan. You need an F fitting 6 > 11 shoe size. When the store clerk gives you the shoes, you get exactly what you need.

That should be the same with shopping for home surveillance. You should be ready with CCTV definitions to give out specs like you would order shoes because your security system should fit into your budget and specific needs. This is important. Surveillance gadgets are expensive items, and you can't end up buying an unsuitable system and cry over your purchase.

Where do you find these definitions?

Suppliers understanding your needs have online pages filled with CCTV definitions for your reference. You can bookmark this glossary or print it. Start getting acquainted with these and you'll find yourself an expert. You'll be giving advice to friends and family who are thinking of getting their own security system.

Using the video glossary is easy. Each glossary term has hyperlinks to all letters of the alphabet. You will see the 26 letters of the alphabet above the chart containing all the related words from A to Z. Click on the letter of the alphabet (A for Access Card) and you will be linked to a page for Access Card only, very easy.

What to look for when buying CCTV security

In your costume shop, you'll need real-time video. That will contain 24 or more frames per second so the image will appear continuous, no more gaps between actions. This is ideal for monitoring store activities.

If you travel a lot, you can still check on your store with the remote monitoring feature. The data from the camera is fed through the Ethernet or Internet. You'll have to bring your laptop along with you and anywhere as long as there is internet connection. It's amazing that despite the distance, the pictures will appear continuous and in real time.

In your absence, you can give your most trusted employee access to the system with an Access Card. These come in the size of credit cards, have magnetic strips. and are swiped for the device to read before any access is granted.

When going the rounds from security cameras, check your CCTV definitions for Angle of View. Ask the seller for the angular range of the camera for a particular image size. Always remember that when the focal length is small, the angle of view is wide.

Get the leverage from CCTV definitions

It's a liberating experience to learn CCTV speak. Study the glossary and pick out the features you'd want in your security system. The next step is looking around for different gadgets for home and office. The seller will be happy to oblige because he knows that you understand what you're looking for - eliminating post purchase problems.

About the author :Nahshon Roberts

Does CCTV Really Reduce Crime?

In the UK, home of twenty percent of the world's CCTV cameras, there is mounting concern about its invasion and lack of regulation. "UK Public CCTV Surveillance Regulation Campaign."

The thought-provoking questions they ask are good ones.

They want to know, for instance, why, if television programming and licensing is so heavily regulated in the UK that the same legislators have never considered licensing for CCTV use and installation? They ask also if the crime statistics touted by CCTV proponents are accurate, or if the criminals are merely being moved down the road to commit crimes elsewhere.

They want to know if civil liberties are being taken into consideration, or if they're ignored and thus violated. They want to know if close circuit television is really worth what they're paying for it. Does it really, for instance, deter crime, provide swift proof of guilt and reduce the number of police officers needed to keep a vigilant watch?

They also ruminate about whether these cameras, once in place, are actually being adequately monitored. If, in fact, there are enough folks doing the watching that quick response can be affected once a crime in action is caught on camera. If that is not the case – if, in fact, as they suspect, one person is paid to view a vast number of monitors at one time, then the cost of the equipment may in fact not be offset by the policing authorities' availability to arrive on the scene in a timely fashion.

There are many concerns for the rights of citizens caught on tape as well. What, for instance, is the policy on who sees what faces and how long those faces remain on tape and where?

To what other uses and outside firms will information garnered by CCTV be handed out? Will racial profiles of neighborhoods, for instance, be sold to commercial marketing companies? If these videos are sold to outside firms what's to keep them from using them in commercial ways that would include the display of photos? Might not an advertising agency, for instance, use the photo of a prominent person such as an entertainer or politician, as part of an advertising campaign? And if so, what about the rights of said entertainer or politician? What about her or his rights to financially gain from the commercial enterprise?

These and many other questions are being asked by concerned British residents who see CCTV as potentially invasive if not regulated, and in the hands of the wrong people.

They also point out zealously that the May 2000 Declaration of Human Rights, delivered in Strasbourg, confirms the illegality of the unregulated and undisclosed use of CCTV. Its Article 8 stated it to be an interference to the applicant's right to expectation of privacy and that this interference was a direct result of its not being regulated by any governing agency.

About the author :David Peters