Through winter and the long, dark evenings, there was lots of advice online about keeping your home secure due to the increase in crime at that time of year. Now that the weather is picking up, the days are longer and spring is in the air, it is important not to let the security of your home slip.

Police have been issuing warnings to the public to still keep their homes secure, as 1 in 3 burglaries occur due to insecure homes.

Be cautious about leaving windows and doors open, even when you are in the house. The temptation may be high as the weather improves, but opportunist burglars will be on the lookout for any valuables in sight that are easily accessible.

It is also important to remember to set your alarm system when you are out of the house, or go to bed. Burglar alarms are a strong deterrent for burglars who are looking for an easy target.

It is also possible to get your existing intruder alarm maintained and checked regularly to make sure everything is in working order. A maintained alarm is also less likely to have a false alarm, making it more reliable for you, and less annoying for your neighbours! Find out more about having your alarm maintained here.

So enjoy the better weather and longer days, but remember to still keep your home as secure as you would through the winter.

West Yorkshire Police have also launched their summer campaign for 2016, highlighting the importance of keeping your home secure, even when you are just out in the garden.
http://www.westyorkshire.police.uk/burglary

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Last year we took a look at the future of CCTV and alarms and how technology was improving the way we use this equipment.

A year on, many of these predications in trends have become a reality, with more homes embracing the automation side of home security.

Home automation includes the control of your home electronics from one remote hub.  This could be your lighting, your sound system, your heating and now even your door locks, alarm system and CCTV.

Being able to control your whole home from the palm of your hand simplifies the use of these systems.  With most people owning smartphones, this automation is becoming easier as the handsets are already owned.  Simply download an app and you have your remote with you at all times.

When using smartphones, the automation can go even further, by detecting your device on arrival to the home by Bluetooth, and automatically unlocking your door and disarming your alarm.

The possibilities are ever growing.  Turn your heating on as you’re leaving work and check up on your pets through your CCTV cameras throughout the day.  With these features becoming more cost effective, even local companies are able to provide you with top end, high quality security for your home.

Keybury currently offer CCTV remote viewing and are soon rolling out the ability to set and unset your alarm from your smartphone.

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CCTV cameras are becoming more common in public places as well as homes. There are websites online where you can watch live streams of CCTV footage from famous landmarks around the world, and even watch back to footage taken from moving trains on their journeys across landscapes in Norway, Canada and Japan. Some people find this way of viewing places from their homes interesting, and live streaming from these vehicles are expected to soon become viewable.

In Birmingham at the beginning of July this year, live CCTV streaming from INSIDE public transport was a world first. Not for public viewing, but in the interest of public safety.

With more moving vehicles enabling internet connections, this technology is becoming easier to implement. In the trail carried out on a test bus, the CCTV cameras on board were streamed by a monitoring centre, where technicians viewed the video feed, looking out for suspicious activity.

As part of the test, a pickpocket was seen in action on the top deck of the bus. The monitoring centre were then able to initiate a rapid police response team to intercept the bus on its route. The pickpocket was then arrested at the scene.

This technology gives the police a chance to maximise their resources and improve public safety and security.

It is hoped that this technology will also encourage more people to use public transport as it hopes live CCTV streaming will increase reliability and safety on board.

Find out more about this trail in another article here.

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PSIMs have been mentioned a lot in security news lately as they start to gain momentum.  These Physical Security Information Management systems have been around for a while, but it is in the last few months that notice has really been taken to their potential and how they can help manage all sorts of systems within large buildings and high security centres.

If you imagine the sci-fi films, when the person in charge can look into all these different functions within a building and control doors and lights and cameras from the central desk.  The reality of this technology isn’t as far away as you might think.

With the latest PSIM software, it is designed to integrate with multiple, unconnected security applications and devices and control them through one interface.

This blog post from Keybury takes a clear look at what the technology can do and how far security has come as we edge closer to making the advanced multi-functional controls in the movies part of daily life.

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Many businesses use CCTV for security purposes, prevention of crime is of course its primary function.  But CCTV can help your business in many other ways than just crime prevention.  CCTV cameras are also an added deterrent and will generally cut down on opportunist crimes.  Having CCTV present in a premises is also known to create a safe-feeling work environment, picking up on suspicious behaviour to prevent crimes before they have even happened.  This can inspire confidence in staff, particularly those who may feel at more risk, for instance, in busy nightclubs or bars with rowdy customers.

Basic CCTV systems give an overview of a business floor, making it a great tool to find members of staff easily across large buildings.  This frees up time that would normally be taken to ring around different rooms in the building or even staff having to manually check each room by foot when someone is needed.   This overview is also good to keep your staff safe.  Overseeing any accidents or altercations with the public can help in legal processes and speed along the completion of any incident reports.

This management tool can also be used in service industries, e.g. restaurants.  The cameras can allow management to see if customers are sitting for a long time without being served or plates being cleared away.  In other industries it can help show how long members of the public are waiting to be seen to by a member of staff.  By adding audio surveillance to your system you can also monitor staff and customer interactions, which can in turn be used to settle any disputes which may arise and protect your employees from false allegations.

Watching CCTV back can also give you a clear idea of the level of job satisfaction your employees have, and provide ideas on how to improve your business environment to ensure staff are happy at their work.

Monitored CCTV gives great peace of mind over all aspects of your business, especially those which you would not usually watch over, such as car parks.  CCTV here can identify number plates and help you to find those who may have been acting suspiciously around your premises.  Monitored CCTV can alert you to what is happening and allow you to then view the goings on, and choose to notify authorities.

Remotely monitored CCTV gives you these options as well as giving you the freedom of being anywhere in the world.  There are apps for your smartphone and tablets enabling you to view multiple cameras on one device from anywhere with an internet connection.

More expensive CCTV systems can go a step further than surveillance and even be used for access control.  Software is now available to identify members of staff in particular age demographics and genders, allowing for easy access by those who fit the correct staff profile.

In shopping centres this can be taken even further and used for marketing purposes.  It has already been implemented in a number of centres, using CCTV cameras to gather data regarding which entrances see the most people pass through and of what gender and age group these people fall into.  This data can then be used to determine which areas of the shopping centre prove most popular and which promotional displays should be placed where to gain the optimum attention from its target market.

Many security companies offer tailor made CCTV system design to specifically cater to your business’s needs.  Insurance companies also recommend NACOSS/NSI Gold standard installers to guaranteed quality and the option of police monitoring.

Companies such as Harrogate CCTV offer you an initial survey free of charge to talk through your options and decide what is best for you.

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