August 2007
Features
By Bob Browning
THE world has changed over the past decade, and emergency preparedness and response must change, as well. Historically, disasters—either manmade or natural—affected only the relatively small number of people directly involved in an event. Today, with organizations operating in a global economy, private companies and governments may be affected by a disaster anywhere in the world.
By Steve Jones
IN 1994, the city of Los Angeles experienced an earthquake that caused several commercial buildings and major freeways to collapse. Structures moved from their foundations and walls were shifted in residential buildings, homes and parking garages.
By Steven Duncan
ORGANIZATIONS are under attack, not from competitors, federal regulations or consumer outrage, although those are concerns. But enterprises—and subsequently their client base—have become targets.
By Owen Roberts
CHILD abductors are seldom spontaneous. When they're bent on taking children from a facility such as a hospital, they'll stalk it, scope it out to determine its security features, and watch it like at hawk. But at WakeMed, abductors find Deputy Police Chief Scott Holzshu and his 71-officer police force watching too, using technology to make sure that security is as tight as possible.
Drive to integration being fueled by several factors
By Rohit M. Gupta
SECURITY convergence is a constant, healthy debate in enterprise circles. IT, system and network administrators have employed robust technology guidelines surrounding secure access to sensitive data across various systems and infrastructures.
By Del V. Salvi
THE Institute for Advanced Learning and Research in Danville, Va., is a state-of-the-art facility built in 2005 to serve as a catalyst for economic and community transformation in an area recently impacted by the loss of thousands of manufacturing jobs. By providing advanced learning programs, strategic research and technology transfer conferences, and outreach and technology programs in the region of south Virginia, IALR is helping the community's workforce to adapt to a changing economy.
By Eric Linxwiler
IDENTITY theft is a global problem that's getting worse. More than 100 million records have been stolen in just the past two years. The cost of dealing with an enterprise corporate data breach rose this year by 30 percent to $4.8 million per incident, and payment card fraud resulting from identity theft is estimated at $60 billion per year and is growing annually.
By Gary Kinghorn
EDUCATIONAL institutions don’t often come to mind when people think about organizations with cutting edge network security devices. However, these institutions face the daunting task of keeping the networks secure while allowing tens of thousands of students and faculty to bring their own PCs onto the network. They also have to account for a user base that changes by several users on an annual basis.
By Jon Mooney
IN some cases, companies implementing biometrics will initially encounter employee resistance, with the issues of privacy and hygiene taking center stage. This will invariably be the case if a union is involved and is looking for negotiating points.
By Norm Hoefler
THE operation of a busy regional hospital has enough challenges without taking into account the security of its staff. For Hotel Dieu Grace Hospital, located on the Detroit River in Windsor, Ontario, the priority was finding one system that would allow hospital workers to immediately reach out to security in an emergency situation.
By Steve Goldberg
EMERGING robust video analytics in a broad range of traditional physical security applications highlights the impact of technology in today's world.
By Mizan Rahman
DISPELLING myths and misunderstandings about biometrics and its increasingly common use in everyday professional and personal lives is a tough task, even in these modern, technologically-advanced times.
Departments
By Larry O'Brien
EVEN in the earliest buildings, locks were used to protect people's possessions. Throughout history, people have used peculiar methods for protecting their belongings and have created their own alternatives to locks. In India, valuable belongings were sealed into large blocks of wood, then placed into water where they were surrounded by hungry crocodiles.
By Security Products Staff
HIRSCH Electronics is no stranger to introducing new products or winning accolades among its peers. From the competition at ISC West, Hirsch won a special achievement award in the Security Industry Association's New Product Showcase in Las Vegas. We thought readers should know more about the RUU-201 Verification Station, so we talked to Scott Howell of Hirsch Electronics.
By Karina Sanchez
THERE might be a good reason to clear your calendar Sept. 5-9 and head to Denver for this year’s CEDIA Expo. The Custom Electronic Design and Installation Association has grown tremendously since its beginning in 1989 and now includes more than 3,500 member companies worldwide. This year’s expo will include more than 660,000 square feet of exhibit space and more than 300 educational courses.
By Megan Weadock
IN a sea of 20,000 people at a concert or sports event, security becomes even more complicated than usual.
By Leslie Stevens
ALTHOUGH there was once a mere scattering of green buildings across the country, eco-friendliness is now rapidly expanding into multi-dwelling units (MDUs). As these communities have the ability house 6,000 homes within a city block, energy costs are an enormous concern for builders.
By Ralph C Jensen
A television news program had an interesting segment in mid-June that dealt with the government's no-fly list. At one time, the building of this list was the highest of priorities. Experts now believe this list is ineffective and disruptive.
By Col. Timothy D. Ringgold
IN the spring of 1942, a small team of British and American engineers and scientists were asked to assess the critical nodes in the German industrial complex.