Tag Archives: American Dynamics

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Security Practices

Video Management Systems play an integral role in tracking down perpetrators of all types as well as preventing criminal incidents in general. You need to protect the integrity of your camera’s and the information it collects by making sure your security practices minimize unauthorized access .  Here are some practices that you can follow to help manage the overall security of your cameras:

  1. Create an inventory of all the cameras on your network, including the information for the primary and secondary contact person who manages the cameras, the camera manufacturer, model, location, IP address, current firmware version.
  2. Ensure that there is no physical access to the cameras, the supporting network equipment, the server and video storage for your system (i.e. cables, switches, etc.). These should all be in located in access-controlled areas.
  3. Ensure that there are no default passwords used by any of the cameras and operating system if they are accessible to the administrator or user accounts. If there is a need to update a password, use a complex and lengthy password for each individual camera.
  4. Set the idle session timeout for your camera’s interface to ensure that the web session is terminated even for those users who don’t log off of the camera.
  5. Place your camera system on a separate network from your operational network. This helps to reduce the impact of camera traffic on your operational network, and makes it harder for an attacker on one network to gain access to the other.

Periodically reviewing and updating your practices and settings will provide you an opportunity to make you camera still meets your security needs.  To learn more about the Cyber Protection Program visit our website at tycosecurityproducts.com/CyberProtection.aspx. For any questions you may have on the Cyber Protection Program, email jeffbarkley@tycoint.com

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Camera Auditing and Back-Up

Video Management Systems play an integral role in tracking down perpetrators of all types as well as preventing criminal incidents in general. Given the broad base of applications for video management systems, there are many instances of large quantities of useless footage due to poor quality recording.  Regular audits and evaluations are to ensure that the best possible procedures are being followed can cut down on time wasted by sifting through unusable footage.

Consider the following best practices around logging, auditing and back-up processes to guarantee the most secure results:

  • Security Event Log – Supports reliable, fine-grained, and configurable logging of a variety of security relevant system events. This includes logins, configuration changes, and file and networks access.
  • Log Security – A log should be protected from unintentional and malicious. Limited access and proper authentication are required for good security.
  • Date and Time – Accurate date and times are extremely important for auditing and backup as this information will enable auditors and investigators to know exactly when specific events have occurred. During device set up, it is required that the date and time is either automatically set to the workstation or that the device uses Network Time Protocol (NTP) to synchronize the camera to the Coordinated Universal Time (UTC).
  • Logs by Default – Logs should not be optional, but created by default as a part of the device setup since they are the essence of detecting and uncovering malicious activity.
  • Backup/Restore – Maintaining your security position is very important as it is critical to quickly restoring the system to operation after an incident. There needs to be a method to back up a working camera and then to restore the data on the current or replacement camera.

Reviewing your camera’s logging and backup setting will provide you an opportunity to make sure it meets your site’s needs.  You should also verify that you can successfully restore a camera to ensure that your backups are not corrupt.  To learn more about the Cyber Protection Program visit our website at tycosecurityproducts.com/CyberProtection.aspx. For any questions you may have on the Cyber Protection Program, email jeffbarkley@tycoint.com.

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Penn State Upgrades Security System with Tyco Security Products Solution

The Challenge
Penn State University wanted to move to a single security and event management platform for its residence halls and other group facilities on campus.

Penn State

The Solution
Penn State selected a unified Tyco Security Products solution to protect and manage its campus.

Benefits
  • Improved image quality to quickly identify activity in a variety of lighting conditions
  • Reduced expenses retooling locks and replacing lost cards
  • Easily managed access rights and track activity of each user with powerful audit trail
  • Accelerated investigation searches with intuitive video management system interface
  • Streamlined and automated processes
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Fond-du-Luth Casino Upgrades to Tyco Security Products IP Solution

The Challenge
Fond-du-Luth Casino in Minnesota recently went through a major renovation. During construction, Fond-du-Luth wanted to upgrade to a full IP video surveillance system while still remaining open to the public 24/7. The casino needed a video management system that would simplify everyday tasks and IP cameras that would provide clear image quality and greater coverage.

 

The Solution
Fond-du-Luth Casino selected a complete Tyco Security Products solution to cost-effectively migrate from analog to IP.

Continue reading →

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Tyco Security Products’ Connected Partner Program welcomes victor and EntraPass

Tyco Security Products adds American Dynamics victor video management system software and Kantech EntraPass access control system and Hatrix managed access control system to its Connected Partner Program.

Connected Partner Program

This program gives third-party technology partners including access control, alarm/intrusion, building management, elevator, emergency communication and RFID the opportunity to integrate with our security solutions. Our robust integration development packages, including software, documentation, sample codes and engineering support time, offer partners the tools to achieve a direct integration.

Benefits of partnering with Tyco Security Products through the Connected Partner Program:

  • Provide a unified solution to your customers and increase your business potential
  • Access to Tyco Security Products fully equipped labs
  • Easily complete the self-certification process
  • Support from dedicated Connected Partner Program, technical and engineering teams
  • Access the development system from anywhere with a remote login [Kantech only]

View the current victor integrations. Interested third-party partners can submit an online interest form.

Get started today!

If you have questions regarding the Connected Partner Program, contact us at tspconnect@tycoint.com.

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New Regional Sales Manager – Midwest

American Dynamics introduces Dan Howard as the new Area Sales Manager for the Midwest. He will oversee sales activities for American Dynamics VideoEdge video recorders, victor video management system, storage solutions and monitors in Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin, West Virginia and Western Pennsylvania. Dan resides in Cleveland, Ohio.

Dan brings a vast knowledge of video surveillance systems and IP cameras. Most recently, he was a regional sales manager for a video security company.

Dan Howard

Dan Howard
danhoward@tycoint.com
+1.440.552.2063

If you have any American Dynamics questions, please contact Dan. We look forward to working with you.

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Tyco Security Products Connected Partner Program

The Tyco Security Products Connected Program integrates with a range of third-party technology partners to create valuable security systems.  View all of our approved integrations on our new connected program compatibility matrix.

Connected Program

The new Connected Program compatibility matrix allows you to:

  • Select any integrated technology partner solution including access control, intrusion, video, fire alarm, RIFD and more
  • Quickly view integration details including driver version, certifications, supported server and client operating systems and more
  • Download integration details, release notes, user guides and additional resources

Our approved integrations are now displayed in a new compatibility matrix on the American Dynamics and Software House websites.

If you have any questions or comments, contact the Connected Program team at tspconnected@tycoint.com.

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American Dynamics Holis New Features Enhance Security

American Dynamics introduces an updated version of Holis network video recorders (NVR). The latest Holis NVR firmware offer enhanced security features.
Holis 4 and 8-channel NVRs provide easy to deploy, affordable solutions for small security applications. Each Holis NVR stores up to 8TB of video.
New in this release:
  • Support for Dutch and Italian translations in the GUI
  • Enhanced security with automatic redirection to change default password
  • Improved usability with web browser 5-minute timeout removed

Download the updated Holis firmware now.

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Airport security soars on strength of integrated platform

Ever expanding and seemingly always in flux, airports present great opportunities but also major challenges for security integrators and security technology providers.

Airport Security Today

Today’s modern airports are security-centric enterprises that have multi-faceted surveillance and access control systems. Although airport security was heightened after the terrorist attacks in the United States on 9/11, anytime these facilities undergo some degree of modernization or add to their footprint, they are presented with the prospect of taking security to the next level.

However, any changes to an airport security system must take into account the substantial technological investment that has already been made as well as the importance of keeping the systems manageable on 24/7 basis.

About Izmir Airport

At Turkey’s Izmir Adnan Menderes Airport, this blending of old and new occurred as the airport constructed a new domestic terminal with a security system that needed to mesh with the one in the existing terminal installed more than 10 years earlier.

While the airport’s operator TAV-Ege was eager to introduce IP-based products into the new terminal, it also wanted to leverage its existing and still highly functional components from the old terminal such as analog cameras.

Izmir Airport

Solution

To meet the airport’s needs, together with the help of integrator Sensormatic Guvenlik Hizmetleri, Tyco Security Products presented airport officials with an integrated solution that could accommodate the 700 analog cameras from the old terminal, while also handling the 600 new IP cameras from the newly constructed building.

The installation of modern VideoEdge network video recorders (NVR) from American Dynamics and backbone systems like the victor unified security solution and Software House’s C-CURE 9000 security and event management platform ensured that the airport would manage both old and new cameras and access systems seamlessly from a single platform.

Izmir Security Center

The new unified platform also brought a fuller feature set to the airport, offering video analytics within the NVRs so security staff could:

  • Recognize and address threats more easily
  • Save time with real-time alerts of objects abandoned
  • Intelligent, powerful analytics automate security operations
  • Greatly reduce time searching for incident evidence
  • Presents better control of restricted areas through the C-CURE access control system
  •  Brings together CCTV and access so system operators can now view video along with any alarms that occurs

Even as the capabilities of the system have increased, however, the ability to manage it remains intuitive and straightforward, which is critical in a potentially high-risk environment like a major airport.

Izmir Security camera

As Turkey’s fourth busiest airport, Tyco Security Products complete solution has poised Izmir Adnan Menderes Airport for growth and scalability to allow for future system upgrades and even camera additions if warranted.

And as more airports undergo this type of expansion, the demand for integrated solutions that bring old and new systems together should only increase.

Read the entire case study.

Learn more about how Tyco Security Products
can help you easily migrate from analog to IP.

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Video test and verify: When spec sheets aren’t enough

As a nation we have become a bit obsessed with numbers. More specifically, we are fixated by those digits that translate to the concept of “bigger is better”.

We’ve seen it over the years with vehicles, as people transitioned from sub-compacts and compacts to SUVs. Why settle for a small car when a bigger one can give you more length, more width and more seats? Of course, people often forget about the downside of “bigger”, which means higher cost and lower gas mileage.

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