Video surveillance technology
keeps Post Office secure
n integrated security system
that includes new IP cameras
and two-way audio technology
has seen the rate of injuries as a result
of attacks on Post Office staff decline by
36% in just three years. This follows the
deployment of a sophisticated monitoring
and intelligent threat detection platform
from Morphean, a Video Surveillance-as-
a-Service (VSaaS) innovator, which has
not only helped to keep staff safe but
has also protected ATMs from attack,
helping to keep Post Office doors open. completed successfully, the security
team plans to expand coverage rapidly.
Post Office is responsible for the safety
and well-being of 14,500 workers in
11,600 branches. The nature of its
combined service offering and the fact
that branches are often located in rural
areas, means they are prime targets for
thieves. Opportunistic attacks on staff
and equipment, and the use of expanding
gas to break open ATM machines is not
uncommon. In rural communities, attacks
on equipment can leave branches out
of operation for long periods. In the last
year alone, there were 13,437 violent
attacks on convenience store workers,
27% of which involved a weapon and 39%
led to injury, according to the Association
of Convenience Stores (ACS) annual
Crime Report. Because of the challenges around
connectivity in the areas where the
most vulnerable branches are situated,
the solution is also optimised to use
low bandwidth data and is capable
of streaming video over a 3G mobile
network. The built-in intelligence of the
Morphean Platform means staff are
able to monitor footage for suspicious
behaviour, such as individuals loitering
near an ATM, and issue an alert to
security teams who can then decide on
the appropriate course of action.
A
In addition to the cameras, the
networked speakers enable control
centre staff to speak directly to
customers and suspected criminals,
alerting them to the fact they are under
surveillance. Further integrations are
under way to bring security automation
to other branches, such as providing the
ability for remote agents to lock on-site
safes in the event of an attack.
Mark Dinsdale, Physical Security
Manager for Post Office, said: “The
safety of our staff is our number one
priority. We’ll never completely eliminate
crime in our branches, but we are also
not powerless against it and we are able
to make significant differences to the
safety of our people, as demonstrated by
the new technology we are deploying.”
Paul Ottley, Account Director at Kings
Secure Technologies, said there were
more subtle benefits to the Morphean
Platform. “Footage goes straight to
the Morphean cloud and the platform
compresses video and is fully encrypted
end-to-end. This means that even if
criminals attempt to destroy cameras or
on-site storage appliances, recordings of
any incidents are secured in a manner
that is admissible as evidence,” he said.
“This eliminates the challenge of
sending out an engineer to collect
footage. It’s a simple solution that
is flexible and fully compliant with
regulations such as the GDPR.” u
The Post Office security team wanted to
build on its existing threat intelligence
and response system, Grapevine, with
a network of IP cameras and two-way
audio into branches.
Axis Communications’ cameras,
microphones and speakers, connected
to the Morphean Platform and hosted
in the cloud, were installed in pilot
branches by Kings Secure Technologies.
Now that trial implementations have been
60
Issue 11
|
www.intelligentciso.com