Rail Networks & Cloudview – The time is now!
By its very nature the rail industry presents enormous challenges to those concerned with security and safety. Indeed, it is hard to think of any other organisation with such a huge and diverse infrastructure to protect, starting with over 20,000 miles of track, 32,000 associated bridges, viaducts and tunnels. Then there are more than 2500 stations plus thousands of crossings, signal gantries and associated communication lines. Add to that a multitude of offices, stock yards, storage and other commercial premises, many in remote and unsupervised locations, and the scale of the problem is clear.
Keeping such a network secure is a full-time job but physical policing can only go so far when it comes to keeping out vandals, graffiti artists, metal thieves and the like. This is particularly evident at night when platforms and other facilities are often completely unmanned. Network rail CCTV has long been used to fill the gaps, but traditional surveillance solutions can be expensive to install, operate and maintain, especially in isolated locations.
Fortunately, through working with The British Transport Police, Cloudview addresses many of the rail network security challenges using its cloud-based video surveillance system.
Why Cloudview?
Cloudview is a remote cloud platform that can enhance rail networks existing video surveillance systems, providing additional analytics and bespoke business intelligence where required.
Our visual data platform captures video footage and securely stores it in the cloud, in the UK. The platform is optimised to work over any network, from fibre to remote deployments and is ideally suited to rail network environments with little to no network infrastructure.
Our edge devices and software allow authorised users to immediately access all their visual data via a web browser, from any location, at any time.
Simple | As Standard
Cloudview’s video surveillance platform is designed to be smart. Compatible analogue and IP cameras can be programmed to detect and record events based on motion or ‘smart triggering’, such as people and vehicle detection, and upload them to the cloud. Event-based recording means you only capture what matters and enables security personnel to find specific events quickly. Once an event has been captured and stored, automated notifications are sent to authorised personnel in real time so that they can view and assess the footage, from wherever they are, and take appropriate action.
Smart | As Standard
Cloudview’s video surveillance platform is designed to be smart. Compatible analogue and IP cameras can be programmed to detect and record events based on motion or ‘smart triggering’, such as people and vehicle detection, and upload them to the cloud. Event-based recording means you only capture what matters and enables security personnel to find specific events quickly. Once an event has been captured and stored, automated notifications are sent to authorised personnel in real time so that they can view and assess the footage, from wherever they are, and take appropriate action.
Secure | As Standard
Cloudview is a surveillance system company built from the ground up: British-made technology with AES 256-bit data security at its core. All recorded data is stored in the UK with customers choosing user permissions, camera functionality and data retention periods to suit their GDPR and corporate governance policies. Furthermore, in the case of criminal prosecutions, rail networks can be assured the Cloudview platform provides legally admissible footage to the British Transport Police when required.
Why Change Now?
Perhaps the real question is: Can you afford to wait?
The consequences of not transitioning new and existing installations could be severe. Current economic challenges put a strain on budgets and resources resulting in current systems becoming outdated and eventually functionally obsolete.
‘What if’ scenarios are no longer simply possibilities but are now becoming increasingly common across the rail networks and highlight the significant flaws in not having a cloud enabled surveillance system.
What if an incident is time critical and vital footage needs to be accessed and retrieved immediately?
A tradition on-premise system, specifically ones that are not continuously monitored, can hinder urgent investigations. Access to the recorded footage demands having someone physically travel to site and then requires that person to sift through numerous hours of ‘dead’ footage to locate the incident in question. Furthermore, responses times are often extended because of a lack of interoperability across different CCTV platforms. This is a common occurrence in an industry where ownership and responsibility for security is shared by multiple stakeholders, each with their own budgets and priorities.
What if you travel to site and then find that the camera(s) in question was down or had not been recording for an extended period?
The health status of a system is the most critical factor in running an effective video surveillance system. Without it, the very purpose of deploying such a surveillance system is defeated! However, rail networks simply do not have the resources to monitor every camera continuously and so often only become aware a camera is down after an incident has occurred and they attempt to retrieve the footage.
Going one step further, what if security personnel arrive on-site after the report of a crime and find the recording device had been damaged or stolen?
Criminals have become more forensically aware in recent years and will often steal or destroy the NVR/DVR during the crime to remove evidence and prevent them being identified. In this instance, footage is lost forever and the chances of identifying and prosecuting a perpetrator are almost impossible.
Finally, a much wider business issue is GDPR compliance. Now a critical factor in how organisations operate, it is imperative that captured video footage is secure and only accessible to those with specific authorisation. On-premise only installations can be highly vulnerable in this area as passwords often remain the default and are regularly shared between colleagues. This ultimately means the data is not secure, opening an organisation up to significant financial penalties and potentially rendering the recorded footage inadmissible in a court of law.
Cloudview – The time is NOW!
Cloudview’s event-based recording solution eliminates these ‘what if’ scenarios immediately and by utilising an existing installation, organisations can future proof their system and prevent functional obsolescence, with minimal disruption and cost. In doing so, rail networks can be assured their recorded footage is safe, GDPR compliant, accessible at any time from anywhere and legally admissible in a court of law.