by Julián Arcila
The fundamental reason lies in several reasons, but among the most important we can cite the alarming increase in crime in Latin cities, but also the eagerness of governments to recover the credibility that citizens lost in the political and judicial systems of their respective countries. The way to achieve this could be to generate a sense of total control and protection over every inch of cities; without intending to violate individual privacy, citizen monitoring systems give people the feeling that nothing that happens will go unpunished.
Faced with an increasing sophistication in the gangs of facinerosos, enabled in most cases, to promote the dispersion of the police force, the implementation of "city camera systems" becomes vitally important, because in this way it is possible that the foot of force of a municipality is controlled and its deployment is assigned as necessary.
Without having the current data of the number of cities that only in Latin America have implemented these systems, it can be said that fashion goes from Mexico to Argentina itself, and more importantly it is even said that they have not only been made in large cities, but also in small towns or regions where three and four municipalities with only 40 cameras have been covered.
To get an idea of the impact that such applications will have in Latin America, it is worth saying that in the coming months 25 localities in Puerto Rico will implement cameras in common areas to protect the population against criminals.
Some figures from the region
When we talk about the increase in crime statistics in Latin America, we are not exaggerating. It is also important to note that the triggers of this increase are as dissimilar as the social characteristics of the Latino population.
In Central America, for example, maras (youth gangs) and other forms of organized crime are the ones that have taken the lead in this disastrous indicator, while in northern South America and Brazil drug trafficking remains the destabilizing element. In the south of the continent, common crime has had a high relationship with the growth of crime figures, and this has been reflected in an increase in the commission of crimes such as armed robberies, kidnappings and rapes.
In the United States, to begin with the statistics, murder in the large cities of this country presented a growth of 10% between 2004 and 2007, to which are added increases in figures also in robberies. In New York, more precisely in the Bronx, between 2002 and 2005 crime increased by 33%.
In Mexico, meanwhile, crime grew by one percentage point between 2006 and 2007, standing at 17%, according to local newspaper La Jornada at the end of last year.
In Central America, the data are no less alarming. According to information released by Nicaragua's El Nuevo Diario, at the beginning of 2007 the most alarming situation occurred in El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala, where between 2005 and 2006 55.5 inhabitants were registered per 100,000 inhabitants; 40,6; and 37.5 homicides, respectively. The cause seems to be poverty and unemployment, a situation that leads young people to resort to crime as a way of life.
In Argentina, by 2004 there was a terrible statistic of 143 crimes per hour, which includes murders, assaults, rapes, traffic accidents and injuries from fights. For that year, there were 6.32 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants, a figure much lower than the Brazilian one, which reached 19 for the same number of citizens.
But why have the authorities chosen to install electronic security systems instead of increasing the number of police or surveillance guards? VENTAS DE SEGURIDAD interviewed three experts (María Bustamante, from Vicon; Alexander Gutierrez, Samsung GVI; and Carlos Granda, from the Colombian integration firm Datanet).
In the opinion of María Bustamante, one of the most common problems with which the end user reaches them is that of corruption in their police forces, which has made them considered one of the state agencies that suffer most from this evil. So, apart from serving in the protection of citizens, these systems are being used to separate corrupt officials, because sometimes video surveillance programs have served to capture police in illegal transactions. "Governments are very interested in restoring credibility to citizens in their judicial systems," he explains.
However, Alex Gutierrez of Samgung GVI believes that electronic security should be understood as a complement to the other varieties of security seen on the market. "The efficiency of having the complementary remote control and monitoring exceeds in many cases that of the police officers hanging around the streets, but on the other hand no camera will capture a criminal or support a case of evacuation or emergency, so the human presence is indispensable supported with good transport and communications equipment," Adds.
Technology with wide possibilities
The beginnings of this technology can be divided into two main stages. The first dates from the year 2000 when such applications began to be seen, but many of these first systems failed to implement them due to deficiencies in infrastructure and technological ignorance. However, the first successful projects date back to 2002, while the boom began in 2005 until now.
At present, the applications are quite robust, so much so that they allow the link with different security systems. Usually, citizen monitoring systems have been accompanied by radio communication programs, as well as emergency or 911 lines.
"One of the great advantages we have now is that of integration with other technologies; at least now they have already begun to link them with license recognition systems and scales for the weighing of trucks for road protection. This combination is being used quite a bit in Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico and the Dominican Republic. Video analysis is also being used for perimeter protection of airports; in general, citizens are being protected without them noticing," adds Bustamante.
Likewise, the authorities have resorted to the combination of camera technology with alarm systems, and as Gutiérrez proposes, they have generated joint working groups to increase the efficiency of citizen monitoring systems. "In some cities the police have tested the use of community alarm systems. More important and with better results has been the fact of inviting monitoring companies (alarms and video) to form support networks with the police forces to have better coordination between the 'private' security forces and citizen security. It has also been important to use GPS systems installed in police units to be more efficient in dispatches and reaction, as well as to have integrated emergency call systems (known as 911 or 123) in CCTV control rooms, "it has also been important. " says Alex.
Carlos Granda, of the integrative firm Datanet, agrees with the above, and who has been in charge of the implementation of several systems of this type. In Colombia, he explains, there have been some incipient links with GPS systems, since what most frequently occurs are combinations with community alarm systems, integration that has yielded highly positive results. "An alarm panel is placed in a highly dangerous neighborhood and extends from three to four blocks around with intelligent pulses. When something happens, the event is sent to a monitoring center in real time, as well as who is pressing it and the exact direction to which the reaction should be triggered; that has helped us a lot in Antioquia and Colombia," he says.
In many cases, the implementation of cameras and their control from police or army stations are the most appropriate practice, taking into account that in small towns it is common for criminal gangs to call the authorities to report false crimes, in order to make them deploy their force uselessly while committing crimes in other areas of the city.
Some technical conceptions
For experts, citizen monitoring systems consist of monitoring centers that are strategically located to protect the institutions that control public order (army, police, hospital sector, among others) and help maintain the establishment. Ideally, all the activity that concerns these institutions should converge in a monitoring center that presents on screens all the information captured by the cameras, which can be many kilometers away. The current importance of these works is measured in the enormous value that images have today in determining those guilty of the commission of a crime.
What minimum elements should be taken into account before installing an urban CCTV system? María Bustamante gives some important keys that must be taken into account by end users.
The first thing this expert recommends is to make sure you have the minimum knowledge in the field to always make it clear to the end user what the pros and cons of a video surveillance system are. It is also very important to bear in mind that the costs of financing a system of this type are not always a problem, because in one way or another the resources are found. "One of the things that end users need to know is about funding a project. Many clients are unaware that in all countries there are government funds for the protection of women, children and others that can be raised to finance a CCTV project, so the investment of the local government is only 10 or 15%", says Maria.
For the GVI representative, there are several elements that must be analyzed before implementing such a system. As a first step, the location of the cameras should be a completely controlled aspect. "The laws of physics do not forgive and after making the design it is not easy to change the locations at the whim of someone who decided that he looked better from another side; this may involve the installation of a repeater that had not been contemplated, affecting the entire budget." Secondly, there would be the way in which the monitoring and recording will be carried out and whether alternatives such as redundant or backup power plants will be contemplated.
"For video transmission, the preferred technology is wireless. Have the RF propagation and Fresnel zone studies already been done? In some cases you have to sacrifice the ideal locations of the cameras at the operational level in order to have the best location at the radio transmission level. What are the critical positions? If you plan to use part of the existing communications structure, for example from a telephone or cable company, how secure is it? What will be the cost of leasing pairs for video streaming? In one city part of the surveillance system was taken out of service because the rental cost of the isolated pairs exceeded the budget estimated by the governor. Wouldn't it have been better to invest a little more in the wireless system and then not have high maintenance costs?" are recommendations provided by Gutiérrez.
Now. How is a citizen monitoring system installed? Orthodoxy indicates that in urban CCTV systems the capture units must be located in a way that allows redundancy to be obtained between several units, without coinciding in the geographical space covered, so that in this way the greatest possible coverage is reached. Scalability is another fundamental factor, understood as the possibility offered by a system to be updated or grow on its same characteristics without hitting or significantly modifying the existing infrastructure.
This strategic location returns and becomes important when it comes to wireless systems, because in the latter case an erroneous location can significantly impair the transmission of the video signal from point A to point B by physical interference in the line of sight.
In any case, the recommendation of the experts is to start by determining exactly what are the needs that are in terms of security and then proceed to point out the possible solutions. Subsequently, when it is decided to implement a CCTV system, what follows is to proceed to list the objectives of the same, such as developing a deterrent solution against theft and vandalism in the center of a population or in certain specific areas. The objectives may vary according to the needs detected at the beginning.
At this point Maria tells from her experience about the process to implement a solution. "First you have to look where to start and start with neighborhoods of high danger. Second, an analysis of the terrain must be done if it is really feasible to throw cable, fiber or wireless. Subsequently, a system that can be expanded is thought of and a future expansion plan is presented to the government, which is like a negotiation in which the number of cameras to be installed in the future varies according to the reduction of crime that has been obtained in a certain sector. " Says.
It is important to note that in some urban CCTV systems, facilities can combine protection of open spaces as well as video surveillance in strategic buildings throughout an area. In this case, both the objectives of the system in general and the application of capture units in buildings must be determined, since the locations and objectives may change.
As for the equipment to be used there are also special requirements. Initially it should be noted that the units are resistant to the environment, but also portable and easy to install. "The latter is especially useful in the case of hurricanes. In Mexico it has happened to us a couple of times that when the arrival of hurricanes is announced, the equipment is dismantled," says Bustamante. The equipment must be equally modular and expandable, but also that its manufacturer has the will to integrate with other technology manufacturers.
Means of transmission
One element that certainly cannot be left out in this discussion is about the mode of transmission and the physical means that are used for it. In one corner are hybrid systems and in the other 100% digital, whether wired or wireless. What impact is the IP environment having on citizen monitoring systems?
If we talk about transmission modes, hybrid systems remain in an important position today, compared to IP systems, which have been growing. As for the physical media, the UTP continues to be widely used, compared to an optical fiber that gains followers. Wireless media continues to gain popularity, primarily because it has proven itself to be a great alternative to installing additional structured cabling networks, even with ultimate cost savings.
In the specific case of citizen monitoring systems, many end users do not understand very well the implications of opting for an IP system or a hybrid one, as Bustamante notes. In this case it is when it becomes very important to meet the recommendations of the experts to obtain the expected performances.
"There is still a lot of ignorance as to the technical in an IP system. Many people do not understand why hybrid systems are recommended in some cases, why fiber is recommended, nor do they understand why we want to manipulate the transmission as much as possible. Wireless systems have been imposed by the ease in their installation, as well as to exclude them from business networks since we do not recommend running the video on the same data network of the company but doing it in isolation, "he says.
He adds that at present, of the citizen systems that are installed between 15 and 20% are analogous.
For Gutiérrez, IP systems managed to overcome the suspicion with which they were observed by police clients, especially due to phenomena such as latency or delay in the transmission of the signal. But Alex adds that "speaking of cameras there is no difference between using cameras with analog output and external IP module or cameras with the embedded IP module; performance is the same. The big difference is in the monitoring and control system where the IP recording solution is increasingly preferred; the monitoring can be done in an analog matrix or an IP matrix, the important thing is that the operator is facilitated through Joystick type controllers".
For its part, Granda believes that the avalanche that IP technology has had has had an important impact on the way security systems are configured and used. "IP technology is already a reality in Colombia. In the world this has been going on for several years, such is the case in Europe, which for a decade now has implemented these urban systems, with a very efficient management. In Colombia it is a reality because ISPs or carriers, be it UNE, ETB and now Telmex, entered the Metroswitchs technology, which consists of carrying an IP port five or six kilometers away. This ability to transmit data via IP over long distances means that any equipment of this type can be located at the end. The transmission is extended Lan to Lan, which means that if 10 kilometers away a camera is placed and in the management center another active equipment is located; for a data session the two (equipment) are lifted and this allows me to have real-time control of said camera, both in video and in PTZ movements, "he says.
It is important to note that in several Latin American countries these citizen monitoring systems are used in the control of automotive traffic, as Granda says has been done in the old continent for some time. In Colombia, for example, the video image is already taken by judicial and transit authorities as valid evidence in the event of a trial for a crime or traffic violation.
Success stories
We have said this repeatedly in this magazine; what justifies the use of technology is that in the end it can prove its effectiveness, compared to the results obtained if it has not done so.
In the case of Vicon, the results for its end customers, after having implemented the systems in question, are more than satisfactory. Without going into details of the applications carried out, it is worth mentioning that the use of such video surveillance equipment allowed to achieve in Puerto Rico (in low-income localities with high crime rates) a crime reduction of 37% during the first year of operation; in Culiacán, Mexico, crime fell between 38 and 45% and although it has not been possible to completely eradicate drug trafficking, it has been reduced, in the opinion of the authorities, by 12%. In Cancun, although crime was not reduced, at least the perception of security in the city increased, which helped the growth in the number of visitors.
Carlos Granda also provides some figures. In the city camera system they implemented for four municipalities (La Estrella, Itagüí, Sabaneta and Envigado) located south of Medellín, Colombia's second city, communication and coordination between law enforcement and security companies have been fundamental factors, while technology has been exclusively a support resource. Granda says that to guarantee the success of any project it is essential to have the adequate participation of human resources. In terms of effectiveness, Carlos says that in the municipality of Sabaneta, crime has been reduced by between 45 and 50%. A very important element is that the implementation of the cameras allowed the capture at the end of 2006, of a gang of bank robbers who had ravaged the community of these municipalities.
In this sense, it can be said that citizen CCTV systems have proven their effectiveness in terms of protection and control of crime. Surely within a year we will have information from a greater number of cities that entered the era of urban video surveillance.
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