The Security Week That Was: A Recap - Feb. 4-10, 2006

Feb. 10, 2006
SIW Editor Geoff Kohl gives a weekly surveillance of news shaping your profession

We don't get into politics here at SecurityInfoWatch.com, and have generally stayed out of the fray when it has come to the recent Washington news over secret surveillance on U.S. residents. Maybe it was a political play to announce the news that surveillance operations had helped thwart a potential 9/11-style attack on Los Angeles' tallest building, the U.S. Bank Center, but when it comes to our industry, that news goes well beyond politics and speaks directly to the interaction that corporations must have with the government in the protection of facilities.

We tend to think of physical security terror prevention measures like bollards and heavy-gauge fencing and blast-proof windows as being specific to government installations and heavy infrastructure like chemical plants, but yesterday's news changes that. Tools on the market today like blast-resistant facades, emergency communications systems and visitor management systems that check visitors against terrorist watch lists are becoming all the more important as these new breeds of threats show up on your corporate security radar screen.

Visitor Management Buy-Up

IDenticard, which only recently became GE IDenticard, is going back to just being IDenticard, or perhaps the Brady Corporation IDenticard. This popular access control/secure identification company has been known for biometrics security IDs and access control, and was positioned into the GE Security mix in 2005 when GE bought up Edwards. Now, less than a year later, GE has sold IDenticard and its Canadian affiliate IDenticam to Brady Corporation.

While Brady Corporation may not be a household name for most security professionals, you're probably very aware of some of its brands: STOPware, BIGBadge, TemTech/TempBadge and J.A.M. Plastics. With a product line that goes all the way from the ID badge clips and lanyards, to the expiring badges, lobby management solutions and now full-service access control, Brady Corp. has quietly but firmly planted its foot squarely in the access control sector.

Also in the card/identification sector, Document Security Systems announced that it had purchased Plastic Printing Professionals, a niche firm specializing in secure printing of ID cards and gift cards. Our take? Firms don't buy other access control-related firms unless they see profits ahead. The implied prognostication may be that the access control market is ready to boom as the government ID card standardization pushes access control and secure IDs to the forefront of our industry.

Getting a Fix on Cybercrime

The Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security announced yesterday afternoon that they're going to tackle the issue of cybercrime in the U.S. by first surveying U.S. businesses to get a statistical perspective of how many companies have been impacted by computer security breaches, plus what those losses have been. The survey will be conducted by professional statistical company The Rand Corporation.

Embracing the IP

Everyone's getting on board the IP revolution. You need no more proof than today's news that Anixter, known for its cabling solutions, has put together a 65-page guide to IP-based security.

Also in the News...

Systems integration firm Nexus Technologies Group was acquired by Homeland Security Capital Corporation. ... Rapiscan parent company OSI reported record revenues for the quarter. ... A false alarm in the air detection system at the U.S. Capitol building cleared out nine senators and 200 others faster than voters could throw out a tax-increasing incumbent on election day. ... In the UK, a housing authority successfully used a hidden camera in a smoke detector to get the goods on a resident who was harassing another resident. ... Finally, in what we can only hope is a fine case of justice, the man accused of killing a judge and deputies at the Fulton County Atlanta Courthouse will return to that same courthouse for prosecution.

Hottest stories of the last week: