Blog Archives
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8 keys to starting a trade secret protection plan
By Paul Rothman - Monday September 10, 2012Caught a great educational session at ASIS today on proecting trade secrets....some really good stuff from former Dupont security chief Ray Mislock Jr., now with Pamir Consulting. Expect an in-depth article in early 2013 in STE outlining a strategic plan to keeping trade secrets safe – as this subject is quite interesting and has many complicated factors that must be outlined for security executives. Mislock stressed the need to be transparent with employees so they can understand the threat, how to recognize suspicious activity and know what is acceptable security practice for crucial documents and information. Here's a list of Mr. Mislock's 8 keys to success in this regard when crafting a trade secret protection plan... -
Social media and mobile apps add to the mass notification arsenal
By Paul Rothman - Thursday September 6, 2012
Every September is National Preparedness month, a nationwide effort to encourage individuals, families, businesses and communities to work together and take action to prepare for emergencies. STE's recent special report, Crisis on Campus , actually gives readers a look at how a robust crisis management plan was coordinated and carried out at Kennesaw State University in the suburbs of Atlanta. One of the strategies that KSU Chief Security Officer Robert Lang employs is the use of e-mail, voice cell messages and SMS text messages to get the word out about an emergency or crisis situation. According to a recent report by the American Red Cross, it looks to be time to incorporate social media and mobile apps into the mass notification... -
Putting the Small Town in Security
By Paul Rothman - Tuesday July 3, 2012
About to join such critically-acclaimed shows as The Walking Dead , Mad Men , Breaking Bad , The Killing , and Hell on Wheels is a new original series on AMC called Small Town Security . The show focuses on a small, family-owned private security company located in rural Georgia. So how will these security-related services translate into a 30-minute, 8-episode season of reality TV? AMC is holding its cards close to the vest, but it has released a couple of video previews . The company, JJK Security & Investigations Inc., according to its website, provides uniformed guard service, private investigations, mobile security patrol and process serving service, among other things. Their " commercial " outlines their services with a... -
Megapixel on Steroids
By Paul Rothman - Thursday June 21, 2012
If you have been to a security tradeshow lately, you may have been wowed by Arecont Vision's 20 Megapixel Camera or blown away by the images on Avigilon's 29 MP camera. Well, researchers at Duke University have a message: You ain't seen nothing yet! Researchers have unveiled a supercamera that can take gigapixel pictures — that's 1,000 megapixels — and they say the cameras could have military, commercial and civilian applications, and that handheld gigapixel cameras may one day be possible. According to a report from Innovation News Daily , the gigapixel camera uses 98 identical microcameras in unison, each armed with its own set of optics and a 14-megapixel sensor. The microcameras, in turn, all peer through a single large... -
It's Business Continuity Season
By Paul Rothman - Wednesday June 20, 2012
From the east coast to the west, security executives should be aware that it's "natural disaster season" -- as two of nature's biggest threats -- hurricanes and wildfires -- pose a serious risk to business continuity. According to preparemybusiness.org -- a website co-sponsored by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) and Agility Recovery Solutions, a disaster recovery firm -- following a disaster, statistics show 90 percent of companies fail within a year unless they can resume operations within five days. Wildfire season on the west coast is already off to a blazing start. Colorado is on the brink of one of its worst fire seasons in history, blamed on very high temperatures and a very low snowpack, which left mountains... -
London is serious about Olympic security
By Paul Rothman - Friday June 15, 2012
Nothing says "I'm very serious" quite like surface-to-air missiles. And that's just what Britain's Ministry of Defense wants anyone intent on disrupting the coming London Olympic Games to know -- they are really, really serious. And all indications are the missiles aren't nearly enough to get the point across. Here's a look at just some of the reported high-security measures scheduled or already in place for the Games, set to begin with the opening ceremony on July 27: * The largest aircraft/helicopter carrier in the British naval fleet, the H.M.S. Ocean, and her 13,000 soldiers, will berth in the Thames River and serve as a "base of operations," according to a CBS news report . * The London Telegraph reports that... -
May issue bonus: Retail Security background checks
By Paul Rothman - Tuesday May 22, 2012
Following up on STE’s cover section coverage of retail security , here is some more news for employers in this sector: The federal government has updated the law regarding how certain employers can use criminal background checks in hiring practices. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has updated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which focuses on employment discrimination based on race and national origin. In the update, the EEOC states that: “An employer’s use of an individual’s criminal history in making employment decisions may, in some instances, violate the prohibition against employment discrimination under Title VII.” While Title VII does not prohibit an employer from requiring applicants or... -
When an FBI Warning is not enough...
By Paul Rothman - Wednesday May 16, 2012
I have nothing against the government's efforts to curb piracy, but seriously, one warning is enough -- and the "real" targets aren't even being protected. According to a recent report from Wired , the Department of Homeland Security AND the National Intellectual Property Center are adding their dreaded "warning labels" to the beginning of DVDs and Blu-Ray discs -- you know, a second and third warning in addition to the often-attempted-but-unsuccessfully-fast-forwarded FBI warning that has been on VHS, DVD and other movies for about as long as I can remember. Apparently, warnings from the FBI just don't carry the weight that they used to -- as if those warnings actually stop media pirates. Now you can add the two more... -
Surveillance video "re-digitized" in Trayvon Martin case
By Paul Rothman - Tuesday April 3, 2012
I used to scoff when I would watch security-oriented fictional TV shows like 24 and Law & order and they would take a grainy surveillance video and somehow, magically "focus" it so you could make out fine details. These days, fiction has a way of becoming reality. The most electric, emotionally-charged news story of the past couple weeks has been the shooting death of young Trayvon Martin. Last week, the Sanford Police Department released surveillance video of the shooter, George Zimmerman. While the raw video looks a bit fuzzy, ABC News wanted to get a better look at Zimmerman, so they "enhanced" the video with the help of Forensic Protection Inc. , a California video- and audio-enhancement firm. Check it out here . The ABC... -
Video transmission and storage from the ISC show floor
By Paul Rothman - Wednesday March 28, 2012Roaming the floor at ISC West, I came across a few companies that were touting new and improved video transmission, networking and storage products – fast-growing segments of the security industry that are being partially fueled by the IP transition. Altronix, a company long known for its video and device power supply products, has entered the video networking space with its eBridge, which can transmit IP video and data over coaxial cable more than 2,000 feet without the need for repeaters. "Customers have been asking for a product like this," Altronix's Kirby Han said. The transmission product spurred a three-way technology collaboration among Altronix, Intersil and Sony to create the hybrid solution. In fact Sony cameras...
