Keith Aubele, Chief Security Officer, Salient Systems explores why video management systems can help retailers to prevent loss via operational data actionable intelligence in retail.
There is a confluence of trends happening in the video surveillance space. Artificial intelligence (AI), analytics, machine learning, video compression technology and bandwidth management are just a few technologies that have recently had a profound impact on the capabilities of the traditional video surveillance system.
Due to this, surveillance systems today are now smarter, faster and multi-dimensional when compared with systems from just a few short years ago. It’s safe to say that video surveillance has shifted from being an after-the-fact tool supportive of investigative purposes, such as to identify a bank robber, to a transformative, dynamic solution that enables real-time information and decision making.
Intelligent security
Known as actionable video intelligence, the ability to gather data and then use that information to make decisions in real-time is changing the way surveillance systems are being used. For retailers, this information is beneficial because it can have a significant impact on business operations, enabling retailers to quickly pivot to address a problem.
This is particularly important as retailers face the modern-day challenges of labor shortages, rising costs of goods, organized crime and increased violence within stores, which are forcing retailers to go beyond traditional uses of video surveillance to ensure the protection of employees, shoppers and merchandise, as well as improve store performance.
“An open platform VMS is also crucial when considering the range of specialty integrations available to retailers.”
Using an open architecture video management platform provides the foundation for retailers to tap into a number of different analytics that support enhanced loss prevention initiatives and assist in gathering operational data about
the store.
“Surveillance systems today are now smarter, faster and multidimensional when compared with systems from just a few short years ago.”
Access to critical, real-time alerts
As organized crime and incidents of active shooter events increase, retailers need to be able to quickly respond to a problem as it unfolds with critical, real-time alerts. It’s no longer enough to have a surveillance system in place that can be used to positively identify a shoplifter. Today retailers need to deploy action-ready technologies that can easily integrate into a video management system (VMS).
This could include gunshot detection technology, that can “hear” when a person fires a gun and enable specific security measures to immediately go into place, or facial detection technology that can identify a known shoplifter and then alert a specific surveillance camera to closely monitor that individual…READ FULL ARTICLE HERE
