Getting a Lock On Security

Imagine finding technology to secure a building as easily as buying a computer: Go to a Web site, scroll down a page of options and select the amenities you need. Intelligent video surveillance-check. Biometric screening-check. Cyber protection-check. Hit enter and voilà: instant security. Of course, securing a facility is much more complex and expensive than that, and a huge amount of building security technology has come on the market since the Sept. 11 attacks.

There's no better evidence that security equipment has deluged the market than the recent GOVSEC, Government Security Expo and Conference, held in late July in Washington. The event featured a smorgasbord of companies offering just about any technology imaginable to secure buildings, from biometric screening to explosives detection to encryption services for wireless local area networks.

"Virtually all organizations have made changes to seal up potential security loopholes and weaknesses," says Secured Data Technologies of New York in its marketing materials. "But in doing so, there is a tendency to create cumbersome and lengthy procedures, all in the name of safety."

Agencies should do their homework before rushing out to shop for security technology. Even cutting-edge products can be worthless if decision-makers haven't assessed what their agencies need, how much they can spend and which companies can provide the right tools. Here's a look at some of the technologies available:

Inside the Lines

Secured Data sells the SAM visitor management system, which can record a visitor's information through an electronic database and produce a color photo badge that can be used to track the visitor throughout a facility.

Perimeter Protection

To secure a building's perimeter, Advanced Detection Technology of Clemmons, N.C., offers the LowCam portable under-vehicle inspection system, which provides a detailed undercarriage view of each vehicle passing through a checkpoint. Agencies can add an intelligent video surveillance system by Pyramid Vision, based in Arlington, Va. Advanced Detection Technology's VisionAlert 1.4 system can detect unauthorized vehicles and intruders within a facility's perimeter, even in low light or bad weather.

Gatekeepers

Agencies can outsource their security workforce with guards from USProtect of Silver Spring, Md. Seenex, based in Washington, offers an array of controlled-access portals that can be equipped with other technologies such as biometric identifications systems and devices to test for explosives and chemicals. The automatic entry-and-exit door systems also can read workers' and visitors' smart cards.

Keeping Secrets

AirFortress of Tampa, Fla., provides solutions for securing wireless local area networks. A typical system consists of a hub with a wireless router that sends encrypted information to an access point on the edge of the network, where the information is then decrypted by an AirFortress Gateway system.

A law enforcement agency serving a large area might use the system, with officers carrying rugged components mounted in patrol cars to communicate through a secure network.

Listening In

Dynasound of Norcross, Ga., offers portable products that secure conversations against human and electronic eavesdropping. The company provides technology that protects vulnerable points, such as windows, walls, doors, floors and ducts, with a random sound-masking signal that can be mixed with "music, misinformation or nonsense syllables to further impede signal recovery."

"While human eavesdropping is more commonplace, most decision-makers are completely unaware of how vulnerable facilities are to electronic eavesdropping," Dynasound's literature says.

Authentication

A biometric pen offered by Pen-One Inc. of Southfield, Mich., can electronically scan a fingerprint before authorizing a signature. The sensitive pen can be used for credit cards, check cashing, official documents of all kinds, and even remote test-taking. "Biometric applications like this have great value in areas ranging from simple check cashing to new ways to stop terrorism," says Christopher Hernandez, a grad student at Purdue University's biometrics lab, who developed the signature process. "We hope the technology will be used in government and commercial applications to increase security in everything from weapons shipments to patient medical records."