GSN January 2016 Digital Edition

Government Security News 

JANUARY 2016 DIGITAL EDITION 

No silver lining in cloud-based mass notification solutions, says Desktop Alert 

CEO Howard Ryan – More on Page 12 

Also in this issue: 

Statement by DHS Secretary Johnson on southwest border immigration and security – Page 5 

Utility Associates unveils cameras embedded in clothing and video technology – Page 22 

HID Global looks ahead at top trends for secure identity in 2016 – Page 23 

House passes Visa Waiver program bill excluding nationals of Syria, Iraq, Iran, Sudan – Page 26

GSN January 2016 Digital Edition 

Table of Contents 

GSN TECHNOLOGY SPOTLIGHT 

Cloud-based Mass Notification comes with serious risks 

According to Howard Ryan, CEO and Founder of Desktop Alert, if a Mass 

Notification system used to notify affected personnel of an emergency is 

entirely cloud based, then emergency managers run the very real risk of 

having the message delayed, or even worse, never delivered by an overtaxed 

system that may have too many demands upon it to deliver an urgent 

message to thousands of people in a timely manner. That became evident 

in 2014, said Ryan, when a shooting took place at Ford Hood. Desktop Alert 

was deployed on site, notified over 30,000 people about the event and got 

the message out before a separate cloud-based system notified approximately 

10,000 members. When lives are at stake, said Ryan, every second 

counts. Read more on Page 12. 

Needed: Let’s Make 2016 the Year of Innovation in Aviation Security 

The flying public is threatened by terrorists not only ruthless in their willingness 

to attack Aviation, says Eric Zanin, Senior VP & General Manager, 

Security & Detection Business, Analogic Corporation, but willing and able to 

change tactics to exploit vulnerabilities in our Aviation system. The question 

is, can we move to an Aviation Security approach where we innovate at the 

“speed of the threat”. Zanin believes we can. There’s a heightened sense of 

urgency among lawmakers and the public; new leadership at the TSA; and 

an exciting pipeline of innovative technology. Read more of this thoughtful 

essay to learn about some of these new solutions. Page 29 

2

NEWS AND FEATURES 

Cover Story: No silver lining in cloud-based 

mass notification, says Desktop Alert 

CEO Howard Ryan Page 12 

Statement by Secretary Johnson on southwest 

border immigration and security Page 5 

Swan Island software selected by N.Y.- N.J. Port 

Authority’s Metropolitan Resilience Network Page 8 

What increased security measures at French 

rail facilities mean for the explosives, weapons and 

contraband-detection equipment market Page 11 

Relations between police and their communities 

remain strong, but better communications can 

strengthen the bond Page 14 

Democratic House Leader Steny H. Hoyer visits 

McMurdo Readiness and Response Center Page 16 

Hikvision launches ‘Value Plus’ surveillance 

line for budget conscious customer Page 17 

Using Video Intelligence to protect critical 

public infrastructure Page 18 

Geofeedia, Mutualink among companies that 

helped law enforcement protect Pope Francis during 

U.S. visit Page 20 

Utility Associates unveils cameras that are 

embedded in clothing and video technology that 

protects bystanders’ privacy Page 22 

Access Control 

____________________________________ 

HID Global looks ahead at top trends for secure 

identity in 2016 Page 23 

The continuing evolution of Access Control 

Page 24 

House passes Visa Waiver program bill that 

excludes nationals of Syria, Iraq, Iran and Sudan 

Page 26 

Intellinet Sensors, Inc. announces the global 

launch of the Lynx3-A Detector to find individuals 

hiding inside a cargo container Page 27 

HID Global receives order to produce Next-Gen 

U.S. Permanent Resident “Green Cards” Page 28 

Airport/Aviation 

____________________________________ 

Needed: Let’s make 2016 the Year of Innovation 

in Aviation Solution Page 29 

Air travel experts push situational awareness 

during the holiday rush Page 31 

50-plus European airports deploy Morph’s Itemiser 

4DX per new explosives screening mandates Page 32 

Block Engineering designs chemical detection 

products for use at ‘soft target’ sites Page 33 

Implant Sciences announces first shipment of 

ETD Systems for U.S. Airport Deployment Page 34 

Government Security News announces two 

major initiatives Page 37 

3

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Statement by Secretary Johnson on 

southwest border immigration and security 

JANUARY 4, 2016 -- As I have said 

repeatedly, our borders are not open 

to illegal migration; if you come 

here illegally, we will send you back 

consistent with our laws and values. 

In the spring and summer of 2014 

we faced a significant spike in families 

and unaccompanied children 

from Central America attempting 

to cross our southern border illegally. 

In response, we took a number 

of actions in collaboration with the 

governments of Mexico, Guatemala, 

Honduras, and El Salvador, and the 

numbers declined dramatically. In 

Fiscal Year 2015, the number of apprehensions 

by U.S. Border Patrol of 

those attempting to cross our southern 

border illegally -- an indicator of 

total attempts to cross the border illegally 

-- decreased to 331,333. With 

the exception of one year, this was 

the lowest number of apprehensions 

on our southern border since 1972. 

In recent months, however, the rate 

of apprehensions on our southern 

border has begun to climb again. 

In November 2014, I issued new 

priorities for immigration enforcement 

as part of the President’s immigration 

accountability executive 

actions. These new Departmentwide 

priorities focus our 

enforcement resources 

on convicted criminals 

and threats to public 

safety. These new enforcement 

priorities also 

focus on border security, 

namely the removal of 

those apprehended at the 

border or who came here 

illegally after January 1, 2014. 

We must enforce the law in accordance 

with these priorities, and 

secure our borders. 

Accordingly, the Department of 

Homeland Security, in conjunction 

with our domestic and international 

partners, is undertaking the following 

actions: 

Removals 

Since the summer of 2014 we have 

removed and repatriated migrants 

to Central America at an increased 

rate, averaging about 14 flights a 

week. Most of those returned have 

been single adults. 

This past weekend, Immigration 

and Customs Enforcement (ICE) 

engaged in concerted, nationwide 

enforcement operations to take into 

custody and return at a greater rate 

5 

DHS Secretary 

Jeh Johnson 

adults who entered this 

country illegally with 

children. This should 

come as no surprise. I 

have said publicly for 

months that individuals 

who constitute enforcement 

priorities, including 

families and unaccompanied 

children, will 

be removed. 

The focus of this weekend’s operations 

were adults and their children 

who (i) were apprehended after May 

1, 2014 crossing the southern border 

illegally, (ii) have been issued 

final orders of removal by an immigration 

court, and (iii) have exhausted 

appropriate legal remedies, 

and have no outstanding appeal or 

claim for asylum or other humanitarian 

relief under our laws. As part 

of these operations, 121 individuals 

were taken into custody, primarily 

from Georgia, Texas, and North 

Carolina, and they are now in the 

process of being repatriated. To effect 

removal, most families are first 

being transported to one of ICE’s 

family residential centers for temporary 

processing before being issued 

More on page 6

travel documents and boarding a return 

flight to their home countries. 

Given the sensitive nature of taking 

into custody and removing families 

with children, a number of precautions 

were taken as part of this 

weekend’s operations. ICE deployed 

from around the country a number 

of female agents and medical personnel 

to take part in the operations, 

and, in the course of the operations, 

ICE exercised prosecutorial discretion 

in a number of cases for health 

or other personal reasons. 

This enforcement action was overseen 

by Sarah Saldaña, 

the Director of ICE, and 

supported and executed 

by Thomas Homan, a career 

law enforcement official 

who leads ICE’s Enforcement 

and Removal 

Operations. 

At my direction, additional 

enforcement 

operations such as these 

will continue to occur as 

appropriate. 

Increasing border security 

We are continuing to enhance our 

border security resources and capabilities, 

working closely with state 

and local counterparts. As a result 

of our long-term investment in border 

security over the past 15 years, 

U.S. Customs and Border Protection 

(CBP) has greater capability to 

Sarah Saldaña, Director 

of U.S. Immigration & 

Customs Enforcement 

identify and interdict illegal crossings 

than at any time in our Nation’s 

history. This includes the largest deployment 

of vehicles, aircraft, boats, 

and equipment along the southwest 

border in the 90-year history of the 

Border Patrol. And through the 

Southern Border and Approaches 

Campaign Plan we launched in early 

2015, we are for the first time putting 

to use in a combined and strategic 

way the assets and personnel 

of CBP, ICE, Citizenship and Immigration 

Services, and the Coast 

Guard to better protect the border. 

In response to the recent 

increases in migrant 

flows along the 

southwest border, CBP 

has deployed additional 

permanent Border Patrol 

Agents to high-traffic 

areas, augmented operations 

in South Texas with 

Mobile Response Teams, 

and redirected support 

from other Border Patrol 

sectors including through remote 

interviewing technology. CBP has 

also increased surveillance capabilities 

by adding tethered aerostats 

(long-range radars) and other technology, 

along with additional aircraft. 

CBP will sustain these heightened 

border security efforts, along 

with the humanitarian aspects of its 

responsibilities, while the current 

migration levels persist. 

6 

Unaccompanied children 

As the number of unaccompanied 

children crossing our southern border 

has risen again in recent months, 

DHS has continued our close coordination 

with the Department of 

Health and Human Services (HHS), 

as it increases its capacity to care for 

unaccompanied minors and place 

them with sponsors. Our goal is to 

ensure that CBP has the continued 

capability to quickly and efficiently 

transfer unaccompanied minors 

after they are apprehended to HHS 

custody, as is required by U.S. law. 

In the past month, HHS added over 

1,000 beds for this purpose, and recently 

announced that another estimated 

1,800 beds will be available 

soon. HHS is continuing to explore 

options for additional beds if necessary. 

Cracking down 

on criminal smugglers 

In the summer of 2014, the Deputy 

Attorney General and I announced 

“Operation Coyote” to crack down 

on those involved in the criminal 

smuggling of migrants from Central 

America and elsewhere. Since then, 

1,022 smugglers and their associates 

have been arrested, and hundreds of 

bank accounts have been seized. 

With the Department of Justice, we 

are now doubling down on these efforts. 

This will build on existing initiatives 

such as ICE’s Human Smug-

gling Cell, which is working with 

the financial industry to target and 

disrupt the flow of funds to human 

smuggling organizations. DHS’s 

recently formed Joint Task Forces, 

JTF-West and JTF-Investigations, 

will coordinate the deployment of 

additional DHS investigative and 

prosecutorial resources and their 

integration into the Department of 

Justice’s ongoing law enforcement 

and prosecution operations. 

Cooperation with Mexico 

We are expanding our cooperation 

with Mexico in dealing with 

illicit migration. In particular, we 

are working with our Mexican partners 

to enhance joint efforts on our 

shared border, to support Mexico’s 

efforts on its southern border, and 

to shut down the criminal groups 

and illegal support networks that 

exploit vulnerable migrants. DHS 

and the Department of State will 

also continue to support the Merida 

Initiative, the longstanding partnership 

between the United States and 

Mexico to fight organized crime and 

associated violence. 

Expanding the public 

messaging campaign 

DHS and the Department of State 

are expanding our existing messaging 

campaign in Central America, 

Mexico, and the United States to 

educate those considering making 

the journey north, as well as their 

families abroad, about the dangerous 

realities of the journey. The 

messaging will also highlight the recent 

enforcement operations. 

The Flores case 

We continue to disagree with the 

District Court decision in the Flores 

case that a 1997 settlement of a case 

solely involving unaccompanied 

children now applies to children 

who arrive with a parent and their 

processing at today’s family residential 

centers. The decision, and the 

resulting injunction, significantly 

constrains our ability to respond to 

an increasing flow of illegal migration 

into the United States. We have 

appealed the decision, and the appellate 

court has agreed to hear the 

appeal on an expedited basis. Meanwhile, 

we have implemented significant 

reforms to how we operate our 

family residential centers to transition 

them to temporary processing 

facilities for these individuals, and 

have taken steps to ensure compliance 

with the District Court’s July 

24 and August 21 orders. 

Creating an alternative, 

safe and legal path 

7 

Finally, to effectively address this 

situation, we recognize that we must 

offer alternatives to those who are 

fleeing the poverty and violence in 

Central America. More border security 

and removals, by themselves, 

will not overcome the underlying 

conditions that currently exist in 

Central America. I am pleased that 

Congress, in the recently-enacted 

omnibus spending bill, included 

$750 million in aid for Central 

America. 

In the meantime, DHS and the 

Department of State are accelerating 

the development of new mechanisms 

to process and screen Central 

American refugees in the region, 

about which we hope to make a 

more formal announcement soon. 

We will expand access to the U.S. 

Refugee Admissions Program in 

the region and develop more legal 

alternatives to the dangerous and 

unlawful journey many are currently 

taking in the hands of human 

smugglers. 

These new refugee processing 

mechanisms will build upon the 

existing Central American Minors 

Program, which is already providing 

an in-country refugee processing 

option for certain children 

with parents lawfully in the United 

States. Thus far, we have received 

more than 6,000 applications for the 

Program, some children have begun 

to arrive in the United States as part 

of the Program, and we expect the 

pace of arrivals to increase steadily 

moving forward. We are also engaging 

other countries in the region, 

More on page 35

Swan Island software selected by NY-NJ Port 

Authority’s Metropolitan Resilience Network 

By Steve Bittenbender 

A public/private partnership being 

heralded by the Port Authority of 

New York and New Jersey has announced 

the selection of Swan Island 

Networks to provide a cloudbased 

solution that will allow the 

partners share and review information. 

Swan Island’s software will be 

the basis for the Metropolitan Resilience 

Network’s communication 

platform that will enable the members 

to review information in a realtime 

setting. It’s designed to help the 

members, which include the Port 

Authority, other government agencies, 

utility providers, businesses, 

colleges and response organizations, 

develop plans to respond to 

and recover from a crisis situation. 

The company used Pope Francis’ 

visit to the Big Apple earlier this year 

as a pilot endeavor. Swan Island developers 

created 10 dashboards that 

provided up-to-date information 

on travel delays, criminal activity, 

breaking news, weather forecasts 

and social media trends occurring 

where the religious leader was visiting. 

“Our analysts worked around the 

clock to provide comprehensive, 

up-to-the-minute information on 

Pope Francis’ visit,” said Swan island 

CEO Charles Jennings. “Our 

dashboards were distributed to key 

stakeholders in the New York and 

New Jersey region, both public and 

private, and were displayed in the 

Emergency Operations Center at 

the Port Authority for the duration 

of the Pope’s stay.” 

The pilot proved to be a success. 

“We used the MRN Papal visit 

dashboards in our emergency operations 

center, at a time when the 

region was facing an unprecedented 

security challenge,” said Maybelle 

Jadotte, a spokeswoman for the 

8 

Port Authority’s Office of Emergency 

Management. “They helped 

us monitor our region in a new way, 

which was extremely useful.” 

The company will use its Trusted 

Information Exchange Service 

(TIES) for Microsoft City Next 

Threat Intelligence software-as-aservice 

platform to enable the sharing 

of resources and dissemination 

of information in a real-time, 

collaborative setting. It’s the same 

system that hundreds of large businesses 

– including 20 of the top 100 

publicly traded companies in the 

United States – use to help them 

with their situational awareness. 

Since its creation in 2002, Swan 

Island has worked with numerous 

government agencies – including 

the Department of Defense and the 

Department of Homeland Security. 

Company officials took the technology 

it developed for the federal 

agencies to roll out TIES to smaller 

government agencies and to the 

public sector. 

The Port Authority has led the effort 

to get the MRN off the ground, 

and New York University’s International 

Center for Enterprise Pre- 

More on page 36

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What increased security measures at French rail 

facilities mean for the explosives, weapons and 

contraband-detection equipment market. 

The installation of security screening 

equipment on the Thalys highspeed 

service between Paris and 

Lille in northern France on comes 

in the wake of the recent violence in 

the region, including the attacks on 

satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, 

the Thalys train from Oignies to 

Pas-de-Calais France, and the most 

recent attacks at the Bataclan and 

other locations in Paris. The decision 

to install passenger screening 

equipment at these rail facilities by 

December 20, 2015 was implemented 

on schedule and could have a ripple 

effect throughout the region, as 

the Schengen agreement comes into 

question, resulting in more demand 

for explosives, weapons and contraband 

detection equipment (EWC). 

Despite the current threats to passenger 

rail systems in Europe there 

have been no widespread installations 

of passenger screening equip- 

More on page 35 

DATA THAT MATTERS 

SECURITY THAT DELIVERS 

AMERISTARSECURITY.COM | 888-333-3422 

11

No silver lining in cloud-based mass 

notification solutions, says 

Desktop Alert CEO Howard Ryan 


When it comes to setting up an 

emergency mass notification system, 

some people may use clouded 

judgment. 

If the system used to notify affected 

personnel of an emergency – 

such as an active shooter 

in the vicinity – is entirely 

cloud based, then 

emergency managers run 

the very real risk of having 

the message delayed, 

or even worse; never delivered 

by an overtaxed 

system that may have too 

many demands placed 

upon it to deliver an urgent 

message to thousands of people 

in a timely manner. That’s according 

to Howard Ryan, the CEO and 

founder of Desktop Alert, a mass 

notification system that can be implemented 

within an organization’s 

existing network infrastructure. 

That became evident in 2014, he 

said, when a shooting took place 

at Fort Hood. Desktop Alert which 

was deployed on site, notified over 

30,000 people about the event and 

Howard Ryan, CEO and 

founder, Desktop Alert 

got the message out before a separate 

cloud-based system notified approximately 

10,000 members. 

When lives are at stake every second 

counts, Ryan said. According 

to the Federal Bureau of Investigations, 

60 percent of active shooter 

incidents end before police arrived. 

More than a third of 

were over in two minutes 

or less. Even when law 

enforcement was present 

or able to respond within 

minutes, civilians often 

had to make life and 

death decisions and must 

be engaged with timely 

and accurate life-saving 

information. 

Mass notification isn’t just a job 

for Ryan. It’s a passion for him, and 

it shows as he talks about how product 

helps the military and other clients 

send urgent messages quickly. 

His voice commands attention as he 

speaks from authority. Ryan started 

Desktop Alert 14 years ago, but he’s 

been involved in programming for 

about 25 years. 

The cloud does have some benefits, 

Ryan said. In particular, the cloud is 

useful when you need overall situational 

awareness of what’s happening 

at numerous sites simultaneously. 

But while the cloud is creating a 

lot of buzz for uses in government 

and commercial sectors it’s not the 

cure-all for everything, Ryan said. 

Let’s say you have several geographically 

separated facilities. If 

you need to centrally push an alert 

to all those sites, each of which may 

have thousands of users, through 

the cloud, then you run the risk of 

having the message being delayed. 

Ryan, who before turning his attention 

to computer programing 

and network architecture became 

the youngest person in New York 

to receive his master plumber license, 

compared using the cloud in 

that manner to a building’s plumbing 

system. As people turn on more 

faucets – place more demands on 

finite resources - , it takes each of 

those faucets longer to provide the 

amount desired. 

Another critical problem with using 

the cloud, extending the plumbing 

metaphor, is what Ryan called 

friction loss – similar to what happens 

with water as it has to navigate 

12

pipes in a house. With each turn, a 

little bit of volume and velocity is 

lost. “The more turns in the delivery, 

the slower the delivery,” he said. 

With Desktop Alert, the heavy 

lifting happens on the existing network, 

which can relay the message 

to its users on a more-immediate 

basis, giving those on the network 

more time to respond to the alert. 

In most instances, the alert can go 

out in less than a minute. In fact, 

with its shot detection technology, 

Ryan said it can automatically send 

an alert the instant a shot is fired resulting 

in a lock down of an entire 

campus, hospital, or office building 

in under 60 seconds. 

Besides Fort Hood, the system is 

currently in use at hundreds of sites 

across the country and around the 

world. Those include key government 

entities like the Federal Emergency 

Management Agency, the U.S. 

Air Force, U.S. Northern Command 

and the Army and Air National 

Guards. 

With the Department of Defense 

taking a much closer look at how 

it sends mass notification alerts in 

wake of recent incidents both on 

and off military facilities, including 

recruiting and reserve facilities like 

those in Chattanooga, TN that was 

attacked last July. After five military 

personnel – four Marines and 

a Navy sailor – died after a gunman 

opened fire, the Department of Defense 

ordered a comprehensive re- 

More on page 21 

POWER TO PROTECT 

SECURING WHAT MATTERS MOST 

AMERISTARSECURITY.COM | 888-333-3422 

13

Relations between police and their communities 

remain strong, but better communication can 

strengthen the bonds 


CHICAGO, IL – Law enforcement 

officials from all across the world 

came here for the annual International 

Association of Chiefs of Police 

conference, and as part of the 

annual convention, there was a focus 

on how agencies can improve 

their relationships with their local 

communities. 

The conference occurred at the 

same time the latest video of an officer’s 

questionable use of force – 

footage from a resource officer at a 

South Carolina school throwing a 

teenage girl out of her desk –became 

viral. While that video was making 

headlines and leading newscasts, 

President Barack Obama told those 

in attendance that he supports their 

efforts fully. 

“I reject any narrative that seeks to 

divide police and the communities 

they serve,” Obama said to applause 

during his remarks concluding the 

conference. “I reject a storyline that 

says when it comes to public safety, 

there’s an us and a them. A narrative 

that too often gets served up to us 

by news stations seeking ratings or 

tweets seeking retweets or political 

candidates seeking some attention.” 

While it may seem that the relationship 

between law enforcement 

agencies and the people they’re 

sworn to protect and serve may be 

fraying, a recent survey conducted 

by the University of Phoenix College 

of Security and Criminal Justice 

indicates the opposite. The online 

questionnaire conducted among 

2,030 Americans by Harris Poll reports 

86 percent of have some level 

of satisfaction with their local police 

agency. 

But more than three-quarters of 

those polled also believe police officers 

can do more to improve relationships. 

Mark Logan, a retired 

law enforcement official who serves 

as the assistant dean at the Univer- 

14 

sity of Phoenix, said 

agencies can do a 

better job of promoting 

communicating 

and sharing their 

perceptions with the 

communities they 

serve. 

Law enforcement 

agencies need “to really 

promote transparency 

and what we 

do, what law enforcement does, as 

far as enforcement practices, with 

the community so they can have a 

better understanding of what’s going 

on.” Logan said. 

While the overwhelming majority 

of the public backs their police 

officers, 65 percent said they did 

not know if the agencies serving 

them had a liaison for community 

relations and half said they feel resources 

are available so they can get 

information from police. 

Logan said it’s vital for agencies to 

practice community policing techniques 

and involve the communities 

in discussions to address and deter 

criminal activity. One way that can 

be done is through the use of social 

media sites, like Facebook and Twit-

ter, so that officers can reach the entire 

community, Logan said. 

“It’s important that we, law enforcement 

professionals, practitioners, 

educators, embrace this technology, 

these changes… We need to 

be in there and embrace that so that 

we can communicate on the same 

level, communicate with one another 

more efficiently,” 

The public places high expectations 

on law enforcement officers, 

Obama said, who thanked those in 

attendance for protecting the nation. 

And he said the work of police 

across the country have made the 

safest it has been in decades 

“Every day, your risk your lives, 

so that the rest of us don’t have to,” 

Obama said. 

This was the first time the university 

conducted a national survey on 

law enforcement and community 

relations. Logan said they wanted to 

get the public’s opinion to help the 

school, which offers law enforcement 

and security classes at 13 campuses 

and through its online portal, 

develop course content to help its 

students better serve their communities. 

“Sure, there are some opportunities 

for change, for improvement,” 

Logan said. “But, for the most part, 

our law enforcement is trusted.” 

15

Democratic House Leader Steny H. Hoyer visits 

McMurdo Readiness and Response Center 

LANHAM, MD, December 18 - 

Rep. Steny H. Hoyer (D-Maryland), 

second ranking member of the US 

House of Representatives Democratic 

leadership, recently visited 

the McMurdo Emergency Readiness 

and Response Experience 

Center, which is located at Mc- 

Murdo’s Americas headquarters in 

the Washington, DC suburb of Lanham, 

Maryland. 

The unique, state-of-the-art Mc- 

Murdo center, which is located in 

Rep. Hoyer’s Congressional District, 

showcases the latest innovations and 

technology developments for search 

and rescue (SAR) in an immersive 

experience with real-time demonstrations 

of the entire SAR process 

– from distress beacon activation to 

satellite-based location detection to 

emergency response coordination. 

“I was pleased to visit McMurdo 

to see firsthand the work they are 

doing to design, develop and test 

new search and rescue and maritime 

coastal surveillance systems 

that are sold to countries around the 

world,” Congressman Hoyer said. 

“I’m proud that McMurdo has had 

the opportunity to expand its markets 

and create good jobs here at 

home in Maryland. I look forward 

to continuing to be a strong supporter 

of McMurdo and other small 

businesses in the Fifth District so 

they can compete on a level playing 

field in overseas markets,” he added. 

As the industry’s first, single-vendor 

provider of end-to-end life-saving 

and tracking solutions, McMurdo 

provides its Experience Center 

visitors (which include key customers, 

partners and press in government, 

maritime, aviation and other 

industries), an understanding of the 

different search and rescue technologies 

by taking part in various 

emergency scenarios. Participants 

also have the opportunity to sit at 

16 

the controls of Mission Control 

Center and Rescue Coordination 

Center systems, similar to the Mc- 

Murdo solutions used around the 

world by NASA, National Oceanic 

and Atmospheric Administration 

(NOAA), Australia Maritime Safety 

Authority (AMSA), Maritime New 

Zealand (MNZ) and other leading 

SAR authorities. 

The Experience Center also features 

a working MEOSAR (Medium 

Earth Orbit Search and Rescue) 

satellite-based search and rescue 

system, the next generation version 

of the current Cospas-Sarsat satellite 

system that has saved more than 

37,000 lives since 1982. When fully 

deployed in the next 3 to 5 years, 

MEOSAR will greatly improve the 

existing SAR process with global 

coverage, near-instantaneous distress 

beacon detection and a unique 

Return Link Service feature that acknowledges 

distress signal receipt. 

MEOSAR’s advanced technologies, 

for example, will be able to accurately 

detect and locate a distress 

beacon signal almost instantaneously 

- instead of taking up to 30 

minutes today. 

For more information and to sign 

up for a tour of the McMurdo Experience 

Center, click here.

For more information about Mc- 

Murdo, visit the McMurdo web site. 

About McMurdo 

McMurdo is a global leader in 

emergency readiness and response 

including search and rescue and 

maritime domain awareness solutions. 

At the core of these solutions 

are resilient positioning, navigation 

and tracking products, technologies 

and applications that have helped to 

save over 37,000 lives since 1982. A 

division of Orolia, McMurdo brings 

together nearly 150 combined years 

of experience by consolidating 

proven Boatracs, Kannad, McMurdo, 

SARBE and Techno-Sciences, 

Inc. brands into the industry’s first 

end-to-end emergency readiness 

and response ecosystem (distress 

beacons, satellite connectivity infrastructure, 

monitoring/positioning 

software and emergency response 

management solutions). Airbus, 

Boeing, the British Royal Navy, the 

U.S. Coast Guard, NASA and others 

are among the hundreds of aviation, 

fishing, and government, marine 

and military customers around the 

world that trust McMurdo to prevent 

emergencies, protect assets and 

save lives. Established in January 

2014, has offices in France (Guidel 

and Sophia Antipolis), the U.K. 

(Portsmouth) and the U.S. (San Diego 

and Washington D.C.). 

Hikvision launches ‘Value Plus’ 

surveillance line for budget 

conscious customers 


Looking to provide some innovative 

products for customers who have financial 

constraints, Hikvision USA 

has unveiled a new line of cameras 

designed to fit their clients’ technical 

and financial needs. 

The Value Plus line comes on the 

heels of the company’s successful 

Value products, a company release 

said. The new 

line of indoor/ 

outdoor video 

cameras incorporates 

some of the technology 

from Hikvision’s higher end Smart 

series. The 2 and 4 mega pixel cameras 

come available in domes, compact 

domes, turrets and bullets. 

The cameras are ideally suited 

for customers who need a more 

advanced camera but have limited 

budgets, such as small businesses 

and schools. 

“The Value Plus line provides an 

unprecedented features-to-cost ratio 

for customers looking to benefit 

from high performing IP video surveillance,” 

explained Bob Germain, 

director of product management for 

Hikvision USA. 

17 

The company’s equipment is currently 

used by in such cities as Lawrence, 

MA and Philadelphia to help 

police and other civic officials, such 

as parks and recreation staff, monitor 

their communities and keep 

people safe. School districts across 

the country ranging in size from 

large metropolitan systems to an 

11-school Texas charter system also 

use Hikvision’s equipment to monitor 

public areas, 

including 

hallways, stairwells, 

doorways, 

parking lots and other gathering 

places. 

The Value Plus 2 MP camera offers 

1080p high-definition resolution 

at a speed of 30 frames per 

second, while the 4 MP camera offers 

2688-by-1520 resolution at 20 

frames per second. Both cameras 

can capture high quality images in 

either extremely bright or dark environments, 

and they feature infrared 

options at ranges of up to 150 

feet. In addition, the cameras work 

easily with Hikvision’s line of plug 

and play Network Video Recorders. 

In addition to the cameras, Hikvi- 

More on page 36

Using Video Intelligence to Protect 

Critical Public Infrastructure 

By Kimbry McClure 

Solutions Architect in the 

Office of the CTO at Hitachi 

Data Systems Federal 

Law enforcement and other 

entities charged with protecting 

national security are 

spending more time than 

ever planning and implementing 

security measures that ensure national 

security and improve public 

safety. This is for good reason: from 

the energy grid to sporting events to 

airports, security personnel know 

these venues are enticing targets 

for terrorist attacks due to the large 

amount of people and resources 

clustered together in one place. 

In a world of heightened extremism, 

lone wolf attacks, and general 

global instability, it is not beyond 

imagination to foresee a scenario 

where a small team of terrorists seizes 

a U.S. airport. With the prospect 

of hostage taking and hijackings 

looming large, the response time 

for emergency personnel and law 

enforcement becomes critical. First 

responders must locate the terrorists 

and their hostages quickly to coordinate 

an effective response. This 

requires enhanced 

detection capabilities 

that can seamlessly 

distribute information 

to decision makers 

and emergency 

personnel to identify 

and respond to threats 

in real time. 

To stay a step ahead of attackers, 

security and emergency personnel 

need a common operational picture 

to communicate with civil and federal 

agency authorities. This picture 

is not only essential in coordinating 

a rescue, but also in securing additional 

areas of the airport facility 

that the terrorists have yet to seize 

as well as collect evidence for both 

investigative and legal purposes. 

With many entities tasked with 

restoring airport security, organizations 

need the right technology 

to assist them. An important tool 

emerging in security today is a video 

intelligence system that assists 

emergency responders and officials 

in reaching their security objectives. 

Not Your Old-School 

CC-TV Cameras 

18 

Many people imagine video surveillance 

cameras to be a single camera 

mounted on a wall pointing in a 

particular direction and transmitting 

video to a single television. In 

this scenario, multiple cameras in 

different locations within the same 

building work in isolation and only 

detect motion and images. 

Most people do not realize that 

video intelligence has evolved tremendously 

in recent years. Today’s 

video intelligence system consists 

of a wide range of disparate sensor 

data combined into a single portal. 

The integration of sensor data into 

one place is a critical development 

for law enforcement working in 

time sensitive situations. 

Back in our besieged airport, authorities 

do not have time to monitor 

separate video camera, alarm 

systems, GPS, and other audio, visual, 

and social media monitoring 

systems separately. Officials need 

data from these sensors to be organized 

in such a way that patterns 

can be quickly detected to ensure 

rapid decision-making. 

As law enforcement officials analyze 

the data received from multiple 

sensors, a video intelligence system 

triages the data received. During

the airport terrorist attack, law enforcement 

is able to discern that the 

screaming coming from an airport 

personnel-only hallway is more important 

to respond to than the traveling 

high school band playing their 

instruments in the airport concourse. 

First responders have the 

ability to triage behaviors because 

the video intelligence system has 

automated the monitoring process 

on a scale much larger than manpower 

can provide. 

Automating data collection, organization 

and storage gives law enforcement 

attempting to prevent or 

respond to a terrorist attack a more 

speedy, meticulous and effective 

overall security strategy. Authorities 

no longer have to allocate manpower 

to spending time searching 

and investigating each person who 

is in a facility. Since different people 

present various behaviors, some that 

indicate a higher security risk than 

others, video intelligence systems 

flag these behaviors for law enforcement 

and give them the knowledge 

needed to make critical decisions. 

Overcoming the Unknown 

Adding automation to data collection 

and analysis provides other 

benefits. Criminals and terrorists 

are constantly changing their tactics. 

As a result, law enforcement 

does not always know the behavior 

profile to match the changing 

tactics. The integration of a video 

intelligence system provides law enforcement 

flexibility to quickly and 

easily input into the system new behaviors 

for the sensors to monitor. 

Without unified data management, 

authorities would need to take more 

time and manpower to update the 

sensors on what new behaviors to 

track. 

Authorities may also face uncertainty 

over which agencies, groups 

and decision makers need access to 

which data points. Today’s homeland 

security and emergency response 

strategies involve multiple 

agencies, organizations and decision 

makers. These groups require 

that data be shared in real-time to 

establish a common operating picture. 

The video intelligence system 

overcomes data sharing challenges 

by creating a single portal to store 

and view information. As a result, 

information can be shared with ease 

between various coordinating entities. 

How to Implement a Modern 

Video Intelligence System 

19 

Many in government are concerned 

about how much value they will receive 

when implementing new technology 

systems. The good news is 

a modern video intelligence system 

is not only effective, but also simple 

to implement. The system’s design 

focuses on an interface that is integrated 

into an organization’s current 

IT systems, including legacy 

IT. Therefore, the video intelligence 

system is built based on customization 

and flexibility. Additionally, the 

video intelligence system includes 

sensors, compute power and onboard 

storage that can be installed 

and implemented rapidly. 

Deploying a video intelligence 

platform gives law enforcement a 

technological asset that keeps pace 

with terrorists and criminals today 

and in the future. By placing these 

tools under a single management 

layer, law enforcement can devote 

more resources to what truly matters: 

ensuring public safety. 

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Geofeedia, Mutualink among companies that helped 

law enforcement protect Pope Francis during U.S. visit 


CHICAGO, IL – By all accounts, 

Pope Francis’ visit to the United 

States in September was a huge undertaking. 

Millions of people came out to 

see the pope during his six-day 

visit to the states. Because of the 

large crowds and the pope’s stature 

as a global leader, the Department 

of Homeland Security designated 

the entire visit as a national special 

security event, putting it on par 

with such events as previous Super 

Bowls, State of the Union addresses 

and the 2002 Winter Olympics. 

James Yacone, the assistant director 

of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s 

Critical Incident Response 

Group, said the event was going to 

be one of the largest security endeavors 

in the country’s history. 

Local, state and federal organizations 

coordinated their efforts for 

months and held drills in each of 

the cities in the weeks leading up to 

the trip. 

“Preparations for events such as 

this are a cooperative effort,” said 

Diego Rodriguez, assistant director 

in charge of the FBI’s New York 

Field Office. “No one federal, state, 

or local agency alone can carry out 

the measures necessary to secure 

the event.” 

And those agencies must rely on 

contractors and vendors, who provide 

essential equipment and services 

to ensure security for the pope’s 

visit – or any event that requires the 

presence of law enforcement – goes 

smoothly. 

The Pennsylvania State Police relied 

on Geofeedia to help it monitor 

social media while Pope Francis and 

the throngs he attracted during his 

visit to Philadelphia. The company, 

which was founded four years ago, 

offers social media monitoring to 

law enforcement agencies so they 

can better monitor large events and 

20 

crime scenes for possible criminal 

activity or evidence. 

One of the things authorities had 

Geofeedia help them set up was a 

search for emojis, which are images 

often placed in social media posts to 

communicate feelings. Specifically, 

Geofeedia helped the state police set 

up a search for any post that included 

a law enforcement-related emoji, 

such as a police shield, followed by a 

weapon pointed at it. 

The state police’s analysts were using 

Geofeedia inside the Intelligence 

Operations Center set up for the 

pope’s visit, said Melissa Mumma, 

an intelligence analyst supervisor 

with the state police. That allowed 

state police to share any alerts they 

received instantly with their law enforcement 

partners to determine if 

it was a credible threat. 

“If we got an alert, if we saw… 

a term came through of concern, 

we actually could pull that up,” she 

said. “We could click on that, and 

it would show up where that was” 

posted geographically. 

When people go to major events, 

they will not just bring their smartphone 

with them, but they’ll also 

post on Facebook, Twitter and In-

stagram from their location. That 

information, including the images 

they share can sometimes be valuable 

to law enforcement in trying to 

track down suspects and possible 

threats. 

“We actually aggregate eight platforms,” 

Geofeedia co-founder Mike 

Mulroy said. “People are not only 

sharing their location, they’re also 

sharing what they’re seeing, what 

they’re doing. This is a time in history 

that is unlike any other.” 

Another company aiding in the 

pope’s visit to Philadelphia was 

Mutualink, which helped bring together 

50 agencies across the Mid- 

Atlantic and Northeast regions so 

they could communicate and share 

data securely. For example, when a 

Pennsylvania State Police helicopter 

would take video of the crowd at an 

event, Mutualink’s system allowed 

officials in New Jersey. 

“That whole ecosystem everybody 

talks about, we’re out there doing 

that,” Mutualink President Colin 

McWay said. 

Besides the Philadelphia area, 

dozens of agencies around the New 

York area also used Mutualink to 

help them coordinate security during 

the pope’s visit to the nation’s 

largest city. 

Mutualink creates interoperable 

platforms that can bring together 

agencies that may not use the same 

equipment or communicate on the 

same frequency. It offers a plug-andplay 

secured solution that allows 

agencies to decide when to bring in 

other agencies. 

“What we’re able to do is take 

whatever media any agency has – 

radio, video, data – secure it and put 

it on whatever pipe they have available,” 

McWay said. “So whether it’s 

terrestrial IP or commercial 4G or 

the new FirstNet, which were running 

on where it exists, and allow 

that to be shared with any other organization 

anywhere in the country. 

Having these types of resources 

for local and state agencies is important, 

especially for major events, 

because of the number of officers 

and troopers they can provide, Yacone 

said. 

“Neither the FBI nor the Secret 

Service could do our jobs effectively 

without them because they are 

bringing the capacity.” 

21 

Cloud-based Mass Notification 

comes with serious risks – 

Desktop Alert’s Ryan 

Continued from page 13 

view of all mass notification capabilities 

across the department. 

“I direct the Services to implement 

additional physical security 

enhancements at off-installation facilities 

and to put in place improved 

mass warning and alert notification 

capabilities to help safeguard 

DoD personnel,” Defense Secretary 

Ash Carter said in an October 2015 

memo. 

The capabilities Carter seeks includes 

alerting sites like recruiting 

centers that are not located on military 

installations. These sites need 

to have the ability to notify local first 

responders and other nearby military 

facilities. Carter wants those 

sites to start using the new systems 

by this spring. 

Ryan believes his system can provide 

what Carter wants for all facets 

of the Defense Department. 

“I’ve always taken a very direct 

path toward creating the best software, 

the fastest software, the most 

reliable software, the most redundant 

software (and) the more competitively 

priced software,” he said. 

Desktop Alert offers more detail on its 

website at: https://www.desktopalert. 

net/Solutions/the-cloud-and-emns/.

Utility Associates unveils cameras that are 

embedded in clothing and video technology 

that protects bystanders’ privacy 


CHICAGO, IL – A Georgia-based 

company has unveiled a new solution 

it says will help law enforcement 

agencies respond to media 

and public requests for information 

in a more time-effective manner 

while protecting the identity of innocent 

bystanders. 

Utility Associates, Inc., unveiled 

its Smart Redaction technology at 

the International Association of 

Chiefs of Police conference. The 

company showcased its new products, 

which can be used with bodyworn 

or in-car video systems. 

With more law enforcement agencies 

opting to have their officers wear 

body cameras, company officials 

expect that will lead to an increase 

in Freedom of Information Act requests 

for the footage captured on 

those devices. Protecting bystanders’ 

identities can be a cumbersome 

task, taking up to 10 hours to manually 

redact one hour of video. 

With Smart Redaction, though, 

agencies can automatically redact 

all faces and other identifiable information, 

such as tattoos, from an 

image, or users can opt to reveal one 

or more individuals as they move 

around and redact the remainder. 

Utility’s solution also can mute audio 

to protect victims and bystanders 

as well as keeping confidential 

information private. 

“Until now Police Departments 

have been in a tough spot between 

accountability, transparency and 

cost”, said CEO Robert McKeeman. 

“However, Smart Redaction resolves 

this dilemma. Police Departments 

can now reliably and quickly 

redact body-worn video at low cost 

to respond to a rapidly rising tide 

of body-worn video FOIA requests. 

The public will have confidence 

their police department is accountable 

and transparent in citizen interactions 

when body-worn video 

FOIA requests are fulfilled on a 

timely basis.” 

In addition to the redaction solution, 

Utility Associates also showcased 

its body camera solution that 

is embedded in an officer’s clothing. 

The cameras can be turned on automatically 

when the officer turns on 

his lights for a stop, or the camera 

can be turned on remotely. 

By putting the camera inside a 

shirt, it can keep the equipment 

from being inadvertently moved 

or knocked off, said Kelli Worley, 

22 

an account manager with Utility. 

A visible camera also can lead to a 

confrontation with a criminal believes 

the camera caught them doing 

something illegal. 

The integrated camera can be 

placed into either a vest or the officer’s 

shirt. 

“We work with all the major manufacturers 

that are out there for uniforms,” 

she said. 

Beyond capturing video, the camera 

also can detect if an officer is 

down or unresponsive. If an officer 

does not get up or speak, it will send 

a notice to dispatch with the officer’s 

location and begin recording automatically. 

Among the law enforcement 

agencies Utility works with include: 

the Atlanta Police Department, the 

Dallas County (Texas) Sheriff ’s Office 

and the New York Metropolitan 

Transit Authority Police. 

Founded in 2001, Utility is based 

in Decatur, Ga., just outside of Atlanta. 

Funded by venture capitalists, 

the company produces solutions 

for locating, tracking and supporting 

mobile field operations. Besides 

working with law enforcement, the 

company has experience working 

with water, power and other infrastructure 

companies as well as public 

transit agencies.


HID Global looks ahead at top trends for 

secure identity in 2016 

AUSTIN, Texas, January 13, 2016 – 

HID Global®, a worldwide leader in 

secure identity solutions, has identified 

security 2016 trends to watch 

based on its deep insights gained 

from top customers across numerous 

markets, along with pilots and 

deployments of the company’s latest 

solutions with forward-looking 

partners and end-user organizations 

worldwide. HID Global’s broad industry 

perspective has positioned 

the company to pinpoint five key 

developments that it believes will 

have the greatest impact during this 

year on identity and access management, 

citizen identification and the 

Internet of Things (IoT). 

“We’re watching several developing 

trends in the new year, including 

growing demand for a more 

mobile-centric and satisfying user 

experience that HID Global believes 

will be the primary driver for security 

technology innovation in 2016,” 

said Stefan Widing, HID Global 

President and CEO. “Customers 

will increasingly aspire to a comprehensive 

secure identity experience 

for their users that can provide the 

foundation for more flexible, adaptable 

solutions in a new era of interconnected 

digital identities and the 

Internet of Things.” 

HID Global’s 2016 trends point 

to a more mobile and connected 

experience, ongoing advancements 

in privacy protection and broader 

adoption of best practices for solution 

deployment. The trends include: 

 

will make it more pervasive and 

a new, more secure 

identity lifestyle will be built around 

the convenience of ever-present 

mobile devices. Computer and 

network logon, driver licenses and 

other applications will more seamlessly 

join physical security functions 

on phones, tablets and laptops. 

Wearables will be the next step, and 

phones will also work with RFID 

tags to add security and trust to the 

IoT for proof-of-presence applications. 

23 

 

a much greater focus on the user 

This will help close the 

gap between planning and compliance, 

while ensuring that security 

adapts to rather than defines enduser 

habits and lifestyles. Old ways 

of authenticating will be replaced by 

more satisfying alternatives. 

 

identities will fuel safety and innovation 

in how we work, shop and 

The industry will enter its next 

new chapter of connected identities, 

employing multi-layered security 

strategies that also include biometrics 

in order to bind these identities 

to their legitimate owners. 

tention 

on privacy in an increasingly 

connected and mobile-first 

Identity will expand beyond 

More on page 36


The continuing evolution of Access Control 

technologies 

By Robert Laughlin, President 

Galaxy Control Systems 

In the last year, the role of access 

control has grown and expanded, 

due in large part to the 

continued evolution of network 

technologies and solutions. We 

live in a connected world where 

more and more devices of all 

types are being added to networks, 

so it makes sense that networked 

and software-based access control 

solutions have been key drivers of 

growth within this segment. Enhanced 

features and functions have 

enabled advanced systems that improve 

both security and operations 

while fitting within the often tight 

budgetary restrictions nearly all 

governments and agencies face today. 

The evolution of access control 

systems and applications is interesting 

to watch, and as these systems 

become more advanced, they will 

change the way government agencies 

choose, install, deploy and use 

these solutions. With that in mind, 

there are a number of trends to 

watch that will have the greatest impact 

in 2016 and beyond. 

24 

Integration 

The network has 

transformed access 

control systems 

from standalone 

solutions 

into a vital part 

of a more robust, 

highly integrated 

system that allows 

users to utilize a single control 

platform to monitor the state 

of a location or facility. Today’s advanced 

access control solutions can 

be integrated with human resources, 

identity management, video surveillance, 

parking and other security 

and non-security systems, all 

of which provide information and 

intelligence in the form of data that 

contributes to the emerging model 

of predictive analytics. The actionable 

intelligence that results from 

this analysis helps move security 

from a reactive to a more proactive 

function. 

With more complete information, 

advanced access control solutions 

enable better management of 

access control policies and procedures. 

By integrating these solutions 

with human resources, agencies can 

use personnel data to automatically 

populate and program identity card 

data fields to create access credentials. 

Compatibility 

As access control technologies 

evolve, end users must protect their 

previous investments while ensuring 

that they can implement more 

advanced solutions in the future. 

This is especially important for government 

applications, which can 

comprise a large number and variety 

of security and non-security 

systems across multiple locations 

and buildings. Additionally, a single 

system, such as access control, may 

include both new and legacy solutions 

from a variety of manufacturers, 

which may or may not be able to 

communicate with each other. 

Software-based controllers and 

other technologies excel at providing 

backward compatibility and enabling 

best-of-breed systems, allowing 

for uniformity in new or existing 

deployments. By making it possible 

for legacy and new solutions to coexist 

within the same system, these 

technologies enable custom systems 

that standardize an array of diverse 

solutions into a single system that

provides multiple upgrade options 

to ensure government agencies can 

meet their security needs while 

remaining within budgetary constraints. 

Beyond Security 

Today’s software-based access control 

systems offer capabilities that 

go outside of the traditional security 

realm to contribute to overall 

operations. In one example, a school 

system needed a better way to manage 

student traffic between modular 

temporary classrooms in use during 

construction of a new facility and 

the main school building. A main 

concern was with children from 

the modular classrooms using restrooms 

and other facilities located in 

the main building throughout the 

school day. Administrators seeking 

a more efficient means to track student 

movements beyond conventional 

hall passes issued proximity 

devices for use in access readers in 

the portable classrooms and at all 

entrances to the main school building. 

This enabled monitoring of 

students’ locations, with a predetermined 

amount of time allotted for 

both ways between their classroom 

and the main building. If a student 

failed to report back within that 

timeframe, the system issued a general 

alert. This is just one example 

of how access control solutions can 

expanded to address requirements 

beyond security. 

Mobile and Wireless 

Today it seems as if everyone has a 

mobile device of some kind, so it’s 

no surprise that wireless and Wi- 

Fi technology have made their way 

into access control, as evidenced by 

the number of wireless readers that 

have emerged. For government applications, 

this allows wireless access 

control solutions to be deployed at 

remote locations, as well as to protect 

moving locations such as trains 

or buses. Near field communication 

(NFC) and other location-based 

data also 

present interesting 

opportunities 

for 

access control, 

although 

adoption and 

evolution of 

these technologies 

will 

25 

take time. Both wired and wireless 

technologies will have a place in 

the future, so it is important to consider 

how these technologies will 

interface and/or integrate, particularly 

given the growth of the BYOD 

(bring your own device) model. 

For government applications, the 

advanced technologies behind today’s 

access control solutions enable 

users to monitor facilities and 

share data across multiple systems, 

expanding the capabilities of access 

control. As a result, networked systems 

offer the potential for innovative 

applications that deliver heightened 

situational awareness and 

greater overall security. As these 

solutions and technologies evolve, 

they will offer even greater functionality 

and the flexibility to address 

the unique security and budgetary 

requirements of each specific 

government application.


House passes Visa Waiver 

program bill that excludes 

nationals of Syria, Iraq, 

Iran and Sudan 

By Joshua Breisblatt 

While Congress may be backing 

away from targeting the refugee 

resettlement program in reaction 

to recent terrorist attacks, lawmakers 

appear to have found a new 

target: the Visa Waiver Program 

(VWP). The VWP allows travelers 

from certain countries to enter the 

United States without obtaining a 

visa in advance. Currently, 38 countries, 

including France, the United 

Kingdom and Taiwan, are part of 

this program, with over 20 million 

visitors utilizing it each year. It was 

created to facilitate more efficient 

inbound travel to the U.S. and requires 

pre-screening of travelers 

who are pre-approved through the 

program. In designating a country 

to participate, the Department of 

Homeland Security, in consultation 

with the Secretary of State, considers 

only those the U.S. holds “the 

best law-enforcement and security 

relationships with.” 

At the end of November, the 

White House announced new security 

enhancements for the VWP and 

26 

a willingness to work with Congress 

to make additional improvements. 

Tuesday, the House of Representatives 

overwhelmingly passed, H.R. 

158, the Visa Waiver Improvement 

and Terrorist Travel Prevention Act 

of 2015 by a vote of 407 to 19. The 

text of this bill, like the refugee bill 

passed in November, was rushed 

to the floor with little review (no 

committee markup or hearings 

on the legislation). The bill terminates 

VWP travel privileges for all 

citizens of VWP countries who are 

also nationals of Iraq, Syria, Iran, or 

Sudan, essentially singling out and 

discriminating based on nationality 

and national origin. It also excludes 

all individuals who have traveled 

since March 1, 2011 to certain 

countries– including Syria, Iraq and 

other designated countries. The bill 

also establishes additional reporting 

and eligibility requirements for 

VWP countries and enhancements 

to the Electronic System for Travel 

Authorization (ESTA). 

Many organizations expressed 

concern over the language, saying 

it is overbroad and will have unintended 

consequences, with one example 

being making it potentially 

more difficult for journalists and 

humanitarian aid workers to travel. 

And, according to media reports 

the European Union is concerned 

as well. David O’Sullivan, the European 

Union ambassador to the U.S., 

said visa-waiver members are “really 

quite concerned about what is 

happening and fear that this could 

be extremely counterproductive.” 

Despite the criticism, and partly 

due to the lopsided vote in the 

House Tuesday, there is a great deal 

of discussion about including this 

bill in the Omnibus spending bill, a 

must pass bill that will keep the government 

from shutting down. The 

current spending bill is set to expire 

this Friday, December 11, 2015. 

Those discussions, however, are still 

ongoing, and for now, the VWP bill 

heads over to the Senate, which has 

a variety of its own VWP proposals. 

In the wake of several recent tragedies, 

the rush is on in Congress 

to take steps to keep America safe. 

Hopefully, in the process, Congress 

does not make careless and hurried

IntelliNet Sensors, Inc. announces the global 

launch of the Lynx3-A Detector to find 

individuals hiding inside a cargo container 

IRVINE, CA, December 14 - IntelliNet 

Sensors, Inc., a developer of 

multi-sensor breathing and heartbeat 

detectors, announced the 

launch of its Lynx3-A Mountable 

Breathing Detector System for the 

detection of live persons inside cargo 

containers. 

The networked and advanced sensors 

are designed to detect the existence 

of live persons hiding inside 

a container or a vessel, while an integrated 

video camera system and 

other sensors capture the information 

of the vehicle. Unmatched in the 

industry, the Lynx family’s patented 

Sense-Through-The-Air Technology 

enables networking between 

the various units of the Lynx3-A to 

identify multiple hiding individuals 

inside a compartment. 

decisions that discriminate against 

particular nationalities and dismantle 

useful programs. 

See more at: http://immigrationimpact.com/2015/12/09/ 

house-passes-visa-waiver-programbill-that-excludes-nationals-of-syria-iraq-iran-and-sudan/#sthash. 

k4YqDcHC.dpuf 

The system is superior to existing 

carbon dioxide detectors, sniffing 

dogs and X-ray or other heavily radiating 

systems in many ways: traditional 

solutions of using carbon 

dioxide detection is time consuming 

and erroneous at certain occasions, 

X-ray and other radiation 

sources need to be in high doses 

which poses numerous health risks 

for operators and hiding persons, 

and K-9s are inefficient in windy 

conditions and can be deceived. 

The ultra-wideband radio frequency 

system searches for changes in 

the electro-magnetic signature of 

a confined volume and registers its 

minuscule perturbations. The rapid 

deployment of the system across 

borders, loading docks of airplanes, 

27 

and vessels allows authorities to expeditiously 

detect and prevent human 

trafficking and illegal entry - a 

factor that traditional sensors are 

lacking. 

“By remotely using the sensors in 

multiple points spatially, hiding individuals 

are detected in real-time 

at the fraction of capital expenditure 

and operating cost,” commented Dr. 

Fred Mohamadi, Founder and President 

of IntelliNet Sensors. 

About IntelliNet Sensors, Inc. 

IntelliNet Sensors, Inc. (INS) is a 

privately held U.S. company that 

develops advanced electronic modules 

with very small form factors, 

highly integrated functionality, and 

advanced performance for a wide 

range of commercial applications. 

INS has more than twenty granted 

patents, as well as numerous pending 

patent applications. Because 

each is specifically related to breathing 

and heartbeat detection technology 

at extended ranges, INS is 

uniquely positioned to serve port 

authorities, border protection agencies, 

local, state, and federal law 

enforcement agencies, and first responder 

communities in spreading 

their life-saving and security efforts 

globally. 

For further information, please 

visit the Company’s website at www. 

IntelliNetSensors.com


HID Global receives order to produce Next-Gen 

U.S. Permanent Resident “Green Cards” 

AUSTIN, TX, December 8 - HID 

Global®, a worldwide leader in secure 

identity solutions, has received 

an order from the U.S. government 

for the redesign, manufacture and 

supply of the country’s Permanent 

Resident Card – commonly known 

as the “Green Card.” The $88.3 million 

agreement marks the company’s 

largest government contract to 

date, extending a nearly two-decade 

relationship for another five years. 

The agreement expands production 

to include the manufacture and 

supply of additional government 

documents that will be enhanced 

with RFID technology for improved 

fraud protection. 

“We are proud of our long-standing 

relationship with the U.S. government 

and are committed 

to delivering a 

new generation of the 

U.S. Green Card along 

with new high-security 

employment documents 

for them in the years to 

come,” said Rob Haslam, 

vice president of Government ID 

Solutions with HID Global. “This 

contract award proves anew that 

HID Global has been and will continue 

to be the country’s preeminent 

supplier of secure government ID 

document solutions through four 

successive generations of U.S. Green 

Cards and beyond.” 

HID Global will be responsible 

for the secure production, delivery 

and storage of up to 34 million 

identity cards over the next five 

years. More than 10 million of HID 

Global’s first-generation multi-technology 

eID cards have been issued 

as Green Cards since 2010, with 

more than 32 million of the company’s 

first-generation Green Cards 

issued since 1997. HID Global will 

also play a pivotal role in helping to 

upgrade today’s U.S. Employment 

Authorization Documents (EAD) 

by supplying cards featuring RFID 

technology and new, fraud-resistant 

security features. These advanced 

d o c u m e n t s , 

which serve as 

evidence of authorization 

to be 

employed in the 

United States, 

will be issued to 

individuals as 

they apply for new, renewal or replacement 

PRC and EAD cards. 

For more information on HID 

Global Government-to-Citizen ID 

Solutions, click here. 

For more HID Global news, visit 

Rob Haslam, VP Gov ID Solutions 

28 

our Media Center, read our Industry 

Blog, subscribe to our RSS Feed, 

watch our videos and follow us on 

Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter. 

About HID Global 

HID Global is the trusted source 

for innovative products, services, 

solutions, and know-how related to 

the creation, management, and use 

of secure identities for millions of 

customers around the world. The 

company’s served markets include 

physical and logical access control, 

including strong authentication 

and credential management; 

card printing and personalization; 

visitor management systems; highly 

secure government and citizen ID; 

and identification RFID technologies 

used in animal ID and industry 

and logistics applications. The 

company’s primary brands include 

ActivID®, EasyLobby®, FARGO®, 

IdenTrust®, LaserCard®, Lumidigm®, 

Quantum Secure, and HID®. Headquartered 

in Austin, Texas, HID 

Global has over 2,200 employees 

worldwide and operates international 

offices that support more 

than 100 countries. HID Global® is 

an ASSA ABLOY Group brand. For 

more information, visit http://www. 

hidglobal.com.

Airport/Aviation Security 

Needed: Let’s Make 2016 The Year of 

Innovation in Aviation Security 

By Eric Zanin, 

Senior Vice President and 

General Manager, Security 

and Detection Business for 

Analogic Corporation 

As recent events have made 

clear, the flying public is 

threatened by terrorists who 

are not only ruthless in their 

willingness to attack aviation, but 

who are willing and able to change 

tactics to exploit potential vulnerabilities 

in our aviation security system. 

From liquid explosives to shoe bombs 

to homemade explosives, terrorists 

have demonstrated a chilling capacity 

for rapid innovation to fool detection. 

The critical question is: can we, “the 

good guys”, keep up? Can we move to 

an aviation security approach where 

we innovate at the “speed of the 

threat”? 

I believe we can. Although serious 

challenges remain, there is a real window 

of opportunity in 2016. There is 

a heightened sense of urgency among 

lawmakers and the public; new leadership 

at the TSA; and an exciting 

pipeline of innovative technology 

coming from the security industry. If 

we can create ways to align and channel 

these forces for change, real progress 

is possible. 

Consider how much 

the mindset of the 

public and lawmakers 

have evolved in 

the last year. With the 

rise of ISIS and terrorist 

attacks in San 

Bernardino, Paris and 

Sharm El Shaik, there 

is very little glib talk of “aviation security 

theater”. Instead, there is broad, 

bi-partisan recognition and public 

support for common sense improvements 

to aviation security, such as 

improving the screening of airport 

employees and expanding the pool of 

“known and trusted travelers” in the 

TSA pre-check program. While these 

initiatives are worthwhile on their 

own, they also show, in my opinion, 

that there is public support for even 

broader innovation – provided it results 

in more effective security. 

What about TSA? For all of the 

challenges and constraints it has, it 

is worth pointing out its Pre-Check 

program was and is an important innovation 

in aviation security because, 

for the first time, passengers were given 

an opportunity to become “trusted 

travelers” through a vetting process. 

From a security standpoint, the 

29 

more passengers that move into the 

“trusted traveler” category, the more 

resources can be focused on higher 

priority risks. Although Pre-Check 

needs to be expanded and improved, 

it is encouraging because it shows 

that, under the right circumstances, 

system-wide innovation is feasible. I 

believe pre-check, as an interim measure, 

is a really positive move to flex 

the security checkpoint to optimize 

throughput, however it is not the optimal 

end state. Driving innovation 

in screening systems that will improve 

passenger throughput and increase 

security is the desired end state. All 

indications are that TSA’s new director, 

Admiral Peter Neffenger, wants to 

innovate and optimize. 

Finally, as leading international airports 

have demonstrated, there is no 

shortage of exciting solutions available 

from industry. For example, 

several leading security technology 

firms, including my own, Analogic 

Corporation, have developed a new 

type of checkpoint screening system 

that leverages the gold standard 

in checked baggage inspection- 3D 

computed tomography (CT) imaging 

technology. These 3D CT systems 

are far better than current fixed 2D 

More on page 30


x-ray systems at detecting potential 

threats such as homemade explosives 

(HMEs), and they allow passengers to 

keep their liquids and electronics in 

their carry-on bags. This drives dramatic 

improvement in a process that 

is aligned with the TSA’s stated goals 

of efficiency, security effectiveness, 

and passenger experience. If combined 

with other innovations, such as 

automated tray return systems, these 

innovations could dramatically increase 

throughput at the checkpoint 

while allowing TSA operators to 

spend more time detecting potential 

threats and less time “managing traffic”- 

meeting Admiral Neffenger’s 

goal of “screening at the speed of life.” 

 

Aviation Security Innovation 

2016 could be a year of innovation in 

aviation security. But as we all know, 

the window of opportunity could 

close quickly. A new crisis unrelated 

to aviation security could absorb public 

attention. Election year politics 

could make lawmakers cautious. 

So what can industry, lawmakers 

and the TSA do together– with limited 

resources -- to accelerate the pace 

of aviation security innovation? 

 

at 

Of the hundreds of US 

airports and thousands of US checkpoint 

lanes for passengers, crew and 

airport employees, it should be possible 

to establish some as operational 

test environments for new processes 

and technologies. My company, 

Analogic, has worked successfully 

with airports such as Schiphol in the 

Netherlands and London’s Luton, to 

demonstrate the effectiveness of new 

checkpoint screening technologies. 

 

Just as Silicon Valley firms 

such as Apple and Google will invite 

entrepreneurs to pitch them on new 

concepts, TSA could partner with the 

Aviation Security Advisory Committee 

(ASAC) to provide a regular venue 

for companies, organizations or local 

airports to present their ideas on how 

to improve security. 

- 

 

To be effective, each major component 

of aviation security – strategy, 

people, process, systems and technology 

needs to be as “future proof ” as 

possible. In other words, they need to 

be able to respond to the likely threats 

30 

of today and tomorrow, not just yesterday. 

And just as the Department 

of Defense issues a regular review and 

assessment of its capabilities in light 

of current threats facing the nation, 

TSA could provide its own public assessment 

of the “future proof ” capability 

of its assets. 

I believe these ideas, together with 

contributions from others in government 

and industry, will help build a 

culture of innovation within aviation 

security. The momentum and 

opportunity is there for us in 2016. 

Innovation has long been a strength 

and advantage of American society. 

It lifted us into the air at Kitty Hawk 

and landed us on the moon. It’s time 

to put it to use to make air travel more 

secure. 

Eric Zanin is Senior Vice President and 

General Manager for Analogic Corporation’s 

Security Systems Business. 

Eric holds the rank of captain and has 

spent over 25 years in the service of the 

U.S. Navy.

Air travel experts push situational 

awareness during the holiday rush 


As the Holiday travel season is coming 

down to its final week, the Transportation 

Security Administration 

expects to screen nearly 3 million 

passengers daily at airports across the 

country. 

Because of the increase in traffic, 

extra attention is paid to airline travel, 

which are already considered high 

profile targets for terrorist attacks. It 

was during this period 14 years ago 

when Richard Reid, better known as 

the “Shoe Bomber” unsuccessfully 

tried to detonate an explosive device 

on a plane bound for Miami. His attempt 

was thwarted by passengers 

on the flight, which originated from 

Paris. 

Recently, ExpertFlyer.com conducted 

a conversation with several 

airline and travel safety experts, who 

all noted that the chance of an incident 

or accident remains highly remote. 

The Website provides its subscribers, 

namely business travelers 

and corporate travel managers, with 

updated travel information. 

“Despite events recently covered in 

the news, air travel remains the safest 

means of travel,” explains Chris 

Lopinto, president and co-founder 

of ExpertFlyer.com. “We are glad we 

had an opportunity to speak with 

these security and safety experts before 

the holidays to hopefully help 

travelers minimize their anxiety and 

focus more on the joy of spending 

time with friends and family this holiday 

season.” 

One of the steps experts recommend 

is for foreign travelers to sign 

up for the State Department’s Smart 

Traveler Enrollment Program, which 

allows them to receive safety updates 

and other bulletins regarding 

their destination. They also echo the 

comments of Homeland Security 

and other government officials, who 

have created a campaign around the 

phrase: “If you see something, say 

something.” 

Phil Dernier, founder of 

the industry news organization 

NYCAviation.com, 

said: “For passengers, maintaining 

good situational 

awareness is something that 

should be exercised at all 

times, whether you’re flying 

or not.” 

Stephen Lloyd, a former 

Federal Aviation Administration 

safety director, concurred. 

“Your life and the lives of others depend 

on all of us as travelers reporting 

suspicious objects, packages or 

31 

bags without an owner,” said Lloyd, 

who is president of SJL and Associates, 

an aviation consulting firm. 

“This includes suspicious activity or 

behavior by any person.” 

While the TSA is often seen as the 

primary agency to deter and detect 

threats against airlines, the experts 

noted that the effort to combat airline 

terrorism goes well beyond the airport 

terminals. 

“It’s important to recognize that the 

real nuts-and-bolts of keeping terrorists 

away from planes don’t belong 

solely to the TSA screeners on the 

concourse,” explains Patrick Smith, 

an airline piloted and noted blogger 

and author. “It’s the combined efforts 

of law enforcement, FBI, CIA, 

Interpol and the TSA, all working 

together. From inspecting checked 

luggage and cargo to reviewing passenger 

data, any plotters 

are foiled long before they 

reach the airport.” 

Just how remote are 

your chances from dying 

in a plane crash? A study 

from Harvard University 

stated the odds are about 

Stephen Lloyd, 1 in 11 million. That’s 

SJL Associates – Former more than three times the 

FAA Safety Director risk of being attacked by 

a shark and significantly 

higher than dying in an automobile 

accident, which is 1 in 5,000.


50-plus European airports deploy 

Morpho’s Itemiser 4DX per new explosives 

screening mandates 

LONDON, UK, December 2 - Morpho 

(Safran), through its subsidiary 

Morpho Detection, today announced 

that more than 50 airports 

throughout Europe deployed 

Itemiser® 4DX explosives trace 

detectors (ETD) in 2015. 

The next-generation of the 

industry-leading Itemiser family 

of desktop ETD, Itemiser 

4DX was the most selected ETD 

system by airports to meet EU 

legislation for enhanced passenger 

screening effective September 

2015. With more than 900 

shipped worldwide this year, 

Morpho has deployed Itemiser 

4DX to leading European aviation 

hubs including in Austria, 

Denmark, Germany, Italy, Portugal, 

Spain, Switzerland and the UK. A 

lightweight, portable desktop system, 

Itemiser 4DX quickly detects 

and identifies trace amounts of explosives 

on skin, clothing, carried 

items, bags, vehicles and other surfaces. 

“By investing in localized sales and 

service support, Morpho Detection 

was able to offer airports a comprehensive 

solutions partner to meet 

the new regulations and we have 

been thrilled by the response of our 

Itemiser 4DX: Non-Radioactive-Based 

Explosives and Narcotics Detection 

32 

customers and partners,” said Karen 

Bomba, president and CEO, Morpho 

Detection. “Morpho Detection 

takes great pride in and thanks our 

customers for making us the leading 

supplier of European Civil Aviation 

Conference (ECAC)-approved 

ETD to airports in Europe. We will 

continue working tirelessly to serve 

our customers and grow this momentum 

in Europe and around the 

world.” 

Currently approved for passenger 

and cargo screening throughout 

ECAC’s 44 member nations, 

Itemiser 4DX delivers advanced 

explosives and narcotics detection 

and screening capabilities 

powered by a non-radioactive 

ITMS source. Designed for 

easy physical access to maintenance 

areas, Itemiser 4DX 

leverages long-life consumables 

and internal calibration to 

minimize operational costs for 

airports and air cargo facilities, 

law enforcement agencies and 

government and critical infrastructure 

installations. 

For more information on Morpho’s 

detection products, visit www.morphodetection.com.

Block Engineering designs 

chemical detection products 

for use at ‘soft target’ sites 


A Massachusetts company that specializes 

in chemical detection devices 

has announced that it is making 

its products available for such 

public facilities as shopping centers, 

transportation hubs and stadiums. 

These types of facilities are often 

called “soft target” sites because they 

do not offer the same level of protection 

as highly defensed government 

facilities. They also were the types 

of targets hit by terrorists in France 

last month in a series of attacks that 

led to 130 deaths and hundreds of 

others injured. 

Block Engineering says its sensors 

can be used to pick up chemicals 

that are known to be used in explosive 

devices. That includes Triacetone 

Triperoxide, better known 

as TATP, used in the suicide bomb 

vests terrorists wore in the Paris attacks. 

“Block Engineering is uniquely 

positioned to provide these sensors 

to US and foreign governments for 

chemical security against terrorism,” 

said Dr. Petros Kotidis, Block’s 

CEO. “Advances in laser technology 

and signal processing algorithms 

have enabled detection of dangerous 

chemicals, such as chemical 

warfare agents and toxic industrial 

gases, at very low concentrations. 

We are very excited to offer these 

life-saving products during the current 

difficult times.” 

Kotidis holds a master’s and a doctorate 

degree in aeronautics from 

M.I.T. and has received 18 patents 

for his work in developing laser, ultrasonic 

and spectroscopic devices 

and applications. 

Block’s systems include Laser- 

Warn, which uses a laser beam as a 

trip wire. Once a chemical crosses 

the wire, LaserWarn can alert authorities 

in less than second. It can 

detect trace amounts – down to 

parts per 1 billion or more – in areas 

larger than 1,000 square feet. It 

also be used on an around-the-clock 

basis either in enclosed facilities or 

open air environments. The senor’s 

laser is safe to human eyes and can 

use mirrors and other reflectors to 

cover large open areas. 

Block’s PORTHOS device, a 

standalone infrared sensor, is able 

to identify a released chemical 

from as far away as five kilometers. 

PORTHOS sensors can be used as 

portable devices or installed at a 

fixed location, which company officials 

said gives it the flexibility to 

be used at such large public gatherings 

as football games or celebration 

events. All detection is done within 

the unit itself and the system needs 

only a low broadband signal to send 

information to a command center. 

Both types of devices come with 

chemical libraries, but they also can 

be updated to include new threats as 

they emerge. 

The company has provided chemical 

detectors to government agencies, 

including defense and intelligence 

organizations, for nearly 50 

years. Its sensors are currently in 

use at numerous facilities worldwide, 

including the Pentagon. 

“Since 1956, Block has been a 

leader in standoff chemical detection,” 

said Dr. Daniel Cavicchio, 

Block Engineering’s Chairman. “For 

decades, our systems have been 

used to protect critical installations 

and our new product offerings, including 

the new class of QCLs, are 

now enabling even more capabilities 

to protect the public against terrorist 

threats.” 

33


Implant Sciences announces first shipment of 

ETD Systems for U.S. Airport Deployment 

WILMINGTON, MA, December 

8 - Implant Sciences Corporation, a 

leading manufacturer of explosives 

trace detection (ETD) solutions for 

Department of Homeland Security 

(DHS) applications, today reported 

that the Company has delivered its 

first shipment of QS-B220 desktop 

Explosives Trace Detectors (ETDs) 

to airports across the United States. 

These units are a part of the 1,170 

unit order that was placed by the 

Transportation Security Administration 

(TSA) in November, 2014. 

The entirety of the 1,170 units is expected 

to be delivered across more 

than 40% of airports in the United 

States within Implant Sciences’ fiscal 

year 2016, which began July 1, 

2015. 

“We are pleased to accommodate 

TSA’s preferred delivery schedule 

for this shipment. As an American 

company, the fact that our QS-B220 

ETDs are being deployed across the 

United States and will provide valuable 

protection to passengers represents 

the accomplishment of a major 

milestone,” stated Todd Swearingen, 

General Manager, Americas. “Implant 

Sciences is honored to have 

been selected by TSA and we look 

forward to enhancing security operations 

across U.S. airports. This 

has been an important goal for the 

company for many years now, and 

we are extremely proud of this success.” 

 

Explosives Trace Detector 

The QS-B220 uses Ion Mobility 

Spectrometry (IMS) to rapidly detect 

and identify trace amounts of a 

wide variety of military, commercial, 

and homemade explosives. Featuring 

a radioactive material-free design, 

push-button maintenance and 

diagnostics, and a patented inCal 

internal automatic calibration system, 

the QS-B220 brings new levels 

of performance and convenience to 

34 

desktop trace detection users with 

unsurpassed ease of use. 

About Implant Sciences 

Implant Sciences is a leader in developing 

and manufacturing advanced 

detection capabilities to 

counter and eliminate the everevolving 

threats from explosives 

and drugs. The Company’s team of 

dedicated trace detection experts 

has developed proprietary technologies 

used in its commercial products, 

thousands of which have been 

sold across more than 60 countries 

worldwide. The Company’s ETDs 

have received approvals and certifications 

from several international 

regulatory agencies including the 

TSA in the U.S., ECAC in Europe, 

CAAC and the Ministry of Public 

Safety in China, Russia FSB, STAC 

in France, and the German Ministry 

of the Interior. It has also received 

the 2015 GSN Airport/Seaport/Border 

Security Award for “Best Security 

Checkpoint”. For further details 

on the Company and its products, 

please visit the Company’s website 

at www.implantsciences.com.

Increased security measures at 

French rail facilities 


ment within the Schengen Zone 

countries to date. Currently the only 

rail service requiring passengers and 

their baggage to be screened is the 

United Kingdom’s Eurostar system, 

which lies outside the Schengen 

Zone, but provides regular service 

to member countries. 

This does not appear to be the 

beginning of “airport-style” security 

at rail stations, and Europe’s rail 

stations will not adopt this style of 

screening, for the following reasons: 

gers 

travelled by rail in Germany, 

France, and Belgium in 2014, compared 

to more than 1.7 billion traveling 

by aircraft throughout Europe. 

The sheer number of rail passengers 

makes it difficult to impose airportstyle 

security in the rail industry. 

 

exceeds the number of airports in 

Europe. In Germany for example, 

there are only 33 large airports, but 

there are 122 main rail stations. The 

cost to install, maintain, and monitor 

checkpoint screening equipment 

at the major German airports is immense 

and the cost to provide the 

same level of security at German rail 

stations would be higher still. 

 

in Germany, ranging from large international 

hubs to small, rural platforms. 

The prospect of installing security 

screening equipment at only 

category-one rail stations, which 

are central hubs or intersections of 

important railway lines, is a daunting 

prospect. Based on the average 

selling price of baggage and parcels 

x-ray equipment ($99,775.00) 

and walk through metal detectors 

($2,164.00), if the 21 largest stations 

in Germany each had five 

security checkpoints with one baggage 

and parcels x-ray machine and 

one walk-through metal detector, 

the total cost for equipment alone 

would be $10.7 million. 

Although the recent installation 

of screening equipment in France 

addresses the threat of possible attacks 

against the Eurostar and other 

high-speed trains, the majority of 

rail passengers travel via commuter 

trains, with thousands of unoccupied 

platforms. Furthermore, 

the current deployment format of 

screening equipment at rail stations 

only addresses the threat of an attack 

on the train itself and not the 

railway station. There are few secure 

areas at rail stations, and creating 

such areas would require significant 

reconstruction of most main stations, 

which makes the large-scale 

adoption of security checkpoint 

equipment at European rail stations 

an unlikely prospect. 

35 

Statement by Secretary Johnson 

on southwest border immigration 

and security 


encouraging them to join us in 

broadening access to protection for 

refugees from Central America. 

I know there are many who loudly 

condemn our enforcement efforts 

as far too harsh, while there will be 

others who say these actions don’t 

go far enough. I also recognize the 

reality of the pain that deportations 

do in fact cause. But, we must enforce 

the law consistent with our 

priorities. At all times, we endeavor 

to do this consistent with American 

values, and basic principles of decency, 

fairness, and humanity.

Swan Island software selected by 

NY-NJ Port Authority 


paredness is serving as the network’s 

host. InterCEP seeks to help communities 

and organizations better prepare 

for disasters and other crises. 

The selection of Swan Island fulfills 

one of the goals the network established 

during its first year. Other goals 

include developing plans that will 

foster better business-to-government 

and business-to-business cooperation 

during emergencies and devising 

a strategy based on established best 

practices to improve the Port Authority’s 

resiliency. 

“Working with Swan Island to build 

a new and dynamic kind of public/private 

collaboration has been exciting,” 

said Bill Raisch, Executive Director of 

the MRN. “Organizational agility and 

resilience are vital to both the public 

and private sectors going forward as 

increasing disruptions impact global 

cities and their metropolitan areas. 

We are confident that we are breaking 

new ground in establishing a global 

prototype for all cities committed to 

a resilient future.” 

Hikvision launches ‘Value Plus’ 

surveillance line 


sion also has released a suite of other 

products that add intelligence gathering 

solutions to customers using the 

new camera systems. The solutions 

include line crossing and intrusion 

detection zones. 

“Our great success in North America 

is due in part to our understanding 

of what our customers want and 

need,” stated Jeffrey He, president of 

Hikvision USA and Hikvision Canada. 

“The Value Plus line of products 

will bring our cutting-edge technology 

to a broader range of customers 

and ensure the safety of a greater 

number of citizens.” 

Hikvision supplies video surveillance 

solutions to public- and private-sector 

clients across the country. 

Created nearly 15 years ago, the company’s 

products have been installed in 

more than 100 countries. Bolstered 

by a strong research and development 

workforce, the company uses its 

high-tech manufacturing facilities to 

produce high quality standard- and 

high-definition cameras to monitor 

government and healthcare facilities, 

transportation networks, casinos, 

banks and neighborhoods. Hikvision 

also offers includes digital video recording 

solutions that include servers, 

hybrid and standalone DVRs and 

NVRs. 

The company will be showcasing its 

product lines – including the Value 

36 

HID Global looks ahead at top 

trends for secure identity 


people and their personal identity to 

the identity of objects and their authenticity, 

accentuating the need to 

protect personal information across 

increasingly interconnected devices, 

services and applications. 

 

best practices will become as impor- 

The 

industry will sharpen its focus on not 

only what to deploy, but how – from 

the first U.S. mobile driver licenses 

to unified credential management 

systems that enable organizations to 

more holistically address both facility 

and information security. Rather 

than focus exclusively on preventing 

breaches, the industry will also adopt 

best practices for controlling what 

happens afterwards, so stolen identities 

are useless to thieves. 

HID Global’s Seos® technology provides 

the foundation for advancing 

these trends, making it possible for 

organizations to confidently incorporate 

mobile solutions and empower 

their users with more application 

than ever before. 

Plus line – at the TechSec Conference, 

which will be held Feb. 2-3 in Delray 

Beach, FL. 

For more information about the 

company, go to: http://overseas.hikvision.com/us/.

For more HID Global news, visit 

our Media Center, read our Industry 

Blog, subscribe to our RSS Feed, 

watch our videos and follow us on 

Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter. 

About HID Global 

HID Global is the trusted source for 

innovative products, services, solutions, 

and know-how related to the 

creation, management, and use of 

secure identities for millions of customers 

around the world. The company’s 

served markets include physical 

and logical access control, including 

strong authentication and credential 

management; card printing and personalization; 

visitor management systems; 

highly secure government and 

citizen ID; and identification RFID 

technologies used in animal ID and 

industry and logistics applications. 

The company’s primary brands include 

ActivID®, EasyLobby®, FAR- 

GO®, IdenTrust®, LaserCard®, Lumidigm®, 

Quantum Secure, and HID®. 

Headquartered in Austin, Texas, HID 

Global has over 2,200 employees 

worldwide and operates international 

offices that support more than 100 

countries. HID Global® is an ASSA 

ABLOY Group brand. For more information, 

visithttp://www.hidglobal. 

com. 

® HID, the HID logo and Seos are trademarks or 

registered trademarks of HID Global in the U.S. 

and/or other countries. All other trademarks, 

service marks, and product or service names are 

trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective 

owners. 

Exciting News from the 

News Leader in Physical, IT and Homeland Security 


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major conferences and expos. 

Advertisers get lower rates, readers 

enjoy links to websites, case studies, 

white papers, plus video integration, 

click to purchase and 

content delivery around 

the world! 

www.gsnmagazine.com 

37

Coming Attractions – 2016 

February Digital 

Technology Focus: 

Perimeter Protection 

Intrusion Detection 

Market Focus: 

Oil/Gas/Utility 

Monitoring 

Plus 

Education Profile 

March Print 


CBRNE/Detection 

Market Focus: 

Border Security/ 

Immigration 

Plus 

Video Surveillance 

Guest Expert 

April Digital 


Video Surveillance 

Market Focus: 

Maritime/Coastal 

Port Security 

Plus 

Guest Cyber Expert 

May Digital 


Satellite Communications 

Market Focus: 

Law Enforcement/ 

Public Safety 

Plus Education Profile 

June Digital 


Disaster Preparation 

And Response 

Market Focus: 

City/State/County/ 

Municipal Security 

Plus 

Guest Cyber Expert 

July Print 


Perimeter Protection/ 

Intrusion Detection 

Market Focus: 

Airport/Aviation 

Security 

Plus 

Facility Security Expert 

For GSN Media Kit or Advertising Rates, 

contact Publisher Mike Madsen 

at 732-233-8119 

or by email at 

mmadsen@gsnmagazine.com 

38


CEO/Editorial Director: 

Adrian Courtenay 

(O) 212-344-0759, X3 

(C) 917-696-5782 

acourtenay@gsnmagazine.com 

Publisher: 

Michael Madsen 

(O) 212-344-0759, X1 

(C) 732-233-8119 

mmadsen@gsnmagazine.com 

Senior Writer: 

Steve Bittenbender 

(C) 502-552-1450 

sbittenbender@gsnmagazine.com 

Senior Writer: 

Karen Ferrick-Roman 

(C) 412-671-1456 

karenferrickroman@gmail.com 

Columnist: 

John Convy 

Convy on Netcentric Security 

john@convyassociates.com 

Columnist: 

Shaun Campbell 

shauncampbell@safenetat.com 

Guest Expert Contributor: 

Denise Rucker Krepp 

(C) 202-546-2533 

kdrkrepp@hotmail.com 

Art Director: 

Gerry O’Hara 

OHDesign3 

(C) 203-249-0626 

gerry@ohd3.com 

Production Director: 

Tammy Waitt 

(O) 732-233-0245 

twaitt@gsnmagazine.com 

Mailing Address: 


P.O. Box 7608 

Greenwich, CT 06836 

Government Security News (ISSN 1548-940X and UPS 022-845) is published in six print editions (Jan, Mar, May, Jul, Sep, Nov) and 

six digital editions (Feb, Apr, Jun, Aug, Oct, Dec) per year by World Business Media, LLC, P.O. Box 7608, Greenwich, CT 06836. 

Telephone (212) 344-0759. Periodicals postage paid at New York, NY and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address 

changes to GSN: Government Security News, Subscription Department, P.O. Box 316, Congers, NY 10920-0316. For Government 

decision makers and business executives involved with security products, systems and series. Qualified U.S. subscribers received 

GSN: Government Security News at no charge. Non-qualified subscribers in the U.S. are charged $75.00 per year. Canadian and 

foreign subscribers are charged $140 International Airmail. Copyright 2016 by GSN: Government Security News. All rights reserved. 

Printed in the U.S.A. GSN: Government Security News assumes resonsibility for validity of claims in items reported. 

39

GSN January 2016 Digital Edition

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