The Little Geeni

By Jose Allan Tan

Threats of security continue to pervade the global market since September 11. Bombings and threats promising mayhem and destruction had led to a surge in investments around security and surveillance systems. This is fueling the change in how we capture, store, and monitor video.

According to Shivanu Shukla, an industry analyst at Frost & Sullivan “There has been strong interest in being able to remotely monitor surveillance cameras, run video analytics, and integrate surveillance with other physical security systems.”

Shukla notes that network-based video surveillance systems are becoming popular. Frost estimates the video surveillance market to grow from $992.1 million in 2006 to $3956.7 million in 2013.

Analog vs. digital

Analog video surveillance systems consists of analog cameras connected via cables to multiplexers and in-turn connected to monitors and key boards. But what happens when the area that needs to be monitored is a significant distance away and there is a need to record 7×24?

Network surveillance solutions allow existing analog cameras to be connected to a video server, which is connected to the network, and monitored by any computer that is on the network, or the existing control room.

“Storage of the video can be done by network video recorders (NVRs), which can be anywhere on the network, as opposed to digital video recorders (DVRs), which need to be placed close to the cameras or the switcher/multiplexer. In a complete network surveillance solution, network cameras are used to connect directly to the IP network, without the need for an external encoder,” says Shukla.

Video surveillance deployments in Asia are mostly analog based due in part to the market’s price sensitivity. But this is changing as the security threats continue to remain high on radar of both commercial and the public.

Kiran Kumar, a Frost Research Associate, notes that government and transportation sectors are spearheading video surveillance deployments, with large projects for airports, city surveillance, and other critical infrastructure surveillance.

“Fast developing physical infrastructure such as airports, seaports, highways, and rail networks is a key driving force for the strong adoption for video surveillance systems,” says Kumar.

There are three main factors limiting the continuing growth of analog video surveillance systems:

Cost: Set-ups and installation costs of traditional coaxial or fiber-based cabling for analog video systems over large areas is very high. Large-scale projects for city surveillance and monitoring of harbors and ports take a significant role in effecting change to network surveillance.

Scalability: Despite DVRs having improved the recording quality of analog cameras, there is still the physical restriction of its installation near the analog matrix.

Flexibility: Integration of analog video surveillance systems with other systems can be cumbersome. Analog surveillance systems are limited to centralized video analytics, which requires additional hardware, cabling and is difficult to scale.

Benefits of network surveillance

Digital technology is helping extend the capability of surveillance beyond what can be achieved with traditional systems.

Technology now allows us to monitor an area from any location in the world in real-time without any significant investment.

Storage of video can be done on NVRs that can be anywhere on the network. How much video we can store digitally is limited only by the amount of hard disk space. And because the video traverses through the network, backups can be done remotely.

Scalability of network surveillance systems is easy and inexpensive. Network cameras can be connected to the network without rewiring.

With network surveillance systems, intelligence can be distributed either directly at the camera or encoder, or centralized on the NVR or a separate server.

Network surveillance systems are cheaper to build and maintain with reusability of existing IP network infrastructure, highly scalable with little incremental costs, low maintenance costs, and ability to reuse existing legacy surveillance cameras and other display and monitoring equipment as key factors for adoption of digital surveillance techniques.

Limitations of going digital

Not everything is bright and rosy. Due to its dependence on the network, security teams will need the support of the IT department.

“The key challenge to adoption is to get the security and IT teams to adopt network surveillance. Existing network infrastructure makes the proposition of network surveillance stronger. However, organizations where such infrastructure is less developed would be slow to move to network surveillance,” says Shukla.

He concedes that network surveillance adoption is changing the dynamics between the security personnel and the IT teams within enterprises, hindering its adoption rate. The introduction of network surveillance implies the participation of the IT division in security matters.

“Security personnel are typically more conservative and not open to major changes in their environments. Network surveillance adoption would depend on the successful interactions and communication between the two teams within an enterprise,” notes Shukla.

Although Frost & Sullivan expects the trend towards network surveillance to be strong, adoption of analog system will continue to grow as well, albeit slower than network surveillance deployments.

“While remote access, scalability, and distributed intelligence are the key drivers for network video surveillance, price, perceived reliability, and conservative nature of security teams to change and adopt new technologies will hinder adoption,” says Kumar.

Traditionally, cameras have been the point of entry for vendors into the market; subsequently their offerings include DVRs, NVRs, encoders, and software, together with switchers and multiplexers.

Increasingly, due to the emergence of network surveillance solutions, there is an effort from vendors to approach the surveillance solution from the NVR or DVR front, by offering better management software, virtual matrix systems and video content analytics as a solution package.

As traction for network video surveillance picks up in Asia Pacific, providing complete end-to-end surveillance solutions is expected to become a key to succeed in the market.

Computer Security Asia, Networkbased, Shift, Surveillance, Toward, Understanding, Video

Security assessments and audits are vital aspects of managing a network. If your company has never completed one, you may be due to have it completed at this very moment. A network audit is recommended at least on a quarterly basis, occasionally this may be even more frequent, depending on your organisation’s needs.

In most of today’s demands for new technologies, you need to take the necessary procedures to protect yourself from perpetrators. Creating a network security audit is the first step in protecting all of your assets, physical and intangible, which can help save your company time and money.

What happens in your audit?

You have to list assets, review current threats, analyse each threat and develop a plan to counter issues that arise in your network. Some of the best networks are penetrated, but the likelihood of it happening again is rather low if the audits are done correctly.

List assets.

‘Assets’ are computers, company information, credit card numbers and other important physical technologies in your business. A few other tangibles include cameras, PDAs, laptops, mouse, and printers (mostly in small businesses). All of these pieces of equipment are important in identifying possible issues that happen when in use. If you want a thorough list of your inventory, it is time to make a tracking sheet that includes the users’ names, designated property and purpose of the assets in their possession.

Review current threats.

What are your current threats? It may include lack of password encryption, email hacks and even data backups that do not work. Many businesses have an exhausted list of problems that can arise, but it can lead you in the wrong direction. A professional network administrator will be able to address each asset’s threat in a comprehensive list if you feel overwhelmed.

Analyse each threat.

How does each threat interrupt your business operations? Network administrators and Chief Information Officers (CIOs) are responsible for building a corresponding list that removes the mystery of security risks. The execution of the protective steps must be overviewed by professionals with experience – it is vital to get one of the UK’s finest IT networkers are available to help you.

When is it the most important?

A security audit is very important. You have to consider the possibilities of losing information if a backup defaults, employees entering unauthorised files, and potential hackers from outside the organisation. Without addressing these issues now, you can lose the power to control your business’ protection against an IT attack. Another crucial step in managing your security audit is to use the latest and most reliable network testing software to pinpoint issues that can harm your operations.

Preparation is the best way to prevent problems with your network. Security reinforcements and addressing issues early are smart steps towards prevention. Without a solid plan in place, there can be problems you cannot overcome in the future. If you are not sure that an audit is necessary, contact a local network administrator to discuss possibilities or points of interest regarding your company. There are problems circling your network that are unseen – keep them at bay by preventing occurrences now.

Computer Security Assessment, Audits, Importance, Network, Risk, Security, Understanding

The income statement of a firm indicates the flow of sales, expenses and earnings during a period of time, typically on a monthly, quarterly or yearly basis. 

Net Operating Income (NOI) is the product of subtracting operating expenses from gross income, excluding depreciation and amortization. In particular: 

Gross income: it includes any type of income associated with a property such as plant and equipment, parking fees, vending receipts etc. 

Operating expenses: they are costs incurred during the operation and maintenance of a property.  They include repairs and maintenance, insurance, management fees, utilities, supplies, property taxes, etc.   

Depreciation: it is an annual charge that reflects the estimated costs of the assets used during a specific period, typically a year. Depreciation refers typically to the plant and equipment, i.e. the tangible assets of the firm and it is subtracted after Net Operating Income is calculated in order to calculate the Net Income of the firm. 

Amortization: it is an annual charge that reflects the estimated costs of the assets used during a specific period, typically a year. Amortization refers typically to the intangible asses of the firm such as loans, patents, goodwill etc. and it is subtracted after Net Operating Income is calculated in order to calculate the Net Income of the firm. 

Example

We assume the following income statement in order to calculate the Net Operating Income (NOI) of firm X: 

1/ Calculating Gross Income

Net Sales = 38,000$

Cost of Sales = 23,700$

Gross Income = Net Sales – Cost of Sales = 38,000$ – 23,700$ = 14,300$

2/ Calculating Operating Expenses

Rent = 1,000$

Salaries = 3,500$

Utilities = 400$

Supplies = 1,500$

Equipment Repair and Maintenance = 150$

Advertising & Promotion = 1,600$

Loan Interest = 250$

Operating Expenses = 1,000$ + 3,500$ + 400$ + 1,500$ + 150$ + 1,600$ + 250$ = 8,400$

3/ Calculating Net Operating Income (NOI)

Net Operating Income = Gross Income – Operating Expenses = 14,300$ – 8,400$ = 5,900$

Net Operating Income (NOI) is used when calculating the Operating Profit Margin ratio of a firm. Operating Profit Margin ratio measures the operating efficiency of a firm indicating if the relationship of the fixed costs to the production volume. The higher the ratio, the better a company is because this indicates that the firm’s fixed costs are lower than the firms’ gross income.

The ratio is calculated as follows: 

Operating Profit Margin = Net Operating Income (NOI) / Net Sales.  

Assuming above example and plugging in our data in the formula we derive that:

Operating Profit Margin = Net Operating Income (NOI) / Net Sales = 5,900$ / 38,000$ = 15.5%

This means that firm X makes $0.15 before interest and taxes for every dollar of sales.

Operating Systems Income, Operating, Understanding

I can hear it now! You are letting the cat out of the bag. By explaining computer forensic reports, you are aiding and helping computer criminals to cover their tracks.

But, there is always another side to an argument. By releasing this information, it can help people help computer forensic experts catch the criminals. Besides, people who commit computer crimes are very good at what they do. I am not releasing anything here they may not already know.

With that out of the way, let’s dive in.

What makes up computer forensics reports? Where does the information come from? Who puts them together?

Let’s start with the Who.

Computer forensics reports are prepared by computer forensics investigators. They gather the necessary information, analyze them and then draft out the final computer forensics reports. As good as they are, computer criminals oftentimes leave behind clues which aid the investigators to track down the root cause of their crime.

Even when the files have been deleted from the specific location in the computer, the original data is not at all erased from the entire computer system. With certain techniques, tools, and skills that the investigators are equipped with, the analysis of the fraudulent act or crime can be made with such accuracy.

Where does the computer forensic report information come from?

There are four main areas where the investigators gather their evidence from. There are other areas which are looked into but the following are the most commonly looked areas.

1. The Saved Files:

These are easy. If you saved it, it’s in the computer. All the investigator needs to do is open them up to examine them. They don’t need anything special to view or examine them.

2. The Deleted Files:

When data is deleted, it is put in the trash bin. The computer forensic expert will look in the bin to see what is in it.

The tougher part is the deleted files that have also been deleted from the trash bin. These will require special software in order to restore them.

3. The Temporary Files:

These data are produced when one browses through the Internet, works on any document, and uses some other types of backup software and other installations and applications.

You can open some temporary files on the computer they reside on without any special software or tool. Others will require the use of special tool or software.

4. The Meta Data:

The Meta data gives you the details of a document or file. Among the details which appear include the date that such files had been created, modified, and the last time when it was accessed. You can even get information about the creator of the file.

What makes up computer forensics reports?

Computer forensic reports will be made of information from the above four sources. It will also include information gathered from e-mails, file transfers, web browsing, online accounts, charts, and internet searches. Unknown to some people is that their web searches can be retraced.

There you have it……the secret, but not so secret computer forensic reports. It is by no means comprehensive, but you get the idea.

Note: You are free to reprint or republish this article. The only condition is that the Resource Box should be included and the links are live links.

Computer Forensics Computer, Forensics, Loud, Reports, Understanding, Whisper