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Setting the stage: security in entertainment and public event areas critical for 2010

For South Africa, a country gearing up to host the 2010 FIFA World Cup, security in entertainment and public event areas is a vital issue. While numerous international events have been hosted locally since 1994, the scale of the World Cup event demands security policies and procedures at designated venues conform to world-class best practices.

"It is not petty crime and the protection of assets that venue managers need to be concerned with, but the physical safety of international guests and athletes," says Neil Cameron, divisional manager at Johnson Controls. "These venues are going to be subject to high volume flows of people over a short period of time. The reliability and robustness of security solutions is thus important - and venue managers will only have one chance to get it right."

Whether the venues to be used are being upgraded or built from scratch, the security needs to be built into the blueprints, based on best practices, enabled by proven solutions and executed by experienced service providers that have established global credibility. "Venue managers nationally must develop plans at an early stage to ensure integration, consistency in databases and card systems, potentially standardising equipment by using security vendors that have national distribution. The selected security technology should be intelligent and the various systems easily integrated (eg, access control and CCTV)," says Cameron.

Best practice

A few of the items listed in best practice security scenarios include: establishing central command, enabling venue lockdown, having bomb sniffing dogs on patrol, putting in place 24-hour security, securing restricted areas, using photo IDs for employees and limited card or tag entry devices for specific classes of attendees (eg, athletes, VIPs), structuring a formal risk management plan, ensuring pre-event training for all concerned and coordination with police, setting up a formal evacuation plan, employing undercover surveillance, ensuring at least one crowd observer for every 250 spectators, deploying security patrols in parking lot and banning carry-ins/backpacks.

"Low-cost actions like prohibiting re-entry and carry-ins, and cutting off deliveries 90 minutes prior to the event go a long way toward securing venues, but there are a multitude of more complex issues that can now be taken care of more accurately and inexpensively by advanced technological solutions," says Cameron. "For example, rather than hiring people to watch the crowds, video surveillance units can be trained on clusters of people, with intelligent software tracking crowd movement and watching for anomalies - such as erratic movement in a group of people or someone walking against the flow."

Identify and protect targets

Access control is another area where technology can be used to lower risk. Radical groups taking a stance will single out high profile guests such as athletes, VIPs or media, and these must be protected. "Cards or tags with high encryption levels can much more precisely control movement in and out of restricted areas than can standard low-cost detectors that feed footage to a bank of monitors. Security personnel on duty at these points are often not highly skilled or must observe numerous incoming video feeds, making human error likely," advises Cameron. "Smart access technology feeds errors and anomalies directly to central control rooms, also alerting guards on the ground for immediate response. With our SiteManager software, for example, an unlimited number of alarm events and associated responses (alarm actions) can be configured, instructing the operator with the required action and requesting his/her acknowledgement and response."

SiteManager is also capable of importing 3D studio files containing camera site overview/plans in three-dimensional spaces. Virtual sites can be created together with multiple layers of information that can be accessed via zooming in and out. 3D maps can be populated with cameras, alarms and auxiliary outputs for easy, life-like navigation through large sites in 3D.

The solution's motion tracking and object behaviour algorithm functions also give security personnel the option of specifying what represents suspicious behaviour, and handling only images where suspicious behaviour occurs. The neural network-based motion detection engine provides an intelligent motion detection platform, able to handle very demanding camera environments such as external cameras with variable light and environmental conditions (rain, wind, etc) successfully - reducing false alarms and missed movements. The motion detector is also capable of analysing live video in realtime for objects triggering motion based on various criteria such as object size, speed, direction and duration of movement.

For surveillance of restricted areas where no motion is usually expected, the software is capable of learning a usual camera scene and detecting if an object of specific properties (eg, a bomb sized object) is left within a camera scene for longer than a specified period of time, or if an object that is normally present within a scene (eg, piece of artwork in a museum) goes missing. Motion detection occurs in realtime.

"In terms of cost versus risk, the expense of building an integrated facility and security management system is small," says Cameron. Security and facility management are closely linked. Facility management will manage, automate and optimise lighting control systems, ventilation, heating and airconditioning, as well as extensive security and access controls, and fire alarm systems. Equipment is synchronised and automated to ensure energy savings, and closely monitored to ensure maximum control.

"Venue managers must drive their technology investments higher though," he warns. "Simply investing in a CCTV solution is no longer effective as the success of the system is limited to the level of alertness of the person watching the feed. The heart of the camera is the recorder, which is where the built-in artificial intelligence is found."

Security in Germany

In Germany, where the 2006 FIFA World Cup soccer tournament was held this year, a National Information and Cooperation Centre (NICC) was set up. It was manned around the clock by security experts from around 20 government agencies in addition to Europol and Interpol. Each of these groups operates its own communications network. The Federal Office of Criminal Investigation, for instance, has a special unit monitoring possible terrorist attacks, while the Federal Police Office has one focused on hooligans.

Hooliganism

European co-operation in the fight against football hooliganism first began after the Heysel Stadium tragedy in 1985, and is based mainly on the 1985 Council of Europe Convention on Spectator Violence and Misbehaviour at Sports Events. A European Union standing committee monitors compliance with the Council of Europe recommendations and issues practical guidelines on matters such as European stadium policy, segregating rival supporters, controlling ticket sales, excluding troublemakers and similar matters. A specific effort is also being made to prevent racist behaviour and discrimination at sports events.

In addition, a number of instruments have been adopted by the EU Council of Ministers since the Treaty of Maastricht. These instruments affect the following national policies:

* Preventing hooligans from leaving their own countries.

* Restricting hooligans from entering the host country or expelling them from the host country.

* Policy relating to criminal convictions and stadium bans and/or mandatory reporting to the police.

* Mutual exchange of information in these areas.

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