The coronavirus pandemic has brought considerable disruption to the way most people live, work, and study. Significantly, COVID-19 has also accelerated the adoption of novel ways of doing things and pushed Physical Access Control Systems (PACS) to evolve and meet the needs of the new normal, while improving efficiency, privacy, and hygiene.
It has never been more important to be prepared for future emergencies, to reinforce the security of businesses and organizations, and to elevate the control on who and when has access to your site. The cloud and biometrics are two of the innovations that promise to deliver a seamless and safer experience for users in our new reality.
Digital transformation
Historically, access control has been managed manually. However, as the protection of assets and people is getting increasingly delivered by interwoven solutions that call upon IoT technologies and cloud infrastructure, it is inevitably going through a digital transformation too.
Digital access control can be cloud-based and integrated with other solutions, including smart video surveillance and intrusion detection systems. Moreover, the capabilities of personalization, flexibility, accuracy, and scalability that the digitization of access control offers is remarkable.
Cloud-powered access control
Today’s employees expect a smooth, automated experience in their workplace. A smart office that provides staff with the flexibility and functionality to effectively do their job is becoming a priority, especially for large corporations. Cloud-based and hybrid solutions that use mobile access or biometric authentication help personnel feel safer and more comfortable, as it frees them up from the constraints of traditional systems.
With the cloud, it is possible to have peace of mind by not having to deprovision access across multiple locations, in the event an employee leaves or is fired, or by being able to grant new credentials in advance to an employee visiting a different branch.
Further, the costs of replacing cards and keys are eliminated with a modern solution. Safety is greatly valued by employees, and they do take notice when their company takes extra measures to ensure their protection and well-being.
Benefits of a cloud-based access control option:
- Administrators can control who has access to their site and when, without the need to be in the same location.
- Digital encrypted credentials protect employee data.
- There are backup and disaster recovery capabilities.
- Enhanced and improved security.
- Simplified management.
- Scalability.
- Easier integrations with any third-party system.
- Automated workflows and updates.
- Centralized data management.
Biometric authentication
Authentication through biometrics involves using some part of the physical makeup of individuals to verify they are who they say they are. This technology compares physical or behavioral traits to stored, confirmed, and validated data in a database to confirm a match and manage access to buildings.
One of the types of biometrics is facial recognition which uses one or more photographic images to recognize a person by measuring points on a face, under controlled conditions. These systems are non-intrusive, do not demand contact with the user, and have a high rate of user acceptance.
Other biometric authentication methods that can be used to facilitate access of employees and visitors are iris recognition, fingerprint scanning, hand geometry recognition, ear authentication, and signature recognition.
As we look at the future, it is urgent to prioritize resilience and readiness with modern access control solutions to face potential threats effectively.