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Access control as a service: cloud video surveillance in access control systems

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Room access control has always been the most conservative part of the security industry. For many years, non-departmental security guards and watchmen remained the only (and, frankly, not always reliable) barrier to crime.

With the development of cloud-based video surveillance technologies, access control and management systems (ACS) have become the fastest growing segment of the physical security market. The main driver of growth is the integration of cameras with IT services.

Biometric recognition technologies in access control systems can provide a more convenient, faster and more secure service for registering people at the inputs and outputs in comparison with classical control tools.

Today we will tell you how and why Ivideon’s office switched to biometric ACS.

Competition with IoT


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Smartphone as a key for access control. Source The

usual pass or ID could be exchanged for a smartphone with NFC or use locks with Bluetooth Low Energy technology. In this system, each device, whether it is an access lock controller or a card reader, is assigned a separate IP address, which is used for communication between devices.

In one building, ACS devices are usually connected via wireless networks to the main consolidated application, which can be configured for automatic as well as manual control of various locks and controllers. The user receives notifications on the status of the access system on the smartphone, and can also transfer commands from the application to the system.

Here, ACS, at first glance, is protected from the vulnerabilities of an ordinary pass - the application is more difficult to transfer to another person, to lose or fake. The technology is easy to install and maintain. But the mass introduction of IoT access systems was hindered by the market’s unpreparedness for an increase in the associated costs of refurbishment and further maintenance.

The opinion of experts criticizing access systems for adding potentially vulnerable elements played a significant deterrent. It is more difficult to lose a card and a phone than a key, but not impossible. Finally, the mobile application itself can become the target of a hacker attack.

Switching to ACaaS


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In response to the shortcomings of traditional schemes, according to which the entire system was located on the site and worked only with physical identification data, along with the development of VSaaS (Video Surveillance as a Service, video surveillance as a service), the market began to gain access control as a service (Access Control as a Service - ACaaS).

ACaaS has found recognition in offices where there is no safety officer or possibly even a security guard. This decision is chosen by an entrepreneur who does not want to bear the additional costs of personnel, maintenance and servers.

ACaaS integrations are actually based on IoT technologies: access and lock controllers are devices that came to the market from the world of the Internet of things.

A key element of ACaaS is the close relationship with VSaaS, in which the face recognition system is deployed. Facial access has become a logical continuation of the evolution of ACS. A face cannot be “forgotten”, lost, stolen, faked, and hard to hurt. For identification by the face, special sensors are not required - it is enough to use cameras, which, most often, are already installed at the enterprise.

How does the face recognition system for access control in the Ivideon office



Ivideon employees get into the office by face instead of cards. To do this, cameras connected to the face recognition system and door controllers were put in and out. How does contactless access to premises work:

  1. In advance, profiles of employees are compiled with their data and photos (“white list”).
  2. An input / output camera sends video to the cloud to compare faces with this list.
  3. « », /.
  4. .

The peripheral devices at the facility themselves do not decide on access control and do not store any sensitive data. They receive the data and transmit it to the cloud service, which evaluates the compliance of the account with access rights and returns the solution to the control devices.

The introduction of ACaaS reduces staff costs (there are no guards in the office), motivates employees (everyone can see the amount of time spent at the workplace) and greatly simplifies the management of the access system for the office administration.

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Our ACS with a cloud service solves the problem of tedious administration of routine operations. For example, you can strip an employee of access rights remotely as soon as he leaves the company. This can be done for one employee or for the entire department - without restrictions.

Access control does not end at the turnstile. The CCaaS video surveillance system automatically measures the time employees are present at the workplace, monitors the passage of control points (for example, in the smoking area) or allows access to certain rooms only to authorized persons.

For SMEs, ACaaS and VSaaS work more efficiently than classic ACSs. It is easier for companies to pay a monthly fee instead of buying their own equipment and then incurring the ever-increasing costs of maintaining and updating it.

How to connect ACS with cloud service


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The ACaaS-VSaaS security model is economical to deploy:

  • minimum equipment costs - cameras and a number of sensors for doors / turnstiles;
  • - ;
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Cameras with the built-in Ivideon service are suitable for ACS operation according to the ACaaS model . We also made it possible to transform and connect to the cloud the video surveillance systems and access control systems already existing at the facility - for this, cameras operating on ONVIF and RTSP protocols are connected to the cloud system through the Ivideon Bridge device .

The price of ACaaS solutions is based on fixed tariffs and depends on the number of access points per facility. You can choose a tariff and activate the service by contacting us.

The development of video analytics based on AI technologies over the next 10 years will make the VSaaS-ACaaS model a de facto standard for solutions in the field of physical security of objects. Any modern access control system will be able to fully use the huge amounts of data generated by surveillance cameras.

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