July 1, 2011

 

comment on storing video

Ken,

as a bit more ‘color commentary’ to the question by Keith Randall regarding video surveillance retention, there are some state laws as well as various industry regulations which mandate retention of surveillance data. For example, California State Law 34090 covers retention periods for records, recording, and what it calls “routine video monitoring” for up to two years. (http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/cacodes/gov/34090-34093.html)

In addition, of course the different state (and tribe) gaming regulations require retention of surveillance in a casino and gaming establishments for between seven days and thirty days, depending upon the jurisdiction. Also interesting are some of the industry and regulatory bodies, such as the Motion Picture Association of America, and the Payment Card Industry (PCI) initiatives, which mandate retention of surveillance for a prescribed period of time.

Charles Foley

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There is no law that states how long video records need to be kept or

maintained. There is however a federal guideline by the FBI that

states minimum suggested system requirements per FBI standards.

alexb

halt-security

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Licensing comment

Hi Ken,

A recent question from Randy Ortiz of Electrolock Inc. and your response raises a question in my mind about the actual value of the New York State Alarm Installers License. Randy questions the fact that a town in his area has a new requirement for a "license" and you responded that they could not require a license but they could require payment for a permit or for registration. If that is so:

A) I thought the "big advantage" of State licensing was to eliminate all the fees that we were being charged by every town and municipality, years ago.

B) What's stopping every town and municipality that USED to charge us for licensing, from requiring us to pay permit and registration fees, NOW?

C) IF there really is a difference between license, permit and registration fees, then there really isn't any advantage to license central stations either.

D) The implications are, that we're all just sitting here waiting for ALL OF THE OTHER towns and municipalities (and states, for central stations) to drop the other shoes as they respond to the budget crunch ?

Gene

Reliable Alarm

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comment on passwords

Ken

On Passwords: I let the customer pick his own password. I tell them to make it something that they would instantly remember, like a someone's name, a product, something unique to them. That way, only they would think of it in an instant.

Another thing I have done, is write the duress code somewhere near the keypad. That way they would not have to try to think of it when ordered to turn off the alarm. And it works when an intruder finds it. I once had a breakin thru a skylight. The burglar found the duress code and disarmed the system. We dispatched as a duress, and when he opened the door to exit with his booty, the cops were waiting with guns drawn.

Alan Mills