1. When it comes to storing security camera footage, what do you recommend users: Local storage onsite or cloud storage?
2. How well adopted is the security market to cloud storage solutions?
3. What recommendations regarding video data storage do you have for installers, system integrators and end-users when they are planning a security system?

Rishi Lodhia, Vice President and ­Managing Director, EMEA Eagle Eye Networks:

1. As a cloud-based surveillance company, our primary recommendation for storing security camera footage is utilising cloud storage. Cloud storage offers numerous advantages, including cybersecurity assurance, remote accessibility, scalability, and automatic backups. It ensures that your data is secure and easily accessible from anywhere, enhancing both security and convenience for our users. While local storage onsite can serve as a redundancy option, our focus is on leveraging the power of the cloud for optimal video data management.

2. Cloud storage solutions have gained substantial traction in the security market. The adoption of cloud storage is driven by its numerous advantages, including adaptability, cost-effectiveness, and the ability to meet evolving security demands. With advancements in data security, cloud storage is increasingly being recognized as a forward-looking solution.

3. When planning a security system, we advise focusing on comprehensive data management. Ensure your chosen storage solution can accommodate the data volume generated by your cameras and provides data redundancy. Additionally, consider integrating cloud-based storage for its remote access, automatic backup, and ability to scale as your system evolves. Collaboration with experienced system integrators can help you design a tailored solution that aligns with your unique security requirements.

Viet Tang, Account Executive – Cloud Services at Genetec:

1. Both are viable options. However, both also have their pros and cons, and much depends on the specific needs of the organisation.
Local storage gives you direct control over your data. Nonetheless, in an ever-evolving landscape of threats, most organisations encounter challenges when it comes to effectively monitoring and safeguarding their network.
Conversely, cloud storage offers several advantages, including scalability, automated backups, and reduced maintenance.  Additionally, cloud environments have the means to detect any potential threats (physical and cyber) in real time through their operations centres and monitoring systems.
And of course, in addition to onsite and cloud there is the hybrid approach. This strategy offers organisations the best of both worlds - greater agility, such as having flexibility to increase or decrease cloud-based storage and processing as, and when needed. It’s a way to leverage the benefits of both technologies and stay resilient to changing requirements across your organisation.

2. For numerous years, the industry has talked about the adoption of cloud storage though significant progress has only been made recently. This is primarily due to improved connectivity and a better understanding of the benefits of cloud storage.
Other key factors driving this adoption include:
Immediate access to footage anytime from anywhere (access permitted);
Elimination of upfront costs and delivery delays when implementing physical security solutions through cloud storage;
Scalability of cloud storage to meet future growth and requirements, bolstered by enhanced security and compliance from redundancy, which mitigates the risk of failure.
However, there is still work to be done in the industry, starting with educating stakeholders and dispelling myths and fears associated with cloud adoption.

3. Increased adoption of cloud storage is not only needed but highly beneficial for the physical security industry. It enables a wider range of organisations to implement effective security measures, adapt to changing requirements, and operate more efficiently whilst also being more cost effective by reducing hardware and maintenance fees.
Staying informed about the latest trends and innovations in cloud storage within the industry is advisable for organisations looking to enhance their customers security capabilities.
Furthermore, when planning and mapping out a new system, integrators should consider offering alternative design options, including cloud or hybrid cloud solutions. More and more end users are seeking innovation from their existing systems, and one way is through cloud adoption providing them with the value-add which I have highlighted in this Q&A.

Anders Bo Rasmussen, Director of Product ­Management at Milestone Systems:

1. It depends on the retention time required, i.e. how long time the camera footage needs to be kept before it can be deleted. If the onsite local storage has sufficient disk space, then the recommendation would be to keep it local. If the retention time is high and the onsite local storage isn’t sufficient then an external storage solution can be used, be it a SAN (Storage Area Network) solution or a cloud storage solution. Milestone XProtect supports encryption of the video footage being recorded, so no matter where the video is stored, onsite or in the cloud, encryption ensures the level of security is kept as well.

2. The adoption of cloud storage solutions in the security market is different from country to country and region to region. It has a dependency on the availability of reliable and affordable internet connections as uploading video is a bandwidth intensive task.

3. It is recommended to combine flexible user access permissions, secure media database handling supporting encryption and digital signing of video recordings. By doing so the Milestone XProtect video management software (VMS) storage architecture provides an effective solution for securing sensitive and mission critical recordings. XProtect VMS offers a unique, flexible, and secure storage architecture that utilizes standard IT storage solutions to deliver reliable and high-performance recording of XProtect’s media streams and data, allowing the option to design hybrid storage solutions that utilize the best traits of onsite and cloud storage technologies.

Andy Palmer, Enterprise Solutions and Cloud Group Lead UK and Ireland at Seagate:

1. We always advise our customers to have a back-up strategy in place, comprising the “3-2-1” rule.  This calls for 3 copies of data, 2 different media types and 1 copy being off-site.  This means that data is safe and available under all circumstances.  As data grows, and video finds uses outside of security, it becomes vital to keep it safe.  Using a hybrid solution – on-prem storage complimented by a copy in the cloud, is the easiest way to achieve this level of data integrity.  Although this may sound complicated, there are many software solutions that can enable this – the user simply sets the policy up and lets the equipment decide what and when to move data to the cloud.

2. The video imaging and security sector is undergoing a period of intense transformation, driven by rapidly increasing demand from a broadening range of end-users, including banking and finance, retail, media and entertainment, and local governments. Outdated, on-premises infrastructure risks holding back progress. With more data being produced than ever, the way we build video imaging and analytics systems needs to change. A mix of on-site and cloud storage infrastructure is going to be the key to making the most of all this data and unlocking new growth opportunities. However, with rapid growth comes increased complexity and cost.  Seagate has developed a very simple storage as a service plan – Lyve Cloud – that in addition to a low monthly fee allows for limitless and cost-free ingress and egress.  And with our sophisticated data security you know your video is safe.

3. Assess your business needs and plan the data storage and management accordingly: for example, if you have a data set that you need quick easy access to, then that data can stay on on-prem storage where it’s readily available. However, the business may also have much larger archival data sets that aren’t needed to be readily accessed so frequently, however they do need to remain searchable and indexable for use in business analytics. In this use case, private or public cloud environments offer clear advantages over on-prem in terms of costs and feature sets. As the industry continues to expand with new end-users and innovative applications of video analytics technology, the vendors and installers that recognise this potential today will be the ones to reap the benefits in the coming years.

Kai Frieben, Senior Sales Manager, ­Central Region at Western Digital:

1. This is down to the requirement of the customer. Both, local and cloud storage have advantages and disadvantages depending on the use case. If customers are looking for immediate control, latency, and cost, the best fit is local storage. This, however, comes with the risk of physical damage (e.g., theft or fire). That’s why some customers, especially in exposed environments, are more interested in cloud solutions that also offer scalability, remote accessibility, and redundancy. In most cases, we see an interest in hybrid solutions. This way, customers can compensate disadvantages and store critical footage locally for immediate access, while using cloud storage for redundancy, and long-term archival.  To summarize: Customers need to know their requirements to create the best possible solution.

2. In recent years, cloud has become increasingly popular. However, adoption can vary depending on different factors. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) use cloud storage for cost efficiency, ease of use and security and larger companies are also becoming more interested in cloud-based solutions for data backup and disaster recovery. Not only is company size relevant, but industry also plays a role. While sectors such as education and entertainment are very receptive to the cloud, there are other sectors like healthcare and finance that have strict regulatory requirements. Storage manufacturer like Western Digital need to constantly work with cloud providers to build in appropriate security features, access controls and threat detection to further drive adoption in these industries.

3. Before installers, system integrators (SI) and end users start planning their security systems with respect to video data storage, they need to define the purpose of their solution. Is it theft prevention? Employee security? Traffic management? Whatever the factors, decision-makers need to ensure the effectiveness, reliability, and compliance of their system. Not to mention technological advances that bring new challenges depending on the use case. To be best prepared, it is important to take a holistic approach and weigh up the pros and cons, while also considering the right hardware. Products like the WD Purple Pro drives are well prepared to handle a wide variety of streams in reliable operations and to meet the demands of AI.