With so many schools, hospitals, shopping centers and other businesses adopting AI visual gun detection systems, the question often asked is “How do I handle monitoring the alerts that come in?” This is a key point to consider prior to selecting a solution as it has a significant impact on the overall success of your system deployment. And depending on the gun detection solution selected, you might not have a choice. This can be problematic because history has proven that “one size does not fit all” when it comes to the protection of our students, staff, patients, and customers.
Behind the Scenes When a Gun is Detected
When a camera monitored by Omnilert Gun Detect spots a firearm, the system automatically sends an alert in less than a second through one of several ways:
- Desktop, mobile and web apps
- Video management systems
- Control room solutions
- Real-time crime center platforms
Pictured here is an example of an alert that is delivered through a mobile app once a weapon is detected. The alert includes a full frame still image of the shooter, a close-up magnification of the suspected gun, camera name and location data and a video snippet for additional context to determine the appropriate response.
Who Gets this Alert?
The person receiving these alerts is critical because they are the ones that confirm the threat and activate response plans such as calling police, locking doors, sounding alarms and notifying those in harm’s way. This is often done with a simple click of a button on the alert they have received.
In the case of Omnilert, we offer all our customers a state-of the art, professional monitoring service that will field initial verifications. This is important for many of our customers because it provides:
- Scalability to meet the needs of rapidly growing customers
- Dedicated monitoring even when internal staffing resources are an issue
- Stringent certifications from UL and TMA 5 Diamond
- Trusted agents with 50% having an average of 6-7 years experience with backgrounds in law enforcement, healthcare specialties and the military
- 3 redundant U.S. locations across the Midwest and South as well as international options available
- Multiple layers of power, network and IT system redundancy
Most of our customers welcome using Omnilert Monitoring. However, with a varied and growing customer base, each with their own unique situations, we realize some might need a different option. This is where Omnilert Gun Detect stands out from the rest. While others stipulate that you can only use their monitoring services or provide no monitoring capability at all, we allow customers to choose the option that works best for them. If this is an internal security team that the customer has in place, then no problem. If this is another 3rd party monitoring service that they have a relationship with, we’re designed to support that model. We even support a combination of these methods. At the end of the day, we want every customer to have the security they need for the people and facilities they are protecting. We will do whatever we can to help make this possible.
U.S. Department of Homeland Security Agrees
Picking the right solution for a particular facility was a hot topic in a recent webinar focused on gun detection technologies for schools. As a spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security pointed out, “There is no one size fits all.” At Omnilert, we agree. Customers need to consider a wide variety of factors such as their current security teams, the building’s physical layout and local jurisdictional requirements, among many other things. And that includes the choice of a monitoring and verificaiton service.
So if you are looking at or evaluating an AI visual gun detection system today, don’t forget to ask the very important question of “Who can receive the alerts?” If you don’t have a choice in that matter, you might want to consider another solution. Active shooters get smarter every day and while we keep layering technologies to keep people safe, you need to have a system that is not only going to scale as you grow, but also has the ability to provide options as your situation may change over time.
To learn more about Omnilert’s professional monitoring service, including a full white paper on the topic, visit the Omnilert Monitoring page.
Interested in more detail on Omnilert Gun Detect and how it offers protection from active shooters? Reference these these resources:
• Guide to Gun Detection Technology
• Gun Detection White Paper
• Gun Detection Demo
