ePassport security hinges on datapage technology from SPS
As more and more states begin to issue ePassports with a polycarbonate datapage, it is important to focus on the key characteristics that such a synthetic datapage should have, whether it be electronic or not. Issuing authorities demand products pro-viding compliancy with international standards, security to curb document fraud, convenience for optimal users’ experience, and design for a strong visual identity. The polycarbonate datapage developed by SPS, which includes a specific aluminum hinge, responds to issuing authorities’ most com- mon demands. Read more…
Cisco to transform Bangalore’s Electronics City into a smart city
Global networking products major Cisco Systems aims to soon turn the Electronics City in south Bangalore into a smart city, and develop Asia’s first Internet of Things (IoT) innovation hub, according to news reports. Cisco says the smart city will be built in the electronics city industrial township as a pilot project in partnership with the Electronics City Industries Association (ELCIA) to provide smart parking, smart CCTV surveillance, smart street lighting, smart water management and community messaging. Located 20 km from the city centre in Anekal taluk in Bangalore Urban district, the 332-acre Electronics City is one of the largest industrial parks in the country, housing global majors, multinationals and Indian iconic IT firms like Infosys and Wipro.
Smart City technology will reach $27.5 Billion in annual revenue by 2023
A new report from Navigant Research says creating more sustainable, resilient, and liveable cities is of vital importance to nations around the world. In particular, the rapid urbanization of Asia and Africa is driving strong growth in the market for smart city technologies that can connect and modernize power grids, water treatment and transfer systems, transportation management systems, and energy efficient buildings. According to the report, worldwide revenue from smart city technology will grow from $8.8 billion in 2014 to $27.5 billion in 2023. Analysts state new infrastructure for rapidly expanding cities is being underpinned by information and communications technologies that are deeply embedded in the urban fabric and are profoundly changing the way cities operate and how people live and work in these environments. One key driver for innovation in smart city projects around the world is the opportunity to capture and make use of big data. The ability to harness real-time, highly granular data across a wide range of city operations and services is changing the way the urban environment is managed and experienced. However, before cities can fully enter the big data era, city managers must address some critical challenges, according to the report, particularly the lack of appropriate skills among city government employees.
SAP and police explore data-driven security strategies for an urbanizing world
SAP has announced that it has opened a new UK facility where public safety officials can refine policing approaches against a global backdrop of rapid urbanization and technological change. The project is designed to improve citizen lives by providing safer cities. SAP says it has worked with the UK’s Centre of Excellence in Terrorism, Resilience, Intelligence and Organized Crime Research at Sheffield Hallam University to provide interactive demonstrations of how technology can enhance police efforts to cut crime, improve road safety, raise public confidence and stay within budget. As criminals migrate between the real and virtual worlds, police and law enforcement agencies must keep pace. Citizen expectations of their interactions with government have also risen, and police increasingly need to provide a ‘customer-centric’ experience to the citizens they protect and to collaborate with them in fighting crime. SAP states it helps police agencies to use real-time, predictive analytics and business intelligence to better target criminality and improve performance – and to simplify their core processes, including incident and investigation management, property and evidence tracking, intelligence analysis and operational resource management.
EU looks at mobile location data requirement for emergencies
The European Commission is considering a requirement for mobile phones, and possibly other portable devices such as tablets, to be equipped with Galileo receivers that would automatically send location data as part of any emergency call to 112. Termed E112, the technology is a location-enhanced version of the 112 universal European emergency services number via telephone, equivalent to 911 in the United States, in which the telecoms operator receiving the call for help transmits location information to the emergency dispatch centre, which has further connection to police, fire-fighters, medical, and other emergency services. A European Union Directive on E112 requires all mobile phone networks to provide emergency services with available information on the location of the caller. Currently this data is the cell id, which is of limited use in localising a call as, for example, in rural areas where the mobile cell may have a radius of two to twenty kilometres. Whether the Commission (EC) should mandate Galileo, or take a different option, is currently the subject of consultation.