“The Olympic Security apparatus has many layers,
which include private contract security workers inside
and outside specific Olympic venues, the local police,
the venue’s own security force and finally the military,”
he adds. “With so many layers of security, it’s
imperative that a comprehensive overall security plan is
put into place and that all security stakeholders have a
role in the process.”
Seamless security
Big events naturally draw a lot of people, but they
also attract spectators who might not be used to the
environment and level of scrutiny that they will face
on entry. One company that has looked at this aspect
of security is Evolv Technology, which was founded
in 2013 after discussions with security professionals
and venue operators about the specific threats and
how they could be better handled.
“We heard from the stadiums there were one of
two different types of security screenings. Some had a
manual pat-down and bag search, which is quite slow
and intrusive, while others installed metal detectors,
as you’d see in airports,” says Anil Chitkara, CEO of
Evolv Technology.
With this in mind, Chitkara and his team set
about developing solutions that speed up the process
and enable those who didn’t pose any threat – the
vast majority of attendees – to pass through more
easily. “We’ve taught a set of advanced sensors and
machine learning-based algorithms to identify and
differentiate weapons from personal belongings,” he
says. “People who are a threat are identified and have
their picture taken, with the area on their body that is
a potential threat highlighted. A guard will then
intervene within seconds to deal with the threat.”
There are two key products enabling the process
to work: the Edge, which processes around 800
people an hour and the Express, which can scan up to
3,600 people during the same time period. The Edge
was launched two years ago and has screened around
25 million people and found more than 5,000 weapons
on people as they enter the stadium.
There are a number of reasons to heighten security
at major events, whether it be visitors who are
unfamiliar with the stadium and the security protocol,
people entering with another person’s tickets or others
who don’t know the list of banned items or who are
using the high-profile nature of the event to gain
attention. As such, security professionals are putting in
visible and invisible layers to combat the threats,
explains Chitkara. “Visible layers include more security
guards and screening technology, while the invisible
layers could be high-resolution security cameras or
plain-clothed officers.
“Beyond the stadium itself, there is also intelligence
that looks at social media for any chatter about doing
specific harm at a specific event,” he says. “There
is a whole infrastructure around understanding threats
through intelligence based on social media and other
mechanisms,” he adds.
Inside and directly outside of the stadium might be
covered, but Chitkara says the third area to be mindful
of on big game days is further out, to prevent threats
getting anywhere near the buildings. “We’re working
with customers who want an outer layer – an earlywarning
system,” he states. “The stadium operator
might not have guards there manning every system but
they might want an alert on the phone for people
roaming the area who can then monitor the situation.
We’ve built our technology to have the flexibility to
(Top right and left) Visible
security measures such as body
scanners, are used in addition
to behind-the-scenes layers of
security provided by CCTV
STADIUM SECURITY
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