Subscriber Discussion

Report: Chicago Surveillance Cameras Are Unsecure

PS
Paul Shah
Dec 14, 2016

Here's an interesting article on Chicago's $140m camera network.

Report seems to be the same theme with maintenance issues as other cities.

The actual audit is also available in the article.

DW
Dennis Widdows
Dec 14, 2016

They just reported that someone < Unauthorized> got into the system and moved and refocused some of the cameras in system...Many of the domes etc are in need of maintenance just from general observation from the street level...a City that works indeed...

Avatar
Brandon Knutson
Dec 14, 2016
IPVMU Certified

Fairly interesting article showing the same lack of operational planning and continuous maintenance that many video systems face.

Does anyone know the reason for the blue light bar on the camera in the article's pic?

Do we know which VMS they use?

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Ethan Ace
Dec 14, 2016

The blue light bar and things like it were used in the earlier days of city surveillance quite often. It was just to say "HEY CRIMINALS, WE'RE WATCHING" as a sort of deterrence effect. Other cities did the same.

In more recent systems, I think they've been omitted. I've seen some installs where the light is flashing into second or third story windows...I can't imagine living next to one of those.

The VMS in Chicago is Genetec.

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Brian Rhodes
Dec 14, 2016
IPVMU Certified

Discreet: They used a low-profile, sleek, recessed dome camera.

Undiscreet: They mounted it on a giant logo-ed 'Police' box with a flashing light bar at the top.

Ugly: They power it with an extension cord.

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U
Undisclosed #1
Dec 15, 2016
IPVMU Certified

In more recent systems, I think they've been omitted.

Some have gone "green":

PS
Paul Shah
Dec 14, 2016

Baltimore uses Vidsys and they have the Blue Light Cameras as well.

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Brian Rhodes
Dec 14, 2016
IPVMU Certified

Yikes:

As troubling as OEMC’s inability to “verify that each user had the appropriate level of access” was the fact that OEMC could not “confirm the identifies of all persons with access to the public safety surveillance network.”

How about they start by doing the tough task of changing passwords and deleting unknown/unsure accounts?

DP
Donald Peters
Dec 15, 2016
IPVMU Certified

Very few accounts were ever created so user credentials were routinely passed around the districts. In one west side district station the credentials were written on a yellow Post It note for all to see including anyone who walked in the front door.

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Brandon Knutson
Dec 14, 2016
IPVMU Certified

Good VMS. Poor leadership.

PS
Paul Shah
Dec 15, 2016

Are they porting each of those 27k cameras into the Genetec VMS?

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Paul Grefenstette
Dec 15, 2016

A lot of those "blue light cameras" are from a program called project shield that has been abandoned because of maintenance cost

DP
Donald Peters
Dec 15, 2016
IPVMU Certified

The Chicago Police POD cameras (Phase 1 cam in photo above) were actually not part of Project Gold Shield, although some of the camera enclosures look very similar. Project Shield wasted over $41M of DHS money on a system which was doomed from the start. Cook County basically abandoned the equipment (mostly Cisco and Panasonic) and it many areas it's just decaying on the poles and towers.

More on the CPD Cams: http://home.chicagopolice.org/inside-the-cpd/pod-program/

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DP
Donald Peters
Dec 15, 2016
IPVMU Certified

PCD Phase III Camera

Chicago Police Phase III camera

CPD Micro-Pod Camera

Chicago Police Micro-Pod Camera (Current)

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