Subscriber Discussion

Why Record Desktop Screen To VMS Vs Employee Monitoring Software?

UM
Undisclosed Manufacturer #1
Jan 09, 2017

I don't understand. Why would anyone want to record desktop snapshot to VMS?
Why not using employee monitoring software such as IP-guard or SurveilStar?
It's cheap and much more function than VMS. For
motion search only?

NOTICE: This comment was moved from an existing discussion: DeskCamera ONVIF Screen Capture

BS
Bob Schenck
Jan 09, 2017
IPVMU Certified

The application that comes to mind is PC based POS terminals.  Having the screen recordings as a VMS channel allows a manager or loss prevention to playback the screen recordings synchronized with the activity that occurred at the register.  

MM
Michael Miller
Jan 09, 2017

To me, this is a very basic POS connection as you have no way to search the transaction or alert on specific events like VOIDs which you can do with proper POS integration.  

U
Undisclosed #2
Jan 09, 2017

Screen recording can also be used when triggered by other internal intelligence systems such as SPLUNK or Greylog. These platforms can provide data hooks that can target a machine that has violated compliance within a corporation, any activity from there on can be recorded by a VMS if the two are integrated.

MM
Michael Miller
Jan 09, 2017

Thanks for posting that software as that is very interesting.  

Some issues I have seen where screen recording or this software might help.   

Most VMS platforms log who logs in and out of the system but they don't log what cameras they look at and for how long.   Customers that have pools and jacuzzis often have concerns about security guards monitoring these cameras "more than they should".  So to be able to monitor/log what the gaurds are looking at is very helpful.

Also preventing video evidence leaks is important.  Again most systems can control which users have the ability to export clips but this doesn't stop people from recording video from their cellphones and sharing it. 

This just happened at the Fort Lauderdale airport where TMZ released video from the CCTV system and now people are investigating how the video got leaked. 

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U
Undisclosed #2
Jan 09, 2017

I have seen this technology used with Milestone VMS to capture the all of flight Arrival/Departure screens throughout a large airport. Each display is has its own intel NUC to run the live screens, the NUCs are managed on their own VLAN which Milestone has access to grab the screen by ip address of the NUC. For now the use of the screen recording is all internal and not available to the public.

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Josh Hendricks
Jan 09, 2017
Milestone Systems

AFAIK, most Milestone customers using our screen recorder are not actually using it to monitor "users". I have heard of it used on Windows-based POS systems, though that's fairly uncommon since it's not a very elegant POS integration; raw video is not searchable, cannot generate events/alarms based on certain transaction types etc.

The best uses I have seen are to record screens running proprietary software for things like water/power utilities as it allows you to very easily navigate the timeline based on graphical information like temperature, water level, etc allowing operators to find video correlating to certain events, or to check what the settings were on a terminal at the specific time of an event caught on video.

For monitoring PC users/usage (logging which applications are used, for how long, keystrokes, etc), the applications you mentioned are certainly better suited, and probably less CPU hungry as well.

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Avatar
Ethan Ace
Jan 09, 2017

I agree with Joshua here. The times that it's come up in my past, it was mostly for other reasons, not employee monitoring. I had one water department ask about recording their SCADA system. I had a nurse call customer ask about recording the code blue list. 

There was only one case where someone asked to record VMS client machines, and that was for auditing. I believe it was part of their policy to periodically audit how the VMS had been used, and recording it made it easier. 

All that being said, at the time, capture was a pretty expensive proposition. Newer hardware and software have gotten cheaper.

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UM
Undisclosed Manufacturer #3
Jan 09, 2017

I have seen it used in Casinos.  The operators want to do "live editing".  They will call up various cameras on their screen.  Then they will use their joystick to follow a customer, call up additional cameras as subject moves around.

 

They want the ability to 1) give the investigator or police a single video that shows the evidence.  It also gives them 2) a record of their actions, to show that the operator was responding to the incident, etc...

 

This can also be used by the supervisor to be able to also see what is going on.  Often they will have a virtual matrix that they can push the video to the larger monitors, but they can use the screen recorder to easily view it without a VM, and also the supervisor can view this at their desk or remotely so they can get a handle on a situation without their needing to call up lots of cameras, etc.

I have also seen it used as a  way go get external video, such as from the new, onto a virtual matrix without needing to use an analog or HD-SDI encoder, etc.  Simply have the news streaming on a NUC or other PC and capture the desktop into the VMS.

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UM
Undisclosed Manufacturer #1
Jan 11, 2017

Thanks all your guys. I thought screen recorder is mostly for audit purpose before.

JV
Jorrit Verhoeven
Jan 16, 2017

Hello.

I can understand that people that have a solution like Milestone and have the need to record monitors use the ONVIF solution to record Desktops, but as said this is a great solution for shops using POS systems.

It dates the images with the surveillance images and in case of fraud, theft or other issues that need to be looked at the screen recordings can be seen at the same time as the recorded camera images. 

another subject could be a limited budget small shops don't want to spend more money on licenses, manpower and a server to record this separately.

Now, if you are a cooperation that needs to record calls and screens at the same time (Like many Support companies do) i agree with you that a dedicated software solution is the better solution.

But not the ones you named

IP-GUARD isn't a very professional solution for big companies to much bells and whistles to that software if you just want to record a screen.

And i think the same of SurveilStar, to much additional stuff noone needs as most companies have all in one security application software in use that uses policies to avoid visiting unwanted websites and other things.

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