HID identity and access system for stadium security achieves major milestone
02 August, 2017
category: Biometrics, Corporate
A secure identity system from HID Global designed to increase stadium security by authenticating fans, vendors, volunteers and others at arenas and venues has earned the National Center for Spectator Sports Safety and Security (NCS4) “Lab Tested” designation. That award goes to products that, in the words of HID, “undergo the rigors of operational testing in a sports environment.”
The stadium security system relies on a mobile app that quickly validates the identity information by reading the ID card or pass using the hand held peripherals
The designation goes to HID’s SAFE Sports and Events Access Manager. Deployed at the 2016 Summer Olympic Games in Brazil, the secure identity system relies on a mobile app that “quickly validates the identity information by swiping the identity pass using the hand held peripherals,” HID says. “Once the pass is swiped, the operator can perform a visual check comparison of a person’s face via the workstation and/or mobile device. This system can enable real-time credential validation and controls entrance of all participants across different venues or different locations within the same venue. This ensures that a large number of identities can be checked-in quickly without making any compromise of the security.”
Demand for stadium security on the rise
The designation comes as stadiums and arenas faced increased threats from terrorist attacks—such as the one in Manchester, England in May during an Ariana Grande concert, an attack that killed 23 people—along with more traditional concerns about theft and vandalism. During the deployment of the HID secure identity system in Brazil, some 500,000 people and 3 million transactions were recorded by the SAFE Sports and Events Access Manager.
HID says a “mere 13 issues came up” during that deployments, all of which were resolved within 20 minutes. Had there been a venue power outage, the system could have operated offline through synching up to the same local server, HID says, leaving no gap in security. The system also offers constant customer support and offers ease of use for volunteers—the SAFE Sports and Events Access Manager relies on color codes that are flashed on screens and quickly tell the stadium security attendant if a person is allowed entry.
It wasn’t immediately clear how the designation for HID’s secure identity system might boost sales or deployments of the stadium security technology. But the designation is a major feather in HID’s cap, according to Daniel Ward, director of training and integrated Systems, National Center for Spectator Sports Safety and Security, located at the University of Southern Mississippi. “The team evaluated the technology based on stated capabilities, as well as the its ability to integrate and operate in sporting venues,” he said. “The SAFE Sports and Events Access Manager solution performed at or above the levels considered by the evaluators to fully meet each requirement.”
