Nowadays, with the power of transformational AI, companies can strengthen their security capabilities with threat detection, intelligence, risk assessment, incident response, and crisis management, whilst at the same time revolutionising business operations, turning hidden data into smarter, more efficient business processes.
Artificial intelligence (AI) has profoundly impacted the way businesses operate – from automating routine tasks to enhancing customer and employee experiences. Now, AI is transforming how organisations protect their people, property, and assets, guiding them toward a more proactive approach to security.
Here, the team at Securitas, explain how harnessing the technology’s full potential can help organisations all over the world tackle increasingly complex security challenges. Firstly, with five ways AI can enhance safety and security and then a further five way that AI can unlock efficiencies and provide powerful insights.
Five ways AI is enhancing safety and security
1. Risk prediction
The Securitas risk prediction services showcase the predictive potential of AI in security. By processing and analysing historical incident data, AI can help forecast the likelihood of future security events. This level of intelligence enables organizations to implement proactive security measures to help make data-driven decisions. For example, if AI identifies a pattern of increased risk at certain locations or times, organisations can pre-emptively strengthen security – perhaps, by adjusting guard patrols or enhancing surveillance – during those high-risk periods.
2. Enhanced threat detection
AI-powered security systems can easily detect anomalies in behaviour captured by security systems and automatically alert the business of suspicious individuals, vehicles, and objects. This level of insight can help prevent security threats before they even arise. For example, AI can identify unusual access patterns, such as attempts to enter restricted areas or access points at odd hours. Once a risk is identified, guards can be notified; alerts on intercom systems can be triggered; or the restriction of access points can be implemented to prevent the issue from escalating, significantly decreasing the chance of security breaches.
3. Reducing false alarms
AI and machine learning can also help power security monitoring services by analysing video in real time and distinguishing between a potential threat, such as an unauthorised visitor attempting to enter the premises, and a nuisance alarm triggered by an animal or weather-related movements. This eliminates the burden on monitoring centre operators, allowing them to concentrate on true security threats. In doing so, AI helps to significantly reduce false alarms and conserve increasingly strained law enforcement resources.
4. Improving healthcare outcomes
In healthcare settings, AI-powered solutions are particularly powerful. They can proactively monitor health and analyse sensor data to anticipate the needs of residents in senior living communities. For example, intelligent fall management solutions can identify residents at risk of falling – days and even weeks in advance. This empowers senior living organisations to help optimise fall prevention strategies, ultimately reducing hospitalisations, enhancing resident care, and increasing occupancy in their communities.
5. Smarter cities and safer infrastructure
The combination of AI, security, and 5G connectivity is helping to protect critical infrastructure and create safer cities in Belgium. Offshore wind farms, crucial to our energy supply, benefit from this integration through enhanced monitoring capabilities that allow for enhanced threat detection and response, despite their remote locations. In urban environments, AI-driven surveillance and data analytics work in concert with 5G connectivity to improve public safety measures. As a result, crowd control measures can be implemented more competently, illegal waste dumping can be detected in real time, and a fight can be detected even before it escalates.
Five ways AI can unlock efficiencies and powerful insights
1. Energy savings in action
Securitas is transforming traditional guard reporting by leveraging AI to understand recurring vulnerabilities and improve on-site security measures. By using natural language processing (NLP), AI interprets free-text fields in guard reports, transforming previously untapped data into a wealth of business insights.
A particularly compelling use case for this is its application in highlighting sustainability actions taken by organisations, facilitated by our officers. In Sweden, alone, according to the company, Securitas security officers performed and logged an estimated 335,000 energy-saving actions in 2022. These actions contributed to energy savings of around 8.8 million kWh. This reduction in consumption led to cost savings of 17 million SEK for Securitas clients – a significant benefit not only for their bottom line but also for the environment.
2. Security resource optimisation
AI is playing a pivotal role in streamlining security operations. At Securitas, we’re harnessing AI to refine how we allocate resources, ensuring maximum efficiency and cost savings. Our branch optimisation initiative uses AI to efficiently distribute security personnel and resources. By analysing data such as incident reports, guard availability, and site locations, AI helps optimise schedules and routes, ensuring that each branch is operating within its capacity and that security officers are deployed efficiently.
3. Strategic space utilisation
By analysing data from access control, video surveillance, and other security systems, AI can provide organisations with a detailed understanding of space usage, revealing not just patterns of occupancy but also the frequency of use for specific areas. This insight is invaluable for operational decisions, such as determining cleaning schedules. For instance, if AI identifies that a meeting room is seldom used, a business could reduce the frequency of cleaning, optimising resource allocation. Or, if AI detects that meeting rooms are consistently overbooked or there are notable surges in traffic during certain times, business leaders can make informed decisions to open additional meeting spaces or reschedule large gatherings to less busy periods. This strategic approach ensures that every square foot is used efficiently, leading to a more effective allocation of office areas, meeting rooms, and common spaces.
4. Predictive alarm data
In addition to reducing false alarms, AI can identify patterns in alarm data that could be predictive of future events. Empowered with this information, business leaders can make changes to optimise their security, such as reinforcing surveillance in high-risk areas or modifying access privileges, to safeguard against potential threats. The result is a more secure environment where resources are strategically deployed for maximum efficiency and effectiveness, enhancing overall safety and preparedness.
5. Optimised labour resources
Like with strategic space utilisation, AI is adept at analysing security data to help optimise staffing across various industries. By identifying traffic patterns captured by security cameras and access control systems – such as customer flow in retail, patient visits in healthcare, or employee activity in corporate offices – AI can pinpoint peak activity times, provides valuable insights for aligning staff levels with demand. This helps ensure that personnel are available at the right times and places, enhancing service quality, operational efficiency, and customer or client satisfaction.
Use cases for AI in security are virtually endless according to Securitas. From strengthening safety and security measures to helping businesses awaken dormant data hidden within their security infrastructure, AI is a powerful tool that Securitas is harnessing to transform business security and operations.
The fact that nearly half of businesses are already leveraging AI within their security programmes is a testament to its transformative potential. And we’re only beginning to scratch the surface of what’s possible. As applications for AI and adoption rates increase, more and more powerful results will materialise showcasing how businesses can safeguard their people, property, and assets and harness security data for competitive advantage.
