NEC National Security Systems (NEC NSS), a Returning Competitor in AST’s ‘ASTORS’ Homeland Security, Public Safety and Government Excellence Awards Program for the Seventh Consecutive Year, is pleased to announce it is the Title Sponsor of IDENTITY WEEK AMERICA 2024 happening Sept. 11-12 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington DC.

WHAT IS IDENTITY WEEK AMERICA?

Formerly known as Connect ID, IDENTITY WEEK is the world’s largest and most important U.S. identity event, connecting thousands of identity professionals across finance, government, retail, e-commerce, healthcare, travel, and social media.

IDENTITY WEEK, returning to Washington DC in 2024 – is a conference and exhibition bringing together the brightest minds in the identity sector to promote innovation, new thinking, and more effective identity solutions.

(See what your peers have to say about Identity Week America 2023. Courtesy of Identity Week and YouTube.)

“Identity Week is an incredible opportunity for government agencies, industry experts, and enterprise partners to collaboratively shape the future of security and explore the digital landscape of tomorrow,” according to Dr. Kathleen Kiernan, President, NEC National Security Systems.

“As the Title Sponsor for this year’s Identity Week America, we invite you to join us for what promises to be the biggest event yet.”

“Let’s collectively work toward a more secure and innovative future together.”

Co-located with the Expo is the 2-day international IDW Conference, a premium feature for serious innovators, disruptors, and visionaries of Identity.

IDENTITY WEEK brings together the brightest minds in the identity sector to promote innovation, new thinking, and more effective identity solutions.

Learn more and register here.

NEC and Biometrics

NEC NSS, the 2023 ‘ASTORS’ Homeland Security Award Recipient for ‘Best Facial/IRIS Recognition Solution’ for the NEC Face/Iris Capture system, combines NEC’s number-one-ranked face recognition technology with its number-one-ranked iris recognition technology to create a highly accurate (false acceptance rate of 1 in 10 billion) identity verification system.

In addition to high accuracy, the system quickly authenticates registered users by simply standing in front of the terminal.

Even under conditions where individuals may be wearing masks, goggles, or gloves, NEC’s Face/Iris Capture is capable of maintaining its high accuracy, ensuring convenience to the user without compromising security.

The system can be integrated into various access control and payment systems as an added layer of security without disturbing existing workflows.

Additionally, the NEC partnership with Star Alliance is deepening in 2024, explains Christian Draeger, Star Alliance Vice President of Customer Experience, in a recent promotional video (see below).

(Star Alliance, the largest airport alliance in the world, has been working with NEC to provide its customers with a digital identity management solution powered by ‘NEC I: Delight.’ As Star Alliance continues to invest in other digital ID solutions, it turns to NEC and other aviation leaders to ensure their customers have access to a full ecosystem of biometric solutions. To learn more about Star Alliance and its longstanding partnership with NEC, visit www.necam.com/Aviation. Courtesy of NEC America and YouTube.)

The NEC/Star Alliance has successfully collaborated on biometric identification products across several airports to develop a secure digital identity management system and provide travelers with decentralized advantages.

Participating member airlines and ports of entry will continue to be upscaled with the end-to-end biometric identification platform – Powered by NEC, which generates quick face and identity matching, enabling mobile enrollment and user-centric data protection through an opt-in/opt-out system.

(See how Star Alliance Biometrics is enabling a touchless travel experience at the airport. Watch how this traveler uses his ‘Powered by NEC’ unique digital ID for a seamless and secure experience at all checkpoints, including baggage drop, security check, boarding, and more. Courtesy of NEC America and YouTube.)

NSS received awards across a range of categories relating to security technology in the 2023 ‘ASTORS’ Homeland Security, Public Safety and Government Excellence Awards, including a prestigious and coveted Extraordinary Leadership and Innovation Award.

“Amid rising threats to public safety, we appreciate American Security Today for recognizing the value NEC NSS brings to homeland security in the United States,” said Dr. Kiernan.

“We are honored to be acknowledged by a leading security media organization for our advanced technology solutions.”

NEC NSS also received Best Perimeter Protection Solution, and Best Pedestrian Entrance Control Solution awards.

Based in Arlington, Virginia, NEC NSS is a subsidiary of NEC Corporation of America focused on deploying groundbreaking solutions for government use, including end-to-end systems for access control and security, Next Gen identity verification, scene processing, advanced analytics, and intrusion detection.

NSS’s integrated hardware and software solutions support some of the U.S. government’s most critical missions, including those of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Department of Defense (DOD), Department of State (DOS), Department of Justice (DOJ), and the U.S. Intelligence Community (IC).

To learn more about NEC NSS and their solutions for the US Federal government, please visit www.necnss.com.

 

NEC NSS Sweeps the 2023 ‘ASTORS’ Homeland Security Awards Program

American Security Today’s Annual ‘ASTORS’ Awards, the preeminent U.S. Homeland Security Awards Program, now entering its Ninth Year, recognizes industry leaders of Physical and Border Security, Cybersecurity, Emergency Preparedness – Management and Response, Law Enforcement, First Responders as well as federal, state and municipal government agencies in the acknowledgment of their outstanding efforts to Keep our Nation Secure.

 

NEC NATIONAL SECURITY Systems (First of Three)

Best Facial/IRIS Recognition Solution

• NEC Face/Iris Capture

• NEC National Security Systems (NSS), a Foreign Ownership, Control or Influence (FOCI)-mitigated subsidiary under a Special Security Agreement (SSA) with the U.S. Government, provides full-service solutions for large agencies using the intellectual property and resources of the global NEC brand. 

• NEC has partnered with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency, the Office of Biometric Identity Management (OBIM), and the Department of State (DoS) Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement (INL) Digitus project in Mexico, to deploy their two most prominent matching engines, AIM XM and AIM-ES, to the AWS cloud environment.

• The NEC Face/Iris Capture system combines NEC’s number-one-ranked face recognition technology with its number-one-ranked iris recognition technology to create a highly accurate (false acceptance rate of 1 in 10 billion) identity verification system. In addition to high accuracy, the system quickly authenticates registered users by simply standing in front of the terminal.

• Even under conditions where individuals may be wearing masks, goggles, or gloves, NEC’s Face/Iris Capture is capable of maintaining its high accuracy, ensuring convenience to the user without compromising security. The system can be integrated into various access control and payment systems as an added layer of security without disturbing existing workflows.

(NEC aims to eliminate the risk of spoofing and malicious attacks by building a highly advanced authentication system that turns each individual’s critical bio information into a “key” to unlock the door to the digital world. Bio-IDiom combines multiple biometric authentication technologies that take safety to a higher level and create a new value in biometrics with face, fingerprint, and iris recognition technologies. NEC’s biometric technologies are focused on supporting society’s safety, security, efficiency, and equality while maximizing each technology’s advantages. Courtesy of NEC and YouTube.)

• This cloud-native architected platform supports the characteristics of cloud computing noted in NIST Special Publication 800-145, The NIST Definition of Cloud Computing—on-demand, self-service, broad network access, resource pooling, rapid elasticity, and measured services.

 

NEC NATIONAL SECURITY Systems (Second of Three)

Best Perimeter Protection Solution

• Intelligent Perimeter Intrusion Detection System (IPIDS)

• The NEC Intelligent Perimeter Intrusion Detection System (IPIDS) combines NEC’s global expertise in transoceanic fiber cable with advances in machine learning-based artificial intelligence to create a cutting-edge perimeter security system.
  

• IPIDS can detect physical intrusions and disturbances above ground, underground, and underwater by optical fibers connected to a centrally located interrogator, which sends and receives light to the optical fiber. Physical intrusions like fence climbing or digging create vibrations, which the interrogator interprets as changes in light.

• Then, the IPIDS machine learning-based AI classifies and locates the physical intrusion and sends an alert to our customizable graphical user interface. The machine learning-based AI can differentiate between anomalies like digging, fencing climbing, fence cutting, human walking or running, vehicles moving, and low-flying aircraft.

• NEC IPIDScan also pinpoint where the anomaly occurs within 1 m (3 ft). The tuning of these alerts creates a highly accurate alerting system with a low nuisance alarm rate for a reliable perimeter security system with a low cost of ownership.

(NEC NSS IPIDS uses state-of-the-art optical fiber sensing, video analytics, machine vision, computer vision, AI, machine learning, deep learning, and sensor fusion to achieve real-time and ubiquitous situational awareness of physical security threats and anomalies. Courtesy of NEC and YouTube.)

• IPIDS covertly, quickly, reliably, and accurately detect, locate, and prompt automated video verification and trigger escalated security response. Featuring industry-disruptive probability of detection, nuisance alarm rate, and total cost of ownership, IPIDS can be used in the US Federal government’s various programs and systems, such as Anti-terrorism/Force Protection, Integrated Base Defense, Electronic Security, Emergency Management, Public Safety, Protective Distribution, and Linear Ground Detection.

• Additionally, NEC’s IPIDS is immune to electromagnetic interference and requires no electrical power in the field, making it ideal for monitoring both near and remote areas, and one interrogator can detect anomalies along up to 160 km (100mi) of optical fiber, contributing to low equipment and installation costs.

 

NEC NATIONAL SECURITY Systems (Third of Three)

Best Pedestrian Entrance Control Solution

• NEC Gateless Entry

• NEC’s Gateless Entry Solution combines the global No. 1 face algorithm with proprietary person re-identification technology to allow fast and reliable entry control at speed for groups of people.

• NEC’s Gateless Entry technology provides accurate matching, even if people are facing away from the camera or their bodies are occluded.
  

(Hear from Frost and Sullivan analyst Danielle VanZandt about how NEC is the leader in pushing the biometric industry forward, about today’s biometric authentication trends, and how it will progress in the future. Courtesy of NEC Corporation and YouTube.)

• Gateless Entry innovative from NEC eliminates the need for traditional or guarded security gates, reducing bottlenecks and wait times without affecting a site’s or event’s security.

• NEC’s Gateless Entry allows large groups of people to be authenticated simultaneously, smoothly, without stopping. If a person whose face image has not been registered in advance enters the area, an alert can be displayed above their head or on a security monitor nearby.

• *AST is delighted to welcome back Returning PLATINUM Awards Sponsor NEC National Security Systems, to the 2023 ‘ASTORS’ Homeland Security Awards Program.

• NEC National Security Systems is a subsidy of NEC Corporation of America (NECAM), recognized for Six Consecutive Years in the Annual ‘ASTORS’  Homeland Security Awards Programs.

 

The pinnacle of the Annual ‘ASTORS’ Homeland Security and Government Excellence Awards is the Annual ‘ASTORS’ Awards Ceremony and Banquet Luncheon.

In 2023, this exclusive sold-out event featured at ISC East, well over two hundred representatives of law enforcement, public safety, and industry leaders came together to honor the selfless service of those who stand on the front lines – and those who stand beside them – providing the capabilities and technologies to create a safer world for future generations.

Comprehensive collaborations between these private and public sectors have led to the development of innovative intelligence and technologies that serve to protect our Nation.

Steven Dettelbach, Director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms (ATF) and Explosives, delivered the keynote address at the 2023 ‘ASTORS’ Homeland Security and Excellence in Public Safety Awards Ceremony and Banquet Luncheon.

Director Dettelbach spoke with passion on the epidemic of Gun Violence by Illegal Guns taking place across the United States, which results in over 125 deaths daily and impacting generations of families – leaving open chairs at holiday events.

Firearm injuries were the leading case of death for children for the third year in a row, he explained, and have doubled in the U.S. since 2021, levels that are simply intolerable.

Director Dettelbach lauded the strong partnerships with Federal, State, Local, and Tribal Policing that ATF has earned and relies upon to reduce violence and spoke with admiration as a former prosecutor on the selfless sense of mission and drive that is universal across the entire First Responder Community.

The prestigious Annual ‘ASTORS’ Homeland Security Awards Program highlights the most cutting-edge and forward-thinking security solutions coming onto the market today to ensure our readers have the information they need to stay ahead of the competition and keep our Nation safe – one facility, street, and city at a time.

The ‘ASTORS’ was specifically designed to honor distinguished government and vendor solutions that deliver enhanced value, benefit, and intelligence to end-users in a variety of government, homeland security, enterprise, and public safety vertical markets.

(See a few of the highlights during the 2023 ‘ASTORS’ Homeland Security and Government Excellence Awards Ceremony and Banquet Luncheon in NYC during ISC East on November 16, 2023. Courtesy of AST, My Pristine Images, and Vimeo.)

AST puts forward the Largest and Most Qualified Circulation in Government with Over 75,000 readers on the Federal, State and Local levels.

AST Digital Publications are distributed to over 75,000 qualified government and homeland security professionals in federal, state, local, and private security sectors.

‘PROTECTING OUR NATION, ONE CITY AT A TIME’

AST Reaches Private and public Experts, essential to meeting these new challenges.

Today’s new generation of public safety and security experts need real-time knowledge to deal with domestic and international terrorism, lone wolf attacks, unprecedented urban violence, shifts in society, culture, and media bias – making it increasingly difficult for Homeland Security, Law Enforcement, First Responders, Military and Private Security Professionals to implement coordinated security measures to ensure national security and improve public safety.

These experts are from the Government at the federal, state, and local levels, as well as from private firms allied to the government.

AST provides a full plate of topics in our AST Monthly Magazine Editions, AST Website, and AST Daily News Alerts, covering 23 Vital Sectors such as Access Control, Perimeter Protection, Video Surveillance/Analytics, Airport Security, Border Security, CBRNE Detection, Border Security, Ports, Cybersecurity, Networking Security, Encryption, Law Enforcement, First Responders, Campus Security, Security Services, Corporate Facilities, and Emergency Response among others.

AST has Expanded readership into integral Critical Infrastructure audiences such as Protection of Nuclear Facilities, Water Plants and Dams, Bridges and Tunnels, and other potential targets of terrorism.

Other areas of concern include Transportation Hubs, Public Assemblies, Government Facilities, Sporting and Concert Stadiums, our Nation’s Schools and Universities, and Commercial Business Destinations – all enticing targets due to the large number of persons and resources clustered together.

AST strives to meet a 3 STAR trustworthiness rating, based on the following criteria:

• Provides named sources
• Reported by more than one notable outlet
• Includes supporting video, direct statements, or photos

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