Blog | Recording, analysing and archiving huge volumes of security data requires a state-of-the-art storage solution

In our data age, security has evolved from physical patrols by security agents to a myriad of sensors and systems that offer 24/7 surveillance in crystal-clear HD resolution. Those cameras, thermal sensors, motion-control and access-control systems all have one thing in common; they produce a massive amount of data that is used to make better decisions. Before a system can analyse data and make decisions, all the data must be properly stored.

Everywhere around us we generate and use data. In security, data is very dynamic. Take the analogue cameras that we used for surveillance 10 years ago and compare them to our modern devices; new cameras produce at least 600% more data for the same recording with the same duration.

According to IDC, the amount of data we produce will increase from 66ZB in 2021 to 175ZB in 2025. Enough data to fill a series of Blu-Ray disks that together cover the distance from the Earth to the moon … 23 times! Security-related data is a major contributor to this exponential growth, driven by the proliferation of cameras, increasing resolutions, longer retention time, as well as Artificial Intelligence and IoT.

Artificial intelligence is certainly changing the way we use security data. In the past, it was sufficient to store the data and only inspect suspicious images. Today, the data is often analysed at the edge because cameras can now recognise (ab)normal behaviour on their own. This technology is based on machine learning algorithms that require the system to capture and store lots of data. Moreover, the AI program running in the background of the cameras also produces its own metadata.

With the rise of new technologies, the amount of data will only continue to grow. Autonomous cars need data to ensure that they will not hit any other vehicles or pedestrians. Smart cities use data to improve security and support their police forces, for example by identifying locations with a higher risk of incidents or violence. The COVID-19 pandemic will probably boost the use of sensors that measure people’s body temperature at airports or help to manage crowd control in stadiums. This huge volume of data simply cannot be processed by a human being.

In addition, data is becoming increasingly valuable and often needs to be archived. Retaining data for a longer period of time can be useful for investigations or to enable forward-planning. Of course, this means that you need another point of storage as you cannot erase yesterday’s data to store new information.

The ability to record, analyse, archive and access data requires state-of-the-art storage solutions. As a pioneer with more than 40 years of experience, Seagate is passionate about building storage devices for the security market. Seagate SkyHawk AI is a leading series of surveillance hard drives that can easily cope with the extra workloads created by simultaneously recording and analysing data at the edge of systems.

Compare it to a Volkswagen Fox and a Mercedes S-Class both going 70 miles per hour. Although both cars are driving at the same speed, the Volkswagen has a smaller engine and has to work much harder. SkyHawk AI drives have the same capacity as regular hard drives, but they are better suited to cope with larger workloads required for surveillance.

Recently, Seagate also launched its enterprise data systems with SAN and JBOD solutions that can store more than 5PB, rebuild data sets in minutes instead of days, and offer the fastest technology to stream data from thousands of cameras and sensors. This is very important if you capture data on multiple sites and want to send the data to a central location that serves as a big storage pool. Are you also passionate about data? Want to know more? Then join in and register for our Seagate partner program.