UAE to get high-tech cameras at ATMs

Manufactured by the German company Grundig, the cameras’ high quality will allow for much more detailed images and heightened security across the country. Jaime Puebla / The National

ABU DHABI // Cutting-edge surveillance cameras are expected to be installed at ATM machines over the next few weeks.

Manufactured by the German company Grundig, the cameras’ high quality will allow for much more detailed images and heightened security across the country.

The Government has expressed interest in fitting the surveillance system at emergency exits in malls, hotels, schools and airports.

“It’s not only a camera, we are also introducing a concept,” said Yalcin Demirak, Grundig’s area sales manager. “It can be used for ATM machines or government projects where we have an LED light and a hidden camera inside it.”

That hidden device, the Aladdin, uses very little energy and is undetectable.

“We are the first to introduce the camera and it’s a worldwide launch for us,” said Mr Demirak, who was speaking at Intersec, one of the region’s largest trade and networking exhibitions for the security and safety industries.

“We have a pin-hole lens in the middle, a camera that can be moved up and down and no one can recognise that it is actually a camera.”

Vandals and thieves who damage CCTV cameras make it impossible to obtain any evidence.

The Aladdin camera is set up alongside a false camera, so criminals are unaware of the true camera’s location.

“It’s a vandal-resistant camera and the quality is better,” Mr Demirak said. “We could also install a wireless camera in the future.”

The concept was developed with the help of a bank in France, which shared its challenges with the company.

“One of the problems of other cameras is that you can’t see the person’s face because the infrared makes it white,” Mr Demirak said. “You can’t even focus on it because the infrared is too high and too close to the person, so we needed additional lighting.”

The initial plans were just for ATMs in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, he said, but Civil Defence had approached them to have the system installed at emergency exits in malls, hotels, schools and airports.

“In the next couple of weeks, we will launch it with our local partner, Telectron, and they will do the official launch for the UAE,” he said.

“We had discussions with the Civil Defence and they are really quick so it looks like the first project will be with the Government. Local banks in Abu Dhabi and Dubai have also expressed interest.”

Experts say older cameras are unable to produce the same quality of image.

“Security is all about facts, and more detailed pictures produce more accurate facts,” said Karim Kobti, the commercial manager at Telectron, a leading regional fire and security engineering firm.

“The high definition of the camera is what gives it its edge. It is higher than most surveillance cameras out there.”

He said efficient cameras allowed users to see every detail.

“That’s what differentiates them from the market, because they have the technology, which is HD quality.”

With major international events such as Expo 2020 taking place in the UAE , the concept will help to tackle major hurdles in security.

“I see the security situation in the Gulf as very optimistic,” said Gerrit Mohr, Grundig’s sales manager. “I think the whole region has a bright future in security. Not all the industries can say that they are going to grow but I think security will grow, not only in the UAE, but the whole region.”

He said such international events would have an impact on security because they become a major social challenge.

“Many people come at the same time and the security standards are reviewed so it is taken as an opportunity to install some security in areas where there was none before,” Mr Mohr said.

“In the UAE, more and more international events take place and they will have their impact on security.”