Using Wireless for CCTV Backhaul

t: 0333 1212 100 w: www.purdi.com e: hello@purdi.com

Effective Backhaul: Capacity, Security, Affordability & Scalability

Town centres, business parks, emergency services, schools and councils are increasingly

pressured to deploy next generation CCTV networks to protect & safeguard property

and, more importantly, people. With these new demands, new issues and challenges arise

for CCTV network operators who are forced into a difficult trade off between price vs.

security, quality and reliability, often having to sacrifice one for another.

Capacity: HD Video Needs HD Backhaul

CCTV has come a long way from the earliest

known use stemming from Germany in 1942 used

to monitor the testing of rockets consisting of a

simple camera to monitor system with no

recording. VCR recording succeeded this in the

1980’s followed by the digital age in the early

2000’s which saw the VCR replaced by the DVR

recording onto a hard drive rapidly boosting the

amount of video that could be recorded. CCTV

installers have kept to analogue for as long as

possible due to tradition and fear of IP, but now with HD video quality and anytime cloud

access becoming the de-facto standards, a new generation of CCTV installers are

winning many of the contracts with IP previously held by analogue. For an IP, HD and

cloud based CCTV network, a reliable backhaul method is paramount to delivering

patch-less footage to the NVR. Fibre, of course, is preferable however as discussed later

in this whitepaper is often not simple or cost effective to deploy.

Using proprietry wireless

backhaul technology specifically

engineered for CCTV ensures that

an installer gets the financial

benfits of a wireless system

without comprimising on quality

still achieving fibre performance”

Using Wireless for CCTV Backhaul

t: 0333 1212 100 w: www.purdi.com e: hello@purdi.com

Security: without Compromising Quality

CCTV data must also be secure, especially when concerning local government, blue light,

ANPR, traffic light management or any other critical applications. Often to save CAPEX

cost, encryption is overlooked or WiFi based wireless backhaul is used leaving open

invitations to a security hack or data breach. A security hack or data breach is costly to fix

involving huge human and financial resources not to the mention down time and private

information potentially leaked to people. With newly active hacking groups, or

“hacktivists”, targeting CCTV networks more and more in a bid to disrupt governmental

operations, security has now has become an equal deciding factor when planning a

network.

The University of Michigan published a paper1 in which they describe how they gained

control of an entire traffic light system controlling almost 100 intersections in an

unnamed Michigan city. The vulnerability came from the WiFi based backhaul used for

the network which was found to be “visible from standard laptops and smart-phones”

enabling the University to gain control quickly and easily.

“Operation CCTV”

The UK arm of “hacktivist” group

Anonymous urges members in a

YouTube video2 to hack the UK

government and local authorities CCTV

network with WiFi based & unencrypted

backhaul as an easy entry point.

Using Wireless for CCTV Backhaul

t: 0333 1212 100 w: www.purdi.com e: hello@purdi.com

Security threats, a hot press topic since 2013, are only increasing leaving tarnished

reputations to the names of corporations, councils and governments. Ensuring the

highest level of security is achieved using AES 128 or 256bit encryption which

superseded DES encryption. Such levels of encryption are available for both wired and

wireless communications however an added layer of security is introduced with wireless

through frequency.

With wireless, by using either a licensed (6 - 50GHz), millimetre wave (60, 70 & 80GHz)

or a proprietary based 5GHz radio, network operators can be further assured. For a

successful intrusion, a hacker would have to purchase a radio receiver on the same

frequency, align it to intercept the radio signal and then hack past the AES overlay which

considering that the 60GHz beam-width is only 1o wide, may take a while.

Affordability: Fibre is Reliable but not Financially Viable

Fibre is often looked at as the most reliable,

resilient and high quality choice of connection

available for CCTV camera to DVR/control room

backhaul. Fibre however is often not a real-world

choice due to security, location, price and lead

time. As well as the high reliability fibre brings, it is

also presents challenges for CCTV networks.

One of the main drawbacks to fibre is the cost to

deploy, maintain and replace. Not only do fibre networks have to be dug from scratch

avoiding listed buildings, electricity lines and roads, they also have to be replaced every

4-8 years when bandwidth requirements of the cameras multiply. With the recent mass

adoption of HD video and the newly introduced 4K resolution, bandwidth requirements

are destined to increase. Fibre can also take weeks to be laid and configured taking up

large amounts of project management time delaying other CCTV project work.

Siklu (60, 70 & 80GHz),

Cambium Networks

(proprietry 5GHz), Repeatit

(proprietry 5GHz) and

Ceragon (licensed)

Using Wireless for CCTV Backhaul

t: 0333 1212 100 w: www.purdi.com e: hello@purdi.com

Conclusion: Wireless, too good to be true?

Using proprietary & unlicensed wireless backhaul technology specifically engineered for

CCTV ensures that an installer gets the financial benefits of a wireless system without

compromising on quality still achieving fibre performance. When deploying a

combination of proprietary wireless equipment spread across different frequencies and

capacity capabilities, a low-cost fibre-like performing wireless backhaul CCTV network

can be deployed.

By using next generation backhaul manufacturers such as Repeatit, Siklu, Ceragon &

Cambium Networks, CCTV installers benefit from 5 key areas: Security, Capacity,

Simplicity, Scalability and Affordability. Purdicom provides partners with CCTV tender

support, pre-configuration and installation assistance for customers planning a wireless

CCTV network.

Purdicom Partner Case Study: Aberdeen Harbour

The harbour wanted to deliver CCTV backhaul to

reliably deliver data from camera to the

NVR/control room and needed the installation to

not disrupt any day-to-day operations which left

wireless as the only option. Through a CCTV partner

Purdicom supplied wireless CCTV backhaul to

Aberdeen Harbour the UK’s largest port serving the

North Sea oil and gas industry. The harbour used Siklu EtherHaul millimetre wave

wireless to upgrade its CCTV recording capability with a future-proof solution.