Experts offer additional 2025 security predictions

YARMOUTH, Maine — Security Systems News (SSN) tapped a few more industry experts to offer a final round of predictions on what to expect in 2025. 

For the first round of predictions, go here. 

A crossing guard for the intersection of cyber, physical security 

Greg Parker, global vice president, Security and Fire, Life Cycle Management, Johnson Controls, highlighted what he calls the growing interconnectivity of building management systems and the need for layered risk management strategies for facility managers in the coming year. 

“As cyber and physical security increasingly intersect, zero-trust architectures will be essential to safeguard access and mitigate vulnerabilities,” he said. “Organizations must ensure all users, devices and systems are verified continuously with robust access controls to prevent unauthorized intrusions into physical security systems. I anticipate zero-trust becoming the industry standard, especially for facilities leveraging IoT and cloud-based solutions, where the stakes for security and operational continuity are higher than ever.”   

Parker added, “Managed services that monitor and optimize physical assets throughout their lifecycle will be table stakes. This includes critical functions like firmware updates and system health monitoring and ensuring proper functionality. Predictive maintenance powered by AI will play a pivotal role in addressing vulnerabilities proactively, minimizing downtime and costs, while bolstering security.”   

New solutions for non-standard situations 

Stephen Burd, vice president of Essence Security, offered: The introduction of new technologies and the mass adoption of smart home technologies has led to an increase in criminal sophistication and, as a result, security providers will need to provide something to consumers to combat crime in less traditional risk environments. 

“The security industry will see increased demand for solutions that support non-standard environments such as delivery vans, unoccupied buildings and stores with high-value assets, requiring functions such as portability, remote capabilities and proactive intervention,” he said. “Consumers will expect security devices to be IoT-enabled as part of a wider connected ecosystem at homes and properties. Sophisticated, connected security devices will see great demand and will increasingly utilize AI-driven analytics and real-time monitoring.” 

Access control, on the go 

Jake Leichtling, director of product management, Access Control, Verkada, sees mobile credentials becoming ubiquitous as users place increasing importance on their mobile devices to perform a variety of tasks in verification settings. 

“Smartphones have become an essential multifaceted tool for everyday life and, as a result, an item most people wouldn’t think of leaving behind,” he said. “This has primed consumers to adopt mobile credentials. Because they already rely on their phones for everyday life, people want to access mobile credentials across more parts of their lives—from digital driver’s licenses in place of physical identification at airports to mobile key cards for hotel rooms. Digital wallets like Apple Wallet are also making it easier to deploy mobile credentials at scale. This appetite for convenient, secure identity verification and access control solutions is just at the beginning and will likely drive mobile credential adoption across nearly every other use case and sector.”