MIPS 2019 steals the dance floor in Nashville with talk of disruption, innovation and more

NASHVILLE—Tagged as “Milestone Community Days,” MIPS 2019 explored the intelligent world through the eyes and knowledge of a variety of security professionals, who presented new-found insights. The following paints the landscape of the event in terms of the most discussed highlights, topics and themes.

Artificial Intelligence (AI), the Cloud and Disruption
Sweeping the world of technology is the mindset of a future filled with evolution to further fuel society's “we-have-what-we-want-when-we- want-it” mentality by harnessing the power of AI and ML, creating solutions that are disrupting and will further disrupt the industry.

“Disruption has already started; how do you want to respond,” Brian Solis, principal analyst at Altimeter Group, a Prophet company, said during his keynote presentation, questioning the audience. “It's not about just serving people, but adding value to their lives by giving hope, helping people get closer to achieving their goals, and finishing their everyday tasks faster and more efficiently.”

Milestone and their partners are responding to this disruption by unfolding AI by journeying from the client server to the cloud. The company's goal is to unpack all of the client server's capabilities and take a hybrid approach to cloud. VMS data must be deconstructed and able to move between “on prem” or the cloud so that workloads can be available where ever needed.

“Milestone has been investing into the future of cloud for several years, even to the point of sacrificing the development of our own product family,” Tim Palmquist, VP Americas, Milestone Systems, explained. “It will take many years for cloud to catch up with the client server as we know it today.”

The Copenhagen Letter and Clause
This letter was written in 2017 to “everyone who shapes technology today,” allowing people to commit to putting humans before business by adding their full name and email to digitally sign the letter. Those who signed hold themselves and others accountable for putting the following ideas into practice:
• Tech is not above us.
• Progress is more than innovation.
• Let us build from trust.
• Design open to scrutiny.
• Let us move from human-centered design to humanity-centered design.

Going along with these commitments, Milestone announced it will be including a “Copenhagen Clause” in its end-user licensing agreements and other legal documents. Incorporating the clause allows for continued conversations around ethics and using technology responsibly.

“Our technology is more powerful today, so consider responsible use,” Palmquist said. “Technology doesn't know if it's being used for good or bad; it's humans' job to do that.”

Cybersecurity
Always top of mind within the industry, Fredrik Nilsson, VP of the Americas, Axis Communications indicated time is the key to successful cybersecurity.
“When, not if, a cyber security breach happens, how quickly it's addressed,” he said, is essential to overcoming the damage and getting customers back to full use of the system itself as fast as possible.

Innovation
Innovation takes time, perhaps because creating something new requires change and change is not easy for some. Nevertheless, people have a “drive to solve the 'broken' and 'painful' with new ideas and solutions,” Solis said. Looking forward leads to innovation while focusing on the past leads to iteration.

A new company is taking innovation seriously by launching their open IoT platform for security cameras at ISC West 2019. SAST. is a fully owned but independent Bosch start-up with an ecosystem of rules and ethical guidelines to ensure data privacy. SAST. partnered with the Open Security & Safety Alliance to create a framework of standards and specifications for common components—operating systems, IoT infrastructure, data security and privacy, and improved levels of performance for security and safety solutions.

“We are launching three 2019 pilot programs in transportation, airport and retail, as well as participating in hackathons,” Peter Jelinski, VP partner management, SAST., said.

When it comes to innovation, Fredrik Nilsson, VP of the Americas, Axis Communications, offered this advice: “Don't over promise and fulfill expectations.”

Market Challenges
With so much data being generated from various devices and sources, it's important to create value out of this data. However, there are some challenges that Johan Jubbega, president, Open Security & Safety Alliance identified during his keynote that hinders this process.

“With the number of connected devices, the amount of data is skyrocketing,” he said. “There is an increasing need for customization, as one size doesn't fit all, as well as the need for data security with such a high number of smart, connected devices.”

In general, and across all use cases, data is not being used to its full potential.

Milestone Marketplace
Launched during MIPS 2019 exclusively for Milestone Technology Partners, Marketplace is a centralized knowledge hub of installation guides, demos and other relevant documentation. Partners can also market their applications, hardware or services to potential buyers globally and in return buyers are able to quickly find solutions, connect with sellers and access relevant information.

“Four thousand four hundred minutes have go into building Marketplace,” Susan VonBulow, senior digital project manager, Milestone Systems, told MIPS participants.

Overall, the event celebrated Milestone's partners with a “forward focused journey on unlocking power and value, promoting the responsible use of technology, and reducing friction,” Palmquist said.