Citing Russian aggression in Ukraine, increased threats from malign actors and rapid technological change as causes of global instability and disruption to the rules-based international order, the government’s Defence Investment Plan includes a £7 billion allocation for infrastructure this parliament.
With defence infrastructure projects alone involving new build, refurbishment, maintenance and minor works and associated services, this has created an ever-increasing number of complicated sites that require additional security measures as part of the workforce management plan.
Using data capture from biometrics and digital profiles, how do we ensure that workforce management remains automatic and verifiable while offering peace of mind that the necessary security measures are in place for the majority of tier one construction contractors in the UK? Read on to find out.
A matter of compliance
We are committed to ensuring compliance with the latest requirements in cyber security, not only to safeguard our clients and their information but also to enforce best practice across the board. It’s at the heart of everything we, and our clients and partners, do.
Our security programme, software design and platform delivery utilise the data protection by design and by default principle, to ensure that our role as a data processor trusted with third party data is compliant with GDPR.
We are ISO 27001 accredited – the world’s best-known standard for establishing, implementing, maintaining and continually improving information security management systems (ISMS). Key benefits include resilience to cyber attacks, assurance that data remains undamaged, confidential and available, and increased organisation-wide protection for people, processes and technology. Our platform utilises AWS hosting services, which are also ISO 27001 certified.
As well as ISO 27001, we remain compliant with quality management standard ISO 9001. In doing so, we can better meet customer expectations by continually improving performance and demonstrating our commitment to quality. This applies to how we provide, install and maintain both software and hardware services – with annual audits by external bodies, such as the British Assessment Bureau, to ensure we are held accountable to rigorous standards.
Many providers of biometric access control systems for UK construction sites use Chinese-made facial recognition readers, which do not comply with UK government regulations prohibiting the installation of visual surveillance equipment from companies subject to China’s National Intelligence Law on sensitive sites. In contrast, our integration with Suprema – manufactured in South Korea – offers a degree of assurance against these geopolitical and compliance concerns.
Capturing photographs, storing biometrics
So, how does this apply to our workforce management systems in practice?
Although the MSite Face and Face Mini both utilise a camera for access control, and require high quality worker photos, it’s the biometric measurements that are captured and stored. This data also isn’t stored in its original state, but instead as an encrypted template which cannot be reverse engineered.
To ensure that clients are getting exactly the level of security they require, we work collaboratively to create a system to suit individual needs. This includes options such as multi-factor authentication, single sign-on, 4K high-quality worker photo requirement, SIM card removal and factory reset lock.
Our biometric access control is made possible through rich integration with the FaceStation F2 and BioStation 3 face readers from Suprema – widely considered as best-in-class in this field. Owing to the depth of this integration, we are able to take advantage of Suprema’s multimodal authentication options on a device-by-device basis. While these options are extensive, for defence sites it’s recommended that a facial recognition and card authentication combination is used.
For attendance purposes, our Face Mini devices and our Supervisor app - when used on the front facing camera of supported Apple devices - utilise Apple TrueDepth technology to ensure that a 3D face is presented to the device and not a printed or on-screen image of a person's face.
Suprema biometric devices offer configurable security modes, enabling a flexible balance between throughput and authentication accuracy. At the highest security settings, the system is tuned to minimise the risk of false acceptance, ensuring that the chance of an impostor being incorrectly verified is extremely low. However, this can also increase the likelihood of false rejections, where legitimate users are denied access. To mitigate this, we offer high-resolution 4K cameras, coupled with enrolment quality checks in the enrolment software, helping maintain robust security without significantly impacting user flow.
What happens on site, stays on site
Some systems depend on servers located on site to perform biometric matching, which carries several security and operational risks. Often installed in non-secure locations - such as beneath desks or in general office areas – servers can become vulnerable to tampering, theft or unauthorised access.
In contrast, all of our biometric devices perform biometric matching locally on the device itself, ensuring that biometric data remains encrypted – never leaving the device and therefore having no exposure to the risks associated with external or unsecured servers. Suprema face readers are also equipped with secure tamper switches, which can be configured to erase all worker data from the device if it is removed from its installed location.
An additional benefit of this approach is that all our access and attendance systems can continue to operate in the event of lost connectivity, which is typically a key consideration in a construction environment.
Are you in?
Once biometrics are captured, these are used to unlock our access control hardware that not only record time and attendance but also helps perimeterise sites. Creating a physical barrier between those on and off sites, only workers who have created a profile, provided credentials including right to work documents, and completed an online induction, will be able to step foot on site. Being able to control site access in this way, spanning both everyday workers and occasional visitors, ensures that you know exactly who is on site and when.
Ensuring defence sites are safe and secure can be a daunting process, but with our solutions and proven track record of successful deployments, the full worker journey can be monitored under one roof.
Our system design and applications are suitable for highly secure defence sites, with the versatility to also be suitable for other sectors – from education to healthcare and beyond. We understand that all construction sites are precious to our clients, so our solutions help protect whatever’s inside the hoardings.
To learn more about our secure site solutions, visit www.infobric.com/uk/en/platforms/msite/sectors/secure-sites