A very SMART system for police lock-ups

KUALA LUMPUR: A state-of-the-art close-circuit television camera (CCTV) system that monitors and alerts every movement of inmates at 704 police lock-ups nationwide will soon be a feature at these centres to avert untoward incidents among detainees.
Called the Self-Monitoring Analytics Reporting Technology System (SMART), it will replace the conventional CCTVs currently in use at police lock-ups.
Among the capabilities of the system are that it detects even anomalies such as fights among inmates, escape attempts and other unusual movements.
Such anomalies will trigger an alert channelled to a central monitoring centre manned by lock-up personnel within the premises, prompting action by cell wardens.
Federal police strategic resources and technology director Datuk Zaleha Abdul Rahman said today 58 out of the 704 police lock-ups are currently equipped with SMART at a cost of RM3.5 million.
She said the SMART system is installed in every cell of the 58 lock-ups and its vicinity.
Zaleha said police are hopeful that the new technology will help improve the security and monitoring system of police lock-ups to prevent unwanted incidents.
She said the management of lock-ups in the country will be enhanced with a higher degree of safety and monitoring of detainees.
Today, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak officially launched the SMART system which was showcased at the Defense Services Asia (DSA) 2016 exhibition at the PWTC.
The SMART lock-up system was jointly developed by the police, the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation's research arm Mimos and the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam).