LAPD Drops Gmail, Questions Cloud-based Security

The LAPD is dumping Google's Gmail email service, saying it could not meet the security needs of the the police department.

Does Gmail's failure to meet security needs bring into question the legitimacy of cloud-based security applications where video surveillance images are recorded and stored offsite, primarily for financial reasons?

Google had wooed the LAPD into the system in 2009 promising lower costs and higher security for its 13,000 employees.

According to the LA Times, city officials said Gmail "does not have the technical ability to comply with the city's security requirements" and that those requirements are "not currently compatible with cloud computing."

The article cites critics who say cloud computing "might not be ready for prime time."

A Google spokesman said Google was "disappointed," but pointed out that Gmail had saved the LAPD more than $2 million. But in the security world, it's not always about saving money for clients.

Dave Dearborn, CEO of DCRM, a security consulting firm in Massachusetts, has no qualms about deploying cloud-based security systems for his clients, which include integrators, central stations and end users. Dearborn uses CheckVideo Systems, which combines video analytics and cloud storage to save clients 25 percent or more just in hardware, depending on the application.

Dearborn, who has done installations in multi-family housing, senior living and retail locations among others, says the systems are easy to deploy and allow for off-site configuration for integrators. In some cases, the systems have supplemented or even replaced guard services. He admits, however, it is a still a fledgling time for cloud-based security offerings.

"Pricing models for cloud-based security are still be fleshed out," he says. "Many companies are under valuing it and some have figured it out. It's a confusing time and it's going to take time."