Factoring Data Retention Into Your Video Surveillance Needs

Video As Data

Video is one the fastest growing data types. From retail stores and restaurants to healthcare facilities and school campuses, video is used to monitor employees and customers, prevent crime, capture video evidence, or to ensure compliance with state and federal regulations. Many industries that use video surveillance must also adhere to strict laws and regulations regarding the retention of video data.  

Video Data Retention & Industry Compliance

Here are just a few of the video data retention compliance regulations different industries are required to meet: 

• Casinos and Gaming: The gaming industry has some of the most stringent compliance regulations in place and, like most industries, these regulations vary by state. In Nevada, casinos are required to retain video data for 7 days, except in instances of suspected crimes or questioning by security personnel, where the retention requirement jumps up to 30 days. 

• Cannabis: Due to the fact that cannabis is not federally legal, the cannabis industry faces many rules and regulations in regard to video surveillance, and has some of the longest video retention requirements with some states requiring companies involved in the sale of cannabis to retain video data for up to two years by law. 

• Healthcare: Hospitals and healthcare facilities face numerous state and federal laws and regulations pertaining to patient confidentiality that require many facilities to maintain video data both on-premises and off-premises as well as ensure the data is totally encrypted the moment it is captured and as long as it remains stored by the facility.  

• Law Enforcement: There are numerous laws that mandate the amount of time that law enforcement is required to retain video data. For example, the Washington D.C. Metropolitan Police Department requires that body-worn camera surveillance videos that do not contain a crime are retained for 90 days while videos associated with a complaint must be retained for 5-10 years and any video subject to a Freedom of Information Act request must be retained indefinitely. 

• Banking: Banks and establishments that operate ATMs face regulations specified by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) requiring businesses to maintain appropriate security procedures to discourage criminal activity and to assist in identifying and apprehending criminals which includes the use of video surveillance systems by the establishment. 

Eagle Eye Cloud VMS for Data Retention

Most regulated industries today face some form of state or federal mandate regarding the retention of video surveillance data. Oftentimes, these regulations require organizations to retain video data for specified time periods both on-premises as well as off-premises. With that being said, the Eagle Eye Cloud VMS is a perfect solution for organizations that need to meet specific video data retention requirements either on-premises, off-premises, or both, and provides businesses with the ability to store encrypted video data in the Eagle Eye Cloud anywhere from 1 day up to 5 years.