Design of an Automated Intrusion Detection System incorporating an Alarm

JOURNAL OF COMPUTING, VOLUME 1, ISSUE 1, DECEMBER 2009, I SSN: 2151-9617 HTTPS://SITES.GOOGL E.COM/SITE/JOURNALOF COMPUTING/ 149 Design of an Automated Intrusion Detection System incorporating an Alarm Awodele Oludele, Ogunnusi Ayodele, Omole Oladele, Seton Olurotimi Computer Science and Mathematics Department, Babcock University Ilishan -Remo, Ogun state, Nigeria Abstract- Security and safety are two i nte rtwined terms. It is a comm on belief that when a place or system is secure, it is safe. This paper shows a means of integrating three devices for physical intru sion detection. This paper thus suggests a means of in creasing the level of security in an enclos ed area with the use three of the four security layers necessary f or optim um secu rity. This paper intends to show that a system with more than one security device in place tends to prevent una uthorized access. This pape r would be illustrating the implementatio n of this in an enclosed area whos e security level must be kept on the high at all times. Keywords- Security; safety; Intrusion; Detection 1. INTRODUCTION S ecurity has been define d, by [1], as safet y from harm . It is a term that has diffe rent dim ensions in psyc hology, pu blic safety, defense and m ilitary matters and information access. Safety, also by [1], is de fined as p rotection from action from wi thout or subversion from within. Secu rity and safety are always intertwined and it is impossib le to design a security system without taking into acco unt the safety of the object or person into considerat ion. Security i n embedded s ystems is usua lly an afterthought. Considering t he current global securit y environm ent, the importance of good physical secu rity is difficult to ignore. Physical security services are becoming a private rather than public servic e i.e. indi viduals and organizat ions tend to hi re private security firms and install security equipm ent and use the police as the back. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (2004), private security officer s outn umber police officers by more tha n 2 to 1 in th e Un ited St ates of America. Recent reports suggest that this trend holds true for both daily security operations responding to terrorism [5], natural disasters[4]. Physical security has seen less atten tion and it is pri marily an applied field , it has no de dicated line of re search. Instead, it is scattered through fields like en gineering, computer sc ience, chemistry and physics as well as social sciences such as criminology, so ciology and psychology [2]. Pr oviding security relies on two main elements: • Equipment or technology and • People Without any statistica l proof, it is the beli ef of [2] that major funding goes more into equipment security research than people security resear ch. Others m ight disagree with this poi nt of view for exampl e, [3] stated t hat General E ugene Habi ger (retired), former comm ander of US strategi c nuclear forces and advisor to the US department o f Energy was quoted saying that “good security is 20% equipment a nd 80% people”. Human security, according to [3], has the tendency to want to cover more ground than actually securing the gro und. Hum an security has s everal reoccurring pr oblems whic h include: • Disgruntled e mploy ees • Professionalism • Job characteristics • Security structure and clim ate for security These reoccurri ng problem s tend to dist urb or hal t the work to be done or carried out. The objectives of this paper are give n as foll ows: • To find and report as accurately as pos sible the previous security systems that are i n place in the world today. • To design and construct a metal detector, digital access system and a pressure sensitive security mat. • To successfully harmonise the ope rations of these t hree devices. • To outline and accurately stat e the mode of operation and conditions for optimal performance. • To successfully implem ent this security system. The scope of this paper is limited to roo ms with only one entrance and e xit. Such room s include stores a nd vaults. Such rooms ensure that all indivi dua ls accessing the room can only JOURNAL OF COMPUTING, VOLUME 1, ISSUE 1, DECEMBER 2009, I SSN: 2151-9617 HTTPS://SITES.GOOGL E.COM/SITE/JOURNALOF COMPUTING/ 150 access the room and leave the room via one door. This makes keeping track of access i nformation very convenient for t he user. In computer securi ty field, an i ntrusion is defi ned as an active sequence of related events that deliberately try to cause harm, such as rendering system un usable, accessing unauthorized informat ion or mani pulating such inform ation. It re fers to bot h successful and unsuccessful attempts [6]. Thus this paper is justified. 1.1. PROBLEM STATEMENT Security is an important aspect of all our lives. A secure environm ent tends to give indi viduals rest of mind. H owever, with a global recession occ urring, people have resorted to less honorable m eans to m ake ends meet. Theft rates (in a typical Nigerian University) ha ve increas ed causi ng disharm ony in the areas where such events occur. This sometim es leads to unpleasant occurrences such as fights and sometimes injuries. These injuries are either sustaine d when the culprit is caught and a mob action is decided upon. The aim of the pr oposed design is to reduce such occurre nces by al erting the appropriate quarters while an unautho rized entran ce into a room occurs. The relevance of this paper ca nnot be o veremphasized. 1.2. PREVIOUS SECURITY SYS TEMS AND THEIR LIMITATIONS 1.2.1 Electrical Locks Electric locks come in many forms. The most basic is a Magnetic Lock (comm only called a ma g lock). A large electro-m agnet is m ounted on the door fram e and a correspondi ng armature i s mounted on the door. When the magnet is pow ered and the door i s closed, the armat ure is held fast to the magnet. Mag lock s are simple to install and are very attack resistant. But mag locks are also problematic. Improperly installed or maintain ed mag locks have fallen on people. Also there is no mechanical free egre ss. In other words, one m ust unlock the mag lo ck to both enter and leave. This has caused fire marshals to im pose strict c odes on the use o f mag locks a nd the access control practice in general. Other problem s include a lag time in releasing as the collapsing magnetic field is not instantaneous. This lag time can cause a user to walk into th e door. Finall y, mag locks by design fail unl ocked, that is if power is removed t hey unloc k. This coul d be a p roblem where securit y is a prime concern. Electric Strikes replace a standard stri ke mounted on the door frame and rece ive the latch and latch bolt. Electric strikes can be simple to install when they are designed for drop-in replacement of a standard strike. But s ome electric strikes require t hat the door frame be heavily modifi ed. Electric strikes allow mechanical free egress: As a user leaves, he operates the lockset in the door, not the electric stri ke in the door fram e. Electric strikes can also be either fai l unlocked, as a m ag lock, or the more secure fail locked. Electric strikes are easier to attack than a mag lock. It is simple to lever the door open at the strike. Often the there is an increased gap be tween the stri ke and the door latch. Latch guards are often used to cov er this gap Electric Mortise and Cylindrical Locks are drop in replacements for the door moun ted m echanical locks. A hole must be drilled in the door for electric power wires. Also a power transfer hinge is used t o get the power from the door frame to the door. Electric m or tise and cylindrical locks allow mechanical free egress. Electri c m ortise and cylindrical locks can be either fail unloc ked or fail locke d. Electrified Exit Hardware , som etimes called pani c hardware or crash bars, are used in fire exit applications. The idea is that o ne simply pushes against th e bar to open it, making it th e easiest of mechanically free exit methods. Electri fied exit har dware can be either fail unlocked or fail locked . A drawback of electrified exit hardware is their complexity wh ich requires skill to install an d maintenance to assure proper function. Motor Operated Locks are used throughout Europe. A European mot or operated lock ha s two m odes, day mode whe re only the latch is electrically operated, and ni ght mode whe re the more secure deadbolt is electrically operated (www.wikipedia.com). 1.2.2. User Authentication Systems When implemented with a digital access system, one of the following access systems or digita l authentications systems can be with an electric lock. These however a re only a few of the numerous authentication de vices available. Numerical Codes, Passwords and Passphrase s: Perhaps the most prevalent form of electronic l ock is that using a numerical code for aut hentication; t he correct code m ust be e ntered in o rder for the lock to deactivate. Such locks typi cally provi de a keypad, and some feature an au dible response to each press. Combinati on lengths a re usual ly between 4 and 6 digit s long. A variation on this design i nvolves t he user enteri ng the correct password or p assphrase. A m ajor hindran ce however is t he fact that users are capable of forgetti ng their codes. For getfulness is especially common in older people and this system will not be convenient for them. These codes are, in some cases, easy to crack. Security Tokens: Another means of authenticating users is to require th em to scan or "swipe " a security to ken such as a smart card or similar, or inter act a t oken with the lock. For example, some locks can access st ored credentials on a pe rsonal digital assistant using infrared d ata transf er methods. However, just as in the case of an ATM card, the magnetic tape tends t o wear off with time either resulting to time wasting in accessing a room or the inability of the user to access the roo m at all. Biometrics: As biometrics becom e more and more prom inent as a recognized means of positive iden tification, their use in security systems increases. Some new electronic l ocks take advantage of technologies such as fingerpri nt scanning, retinal scanning and iris scanning, an d voiceprint identificatio n to authenticate users. This is a very sec ure way of identifying a person’s identity but it is li mited by the occurrence of an accident or disfiguration to th e part of the body used for identification. JOURNAL OF COMPUTING, VOLUME 1, ISSUE 1, DECEMBER 2009, I SSN: 2151-9617 HTTPS://SITES.GOOGL E.COM/SITE/JOURNALOF COMPUTING/ 151 1.3.1. Problems wi th the Existing Sys tem This paper is written using a typical University in Nigeria as a case study. The focus of this paper is to create a security system to be implemented in an y room in the institutions. Babco ck University for instance, bases its physical secur ity on only the first and second layers of physical security i.e. Crime Prevention through Environmental Design and mechanical layer which include gates, doors, and locks. This makes the system effective to some extent bu t largely ineffective and vulnerable t o attacks and m anipulation both from within and without the system. The system bases its physical security on two main features namely: • People (Securit y Men and Women) a nd • Structures (Walls and loc ks) These two features are easy to b ypass and this is evident by the high rates o f theft and m anipulation of security men by stude nts to do their biddings. Th is paper seeks to reduce the theft rates by increasing the security of such areas by making them “safe rooms”. The problems with the current security structure of rooms in Babcock University include: Ease of Access through Breaking of Locks All doors in our immediate en vironment are based on the cylindrical lock mechanism. Th is lock m echanism is very common and thi s fact makes it easy to breakdown by either breaking the lock or duplicating the keys. This makes the syste m rather unsafe for all users Lack of Intrusion Detection Alerts All intrusion alerts are based dep endent on discovery by individuals i.e. either securi ty personnel ’s or stude nts. This delay gives the culpri t enough time t o dispose of what ever has been stolen and more than enough tim e to cover his tracks. This leads to a string of an ever increa si ng number of uns olved cases of theft. A proper intrusion detection system a lerts the responsible quarters once a n abnorm ality is disc overed in the system. Inefficient Monitoring Method Monitoring one’s belonging s are left to the vigilance on the path of the security officials and the owne rs of such goo ds. This can prove to be ineffective co nsiderin g the fact that as huma n beings, we tend to get bored performing monotonous tasks. This leads to the search of more exciting tasks no matter how irrelevant they might be at such times. There is also the need to takes occa sional breaks to refresh one’s self. A very observant thief will be able to use such m inute details to his adva ntage. When surveillance is con tinuous with no visible break, it tend s to deter the les s desperate thieves a nd thereby re ducing the t heft rate. An example of a continuou s surveillance system is the u se of closed-circuit television (CCTV). 2. LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1. EXISTING SECURITY SYSTEMS Security is the condition of bei ng protected against danger, loss, and criminals. In the gene ral sens e, security is a concept similar to safety(www.wikipedia.com). The slight difference between the two is an added im portance on bei ng prot ected outside threats or dangers. Indi viduals or act ions that go or act against the general rule s of protection are respo nsible for the bre ach of security. Security can also be seen as: • A condition that results from the estab lishment and maintenance of protective meas ures that ensures a state of inviolability from hostile acts or influences. • With respect to classified matter, the condition that prevents unauthorized persons from having access to official information that is safegu arded in the interests of national security. • Measures taken by a military unit, an activity or installation to protect itself ag ainst all acts designed to, or which may, impair its effectiveness. Security has t o be compare d and cont rasted wi th other related concepts: Safety, con tinuity, reliability. The key difference between security and reliability is that security must take into account the actions of people attempting to cause destruction ( www.wik ipedia.com).There is an immense literature o n the analysis and categ orization of security. It is common knowledge as with all systems that the "weakest link in the chain" is the most important. This can also be incorporated in secu rity system s. The situation is asymmetric since the defender m ust cover all poi nts of attack while the attacker need only identify a single weak point upon which to concentrat e. 2.2. Real Security versus Perceived Security It is often tr ue that what in dividuals percei ve or believe to be real security is quite th e opposite is actually a mirage o f the real secure system. People tend to believe air transpor t is more dangerous than road travel b ut it is quite the opposite. Sometim es the equipm ent or tool s are mistaken for the effect. This is often demons trated by people who ha ve much antivirus softwares on their system s. These softwares are incom patible and tend to create more pr oblems than solve problems. The u ser however believes that with more antivirus softwares the better protected the system. This leads the user to believe he has a protected system while in reality, the system is exposed. This is a typical example of real secur ity vers us perceived s ecurity. Security Theatre is a phenom enon where i neffective security measures are introduced and these measures som etimes increase the real security only a little or sometimes they actually decrease the real securit y (www.wikipe dia.com).Ho wever, per ceived security can actually give a form of actual security. The perception of security acts as so me form of deterrent for malicious at tacks or unpla nned attacks. For exampl e, if a warning sign i s shown that “Tres passers will be shot on Sight”, this will deter people from trespa ssing even if there are no armed guards on duty . Also, often whe n there is actual security present in an area, such as video surv eillance, an alarm system in a home, or an anti-theft system in a car such as a LoJack, signs advertising this security w ill increase its effectiveness, protecting the valu e of the secure d vehicle or area itself. Since JOURNAL OF COMPUTING, VOLUME 1, ISSUE 1, DECEMBER 2009, I SSN: 2151-9617 HTTPS://SITES.GOOGL E.COM/SITE/JOURNALOF COMPUTING/ 152 some intruders will decide not to attempt to br eak into such areas or vehicles, there can act ually be less damage t o windows in addition to protectio n of valuable objects insid e. Without such advertisement, a car-thief m ight , for e xample, approach a car, break the window, and the n flee in r e s p o n s e t o a n a l a r m b e i n g triggered. Either way, perhaps the car itself, the objects inside or both aren' t stolen, b ut with pe rceived securi ty even the windows of the car have a lower chanc e of being dam aged, increasing the financial secu rity of its owner(s). Perceived sec urity, howeve r, does not guarantee the security of an area. It is important, however, for signs advert ising securi ty not to gi ve clues as to how to subvert or m anipulate t hat security system, for exam ple, a burglar pla nning to rob a hom e reading the nam e of the manufacturer from the advertisement. 2.3. Concepts in Security Certain conce pts recur t hroughout different fields of security ( www.wikipedia.com ). • Assurance - assurance is the level of guarantee that a security system will behave as expected • Countermeasure - a counterm easure is a wa y to stop a threat from triggering a ris k event • Defense in de pth - never rel y on one single secu rity measure alone. • Exploit - a vulnerability th at has been trigg ered by a threat - a risk of 1.0 (100%) • Risk - a risk is a possible event which could ca use a loss • Threat - a threat is a method of triggering a risk event that is dangerous • Vulnerability - a weakness in a target that can potential ly be exploited by a threat 2.4. Attributes of a Good S ecurity System A good security system m ust have the follo wing attributes: • Sensitivity: the system must be sensitive enough to detect threats or chan ges i n the environm ent • Reliability: the syste m must be dependable i.e. it must work in the environment its placed in • Durability: it must be “rugged” i.e. work efficiently for a long time or a reasona ble period. • Ease of deployment: it must be easy to transport an d set up. 3. METHODOLOGY OF THIS PROPOSED SYSTEM According to [6], “An in trusion detection system itself can b e defined as the tool s, methods and res ources to help id entify, assess and report unauthor ized or unapproved network activity”. A security system is highly improved wi th an increased n umber of measures and counterm easures put in place to avoid or detect an intrusion. This involves the use of several security realms monitored by a hum an or a machine. This research work however is only interested in the physical security of a room. A good security system consists of four layers which are: • Environm ental design • Mechanical and elect ronic access control • Intrusion detection • Video m onitoring In the area of study, only the first two layers are implem ented making the r ooms insecure and also very ope n to attacks fr om both withi n and wit hout. It i s the intenti on of this pa per to propose a desi gn for an aut omated i ntrusion detection s ystem which will alert the human secu rity of an ongoing attack v ia the means of an alarm system. The environme ntal design refers to the physical structures and pers onnel’s put in place to monitor and handle physical threats to an area. Such include walls, security officials and security animals. This paper proposes th e use of a metal detector . The mechanical and electronic access control refers to the m echanical in frastructure put in place to prevent or disturb attacks. These i nclude doors and locks. T his paper proposes to re place these with electronic locks with identity validation sy stems . Intrusion detection deals with alarm system s put into pl ace or alarm tri ggers. This paper proposes to complement the alarm with a pressure sensitive security mat . This will act as a trigger for the alarm system in case the first two stages are bypassed. The final layer is called the vide o monitoring . This is a recorded video surveill ance system which could range from a camc order with a mem ory device to a hi dden Closed Circuit Televi sion (CCTV ). This provides a means of identifyin g the culprit in case the intru der is able to escape before a response t eam arrives. It is im portant to note that these layers shou ld be able to function ind ependently and also wor k as a unit. A flo w chart showing t he propos ed sequence of events is sh own in figure 1 : JOURNAL OF COMPUTING, VOLUME 1, ISSUE 1, DECEMBER 2009, I SSN: 2151-9617 HTTPS://SITES.GOOGL E.COM/SITE/JOURNALOF COMPUTING/ 153 Figure 1: A Flowchart Showi ng the Inter relations hip betw een the Four Security Layers and the Mode of Operation of the Proposed Syste m The flowchart in figure 1 identifies four distinct layers which are represented by the devices descri bed in this pa per. This pape r however is c oncerned wit h only three l ayers descri bed as follows: 3.1.0. Me tal Detector (T he Environm ental Layer): Metal detector technolog y is a huge part of our lives these days. Metal detectors are devices that use el ectromagnetic fields to detect and signal the presence of metallic or ferromagnetic objects. Metal detectors vary in their effective operating ranges an d the amounts and types of metals n ecessary to ge nerate a signal (www.howstu ffwork.com ). They are used i n airports, school s, court houses, train stations, ni ght clubs, special events and prisons to help ensure that no one is br inging a metallic weapon unto the prem ises. They are generall y divided i nto two: han d- held type and the walk throug h models . The hand held type can be used alone or in conjunctio n with the walk through model. This can be th ought of as a ‘doubl e precaution’. When a person walks through bo th metal detectors and the security officials are still in doubt, the person can be checked with a physical pat d own. Walk thro ugh met al detectors wit h digital technology pro vide enhanced tar get detection co verage (www.EzineArticles.com). Multi zone walk through metal detectors are used in high secur ity areas and feature full t arget coverage on the ri ght, center and left side of the body from head to toe. Most m etal detectors usual ly have audi ble and visual alarms which signal when a target has been detected. 3.1.1. ANATOMY OF A METAL DET ECTOR A typical metal detector is light weigh t and consists of just a few parts • Stabilizer (optional): It is used to keep the unit steady as you sweep it back an d forth. • Control Box : It contains t he circuitry, c ontrols, spea ker, batteries and the microprocessor. • Shaft : This connects the control box and t he coil, often adjustable so you can set it as a comfortable level fo r your heigh t. • Search Coil : This is the part that actually sens es the metal , also known as the “search head”/ “loop” / “antenna” Most systems also have a jack for connecting headphones, and some have the control box below th e shaft and a small display unit above. Operating a metal detector is simple. Once you turn the unit on, you move slowl y over the area you wi sh to search. In most cases, you sweep the coil (search head) bac k and forth over the ground in front o f you. When you pass it ov er a target object, an audible signal occurs. More adva nced metal detect ors provide displays that pinpoint t he type of m etal it has detect ed and how deep in the ground the ta rget object is located. The circuit diagram of a typical metal detector is shown in figure 2 . Figure 2: The Circuit Diagram of a Metal Detector wi th Alarm (source: www.electrokits.com) The metal detect or shown in Fi gure 2 is a metal detector with a 9V DC source and a 1W alarm system. 3.2.0 Pressure Sensitive ma t (The Intrusion Detection Layer): The pressure mat incorporated in this pap er is the SMS 3 safety mat. It is designed to safeguard personnel w hen entering a hazardous area around da ngerous machinery. Individual’ s presence is detec ted upon their wal king on the m at; the interconnected safety contro ller continuously monitors the integrity of the safety mat system, sending a stop signal in the event of a system fault or pressure mat actuation. (www.schm ersalusa.com) 3.2.1. ANA TOMY OF THE SMS 3 SAFETY P RESSURE MAT According to www.schmersalusa .com, a typical series SMS 3 safety pressure mat comprises of the following: • Non-slip safety mat surface • Upper electrode ( 24-guage st eel plate, hardened f or optimum performance & durability) • Edge spacer JOURNAL OF COMPUTING, VOLUME 1, ISSUE 1, DECEMBER 2009, I SSN: 2151-9617 HTTPS://SITES.GOOGL E.COM/SITE/JOURNALOF COMPUTING/ 154 • Conductive (u- shaped) contac t strips • Compressible, elastomeric insulting strips • Lower electrode (24- guage st eel plate, ha rdened for optimum performance &durability) • Safety mat bottom surface A few added advantage s of the SMS 3 safety press ure mat been chosen are: • It is easy-to-install simple 4-wire connection (with no need of terminal resistor or additional base plate). • Its 6m cable satisfies wiring requirem ents for a wide variety of appl ications. • Its non-slip surface enhances traction and minimize slippage alert. 3.3.0. Electronic Acce ss Control (The Mechanical/ Electronic Access Control Layer) A microcontroller chip PIC16F873 controls th e activities of the access control system. A schematic circuit diagram is shown in figure 3. Figure 3: A Schematic Circuit Diagr am showi ng the implementation of th e Microcont roller PIC16F873 in a Digital Access System The Power Secti on: it consists of a st ep down transform er used to step the voltage down to 5V which is the req uired voltage to run the Digital Access System . The Key Pads are used t o enter the PIN number. It also has Reset, Ope n, Change Pass, Cancel and Default b uttons. It also has n umber buttons . It has an administrat ive password and a user passw ord. The administrat ive pass can be used to res et the passwor d. The default passwo rd is the admini strative password an d can only be accessed from inside the room. The microcontroller has two ROMs of w hich one is used to store the PIN and the ot her is used to compare the stored PIN with the entered PIN. The relay section is connected to the m ag lock. Figure 4: The PIC16F 873 Microcontr oller Pin Funct ions (source: PIC 16F87x D ata Sheet) Table 1: The Key Features of the PIC1 6F873 Microc ontroller (source: PIC 16F87x D ata Sheet) From Table 1 , the PIC 16F873 m icrocontroller seve ral features which are briefly explai ned as foll ows: JOURNAL OF COMPUTING, VOLUME 1, ISSUE 1, DECEMBER 2009, I SSN: 2151-9617 HTTPS://SITES.GOOGL E.COM/SITE/JOURNALOF COMPUTING/ 155 Memory: Data, FLASH Pr ogram and EEPROM data m emories are the three types of m emory fou nd in the microcontroller. Data memory i s capable of storin g 192 bytes of dat a. FLASH Program memory stores 4kb of 14-b it words. EEPROM is a form of memory which can be written upon, read from and erased after use. This makes it a useful form of memory form continuous or flex ible usage. I/O Ports: these are ports used for inputting and ou tputting informati on to and from the micr ocontroller. These are used to supply the information to be processed and the results to the appropriate devices. Serial and Parallel Communications: these are used for passing inform ation betwee n devices and t he microcontr oller. Timers: used for sync hronizing a nd orderi ng the sequen ce of events. Instruction Set: microco ntrollers are RISC (Reduced Instruction Set Codes) devi ces. They have reduced number of Instruction sets and are c onsiderably fast. Interrupts, RESET and Delays: these are sign al codes used to notify users of completed tas ks, restart the system or delay th e operations of the system due to ongoing activities. Figure 5: The Block Diagram of the PIC16F8 73 Microcontroller (source: PIC16F87x Data Sheet) Table 2: Table Showing t he Pin F unctions of the PIC1 6F873 Microcontroller (source: PIC16F87x Data Sheet) 3.4. MODE OF OPERATION OF THE PROPOSED SYSTEM. The metal detector repr esenting the first phase of secu rity (Environmenta l Layer), would be an ind ependent unit wh ich could either be a hand-held or a standing uni t metal det ector with security guards monitoring acce ss to the area. T he security guards also serve as a part of the environmental layer. Once an individual is cleared throug h the first layer of security, he is permitted into an infusion of th e second and third ph ase (the integration of the pressure mat and the electronic access control), as both would work asynchronou sly. This implies that once access is denied to the indivi dual by the electronic access control, the pressure m at would be activated a nd on sensi ng of pressure, the alarm is activated. An OR gate IC will be used to link the outputs from the pr essure sensitive mat and the output from the Electronic Access Syst em to the alarm. The metal detector is not inclu ded due to the fact that the metal detector has an alarm of its own. The system also has an alarm system. The JOURNAL OF COMPUTING, VOLUME 1, ISSUE 1, DECEMBER 2009, I SSN: 2151-9617 HTTPS://SITES.GOOGL E.COM/SITE/JOURNALOF COMPUTING/ 156 alarm syst em could be a blow horn or a contin uously bl inking light connected to the system. A blow hor n can be implem ented in a situation where the intruder needs to be scared off. The continuously blink ing light can be an alert set at the security po st in a situation where the in truder needs to b e caught and interrogate d. In concl usion, an in dividual has to pass th e metal detector phase, and then pass the integrated electronic access control and pre ssure sensitive mat phase for access to be gra nted. 4. LIMITATIONS This proposed design is howev er limited in th e following ways: • A fault in one of the system co ntinuously gives false alarms which can be frustrating for the monitoring officer. • A surveillance system is system which can only be u sed as a reference after an intrusi on has occurre d. This can be bypassed by a well clot hed thie f. • Monitoring surveillance tap es can also be very difficult. This is because the monitori ng officer cannot at all times catch everything going o n. This will require many monitoring offi cers. • Authenticatio n system s can be bypassed by digitally cracking the codes. • This system is a security system and lacks safety features so avert danger from within. 4.1. Possible Solutions to the Li mitations of the System • False alarms and irresponsive alarm s can be as a result of bouncing signals. B ouncing sig nals are comm on to equipment using push do wn buttons, such as this system, in which continuous p ressing of the buttons results in distortions of the pulse signals. This can either trigger the alar m or not. This can however be re duced or stopped b y using a de -bouncing ci rcuit. A de - bouncing circuit is a connect ion of a buffer , a resistor and a capacitor. This circuit ensures the generation of a regular pulse. • Cracking the codes for an au thentication system will require time. Some hackers try hacki ng by “trial by error” while others use devices capable of cracking codes within a short tim e. Whatever method use d still requires time and c ontact wi th the de vice. The use of security personnel will tend to dissuade such attacks. • The system can be infused will safety features such as smoke detectors and ot her safety features to reduce the risk of having inte rnal damage. 5. CONCLUSION In this pa per we have presented a sec urity system designed t o help in the safe-guard of important materials and also to alert the appropriate personnel’s ab out unauthorized access to the room. This paper outlines the important factors to b e considered in developin g a security sy stem. This pape r discusses de sign of a security system using already existing security devices. This system is however limited by cer tain factors and the possible solutions to these limitatio ns are also discussed. REFERENCES [1] Microsoft Encarta En cyclopedia (Student Edition), 2008 [2] Bitzer, E. and Hoffman, A. Research Paper: Psychology in the Study of Physical Security, 2007 [3] Bunn, M. & Wier, A. (2004). Securing the bomb: An agenda for Action. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs [4] Higgins , M. (2 005, Septem ber 10). Katrina-hit states turn to security firms, The Washington Times. [5] Virasami, B. (2005, April 28). City to Train Private Security Guards. News day, p. A17 [6] Hassan, M.F. (2008, October 14), Intelligen t Intrusion Detection System , Blog. [7] Microchi p Technology , PIC16F 87x Data Sheet, 2001. Web References http://en.wikipedia.org/wik i/intrusion_detection _systems (Retrieved Date: 6 th November, 2008) www.medscape.com/ viewaricle/45 6786 (Retrieved D ate: 12th September, 2008 ) U.S. Departm ent of Labor: B ureau of Labor Stat istics (2005) May 2004 Na tional Occupat ional Employ ment and Wage Estimates: Protective Service Occupations http://stats.bls.gov/curren t/oes_33pr.htm (Retrieved Date: April 13, 2005) www.electronics-lab.com/project sensors/026/ (Retrieved Date: 15 th February, 2009) Harris, Tom (March, 2008) , “ How Burglar Alar ms Work”, HowStuff Works.com , Retrieved Ap ril 10, 200 7, from http://hom e.howstuff works.com /burglar-ala rm.htm wikipedia (A pril, 200 8), “ Security Lighting”, Retrieved May 16, 2008, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/security_lighting wikipedia ( Septem ber, 2008), “ Physical Security ”, Retrieved October 10, 2008, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ph ysical_security JOURNAL OF COMPUTING, VOLUME 1, ISSUE 1, DECEMBER 2009, I SSN: 2151-9617 HTTPS://SITES.GOOGL E.COM/SITE/JOURNALOF COMPUTING/ 157 wikipedia (M ay, 2008) , “ Closed-circuit television ”, Retrieved May 16, 2008, fro m http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/su rveillance_cameras wikipedia (M ay, 2008) , “ Security ”, Retrie ved May 16, 2008, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/security Biographies Awodele Oludele is a presently a lecturer in the Computer Science and Mathematics Department, Babcock University, Ilishan-Remo, Ogun State, Nigeria. He recently completed his Ph.D programme in Co mputer Sc ience in the University of Agriculture Abeokuta, Ogun state, Niger ia. Hi s res earch are as are Software Engineering, Data Communication and Artificial Intelligence. He has pub lished works in several journals of international repute. Omole Oladele is a final y ear undergrad uate student o f Computer Tec hnology at B abcock Unive rsity, Ili shan-Remo, Ogun state, Nigeria. He is a mem ber of the Y oung Engi neer’s Team. His areas of interest incl ude Networking and Gaming. He is a Microsoft Cer tified Professional. Ogunnusi Ayodele is a final y ear undergraduat e student of Computer Tec hnology at B abcock Unive rsity, Ili shan-Remo, Ogun state, Nigeria. He holds a Mi crosoft Certified Profe ssional certificate. His area of intere st includes web desi gn, networkin g and project m anagement. Seton Olurotimi is a final year undergraduate student of Computer Tec hnology at B abcock Unive rsity, Ili shan-Remo, Ogun state, Nigeria. He is a me m ber of Young E ngineer’s Team . His areas of interest include Electrical Circuit Design and physics. He is a Microsoft Ce rtified Professi onal certificate holder.