Traffic cameras and dash cameras add certainty and fill holes in critical intelligence, writes Keith Anderson, Vice President at Vizzion.

Critical intelligence data

Every second counts in the world of security and crisis management.

Whether responding to supply chain disruptions, civil unrest, natural disasters or security threats, organizations rely on information sources to make critical decisions, but data isn’t always reliable – open-source intelligence (OSINT) reports can be misleading, sensor data can lack context and conflicting eyewitness accounts create uncertainty.

That’s where road imagery comes in.

Transportation agencies install thousands of live cameras at key locations throughout their road network to aid in their traffic operations, typically investing millions of dollars in installations at the most problematic and highest volume thoroughfares.

Additionally, commercial fleets install dashboard cameras (“on-vehicle cameras”) in each of their vehicles to lower their insurance, improve driver behavior and better track their assets.

These camera networks provide a unique opportunity for improving logistics, public safety and business efficiency by filling in intelligence gaps between your properties, in neighboring jurisdictions and along key supply chain routes.

Certain organizations have licensed and aggregated these networks, providing access to cameras throughout the US and key locations internationally via an API, and applications all under a single license.

From verifying intelligence signals to filling data gaps and extending situational awareness, road imagery greatly enhances situational awareness – an essential source for public safety and corporate security teams.

Traffic camera and dashcam feeds provide real-time, verifiable ground truth and critical intelligence, and help safety and security professionals confirm reports, assess threats and respond to incidents with confidence.

The following article looks at three various examples.

1. Visual confirmation of OSINT

The problem

OSINT sources – social media posts, news reports and sensor data – play an important role in security intelligence, but they lack context and reliable accuracy.

Misinformation spreads quickly, false reports create noise and even accurate reports often lack the detail needed to take action.

Security teams must verify whether a reported event is real, where it’s actually happening, the extent of the area of impact and the severity of the impact.

How road imagery helps

Traffic camera feeds provide instant visual confirmation, helping security teams separate fact from speculation.

Instead of relying solely on unverified third-party reports, decision-makers can quickly view live or recent imagery to see conditions on the ground (“ground truth”).

Imagery can often be archived to play a role in post-incident investigations, providing evidence and offering a visual record of what happened.

For example, Everbridge, a leader in critical event management, integrates Vizzion’s camera network into its platform to enhance situational awareness.

According to Everbridge, “From natural disasters to traffic incidents, this [imagery] enables organizations to know earlier, and make faster, more informed decisions, ensuring the safety and well-being of their people, assets and operations.”

2. Preventing security blind spots

The problem

Many businesses have strong security measures in place for their own facilities – CCTV, access controls and on-site security teams – but threats don’t always originate on-premises.

Supply chain disruptions, employee safety risks and external threats often develop outside a company’s direct control.

Traditional security tools don’t provide visibility into what’s happening just beyond company walls.

How road imagery helps

Traffic camera and dashcam networks extend a company’s view far beyond its own properties and an agency’s views beyond its jurisdiction.

Businesses can monitor road conditions around key locations, assess risks from nearby protests or severe weather and respond proactively before disruptions escalate.

On-vehicle camera imagery, for example, can be captured and made available every second while each vehicle drives, providing a granularity of <20 meters between images.

Crisis24, a GardaWorld company and leading integrated risk management firm, integrated Vizzion’s extensive camera network to provide security and supply chain teams a reliable information source.

This enhances situational awareness with hyper-local insights and a comprehensive view of threats relative to personnel, assets, routes and sites.

3. Improved crisis response for public safety agencies

The problem

For the public good, safety agencies – from emergency management teams to transportation departments – need accurate, up to date information to coordinate crisis response, but traditional sources of data often fall short.

Weather stations might be miles apart, reports from the public can be unreliable and even official traffic data may not capture the latest picture of an unfolding event.

How road imagery helps

Live traffic camera feeds allow emergency response teams to monitor real-time road conditions, assess damage from disasters and guide response efforts more effectively.

Historical footage, including on-vehicle camera imagery, also plays a role in post-incident analysis, helping agencies conduct root-cause analyses and refine future response plans.

Pacific Disaster Center (PDC), a leader in disaster management, integrates Vizzion’s imagery to support evacuation planning and emergency response.

“This information shapes evacuation plans, public outreach about unsafe areas, and is a vital tool we can’t live without,” said PDC.

In a recent joint webinar, Vizzion, North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) and smart mobility infrastructure management leader Iteris, discussed how NCDOT used on-vehicle camera imagery to pinpoint the location of a wildfire to make better traffic operations decisions and confirm the open/close status of roadways following the destruction of Hurricane Helene.

“This demonstrates the value of on-vehicle camera imagery for special, one-off, and high impact events that are not well captured by existing datasets,” said Iteris.

Conclusion

Security and crisis response professionals need information they can trust. Imagery from traffic camera and vehicle networks helps bridge the gap between unverified reports and actionable intelligence, providing real-time and historical visual data to hasten crisis response and enhance situational awareness.

Although other data sets turn noise into signals, like adjusting the antenna on an old-fashioned TV set road imagery turns signals into a clear picture.

Companies integrating road imagery are already making faster, more informed decisions through security intelligence platforms, emergency management solutions and enhanced risk assessment tools.

If you’re a security technology leader, consider how adding live and historical road imagery can enhance your platform and workflows.

About the author

Keith Anderson is Vice President at Vizzion and has spent over 12 years in marketing, sales and product management, helping solve challenges across the Safety & Security, Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) and Mapping industries.

About Vizzion

Vizzion is a leading provider of real-time and historical road imagery, offering unparalleled visibility into traffic, road conditions, severe weather events and security incidents.

Partnering with over 200 transport agencies and on-vehicle camera providers, Vizzion provides live feeds from over 100,000 cameras in more than 30 countries.

This comprehensive coverage delivers hyper-local information essential for incident detection, ground truth validation and disaster response.

This article was originally published in the April edition of Security Journal Americas. To read your FREE digital edition, click here.