CHeKT announced that its Visual Monitoring platform and the Optex Bridge powered by CHeKT are wholly compliant with the Sandy Springs, Ga., False Alarm Reduction Program. The Sandy Springs, Ga., ordinance has been designed to reduce the number of false alarm dispatches. Unlike other municipal ordinances, the Sandy Springs ordinance fines are imposed on the alarm companies themselves.

The new law originated in November 2019, but in order to allow alarm companies sufficient time to develop protocols for providing the required evidence of verification, the Sandy Springs False Alarm Reduction Program delayed implementation of the fine for false verification. Beginning March 1, 2020, the program will begin to assess fines for false verification when the provisions of the program are not met. As a part of the True Verification program, alarm companies are required to provide audio or video-clip evidence of the alarm. This evidence must be provided per the city’s standards within 24 hours of the request for police dispatch.

This ordinance is a first of its kind, and alarm companies that are not prepared will possibly lose business. “The Optex Bridge powered by the CHeKT Monitoring portal provides your company with the ability to be compliant with the Sandy Springs false alarm ordinance immediately,” said Wes Usie, president of CHeKT.

With the Bridge, alarm companies have a simple, cost-effective method of providing a verified response in Sandy Springs that complies with new regulations. The Bridge is a single hardware appliance that unifies the alarm system and the camera system into a comprehensive system for the client and alarm monitoring center. These two systems, which traditionally operate independently from each other, become a single solution and provide video verification to the central station.

Additionally, the new ordinance requires that video information be sent to Sandy Springs law enforcement within 24 hours of a dispatch. In addition to video evidence, the ordinance also requires information about the company that installed the system, the company that monitors the system, and the property owner to accompany the video. Complying with this part of the ordinance would commonly require a lot of time to retrieve the video from the site and then compile the other information and provide it to law enforcement in 24 hours.

With CHeKT, the entire process has been completely automated. “With a single click of the mouse, from our monitoring portal, this information is aggregated, compiled, and sent to Sandy Springs law enforcement, making your system compliant the moment a dispatch is made,” said John Milliron vice president of CHeKT. “This is an incredible opportunity for alarm companies in the Sandy Springs area to upgrade services and acquire new accounts. The Optex Bridge provides security companies with a tool to speak with business owners about the need for comprehensive security.”

Under the ordinance, businesses and homeowners who do not have a solution to provide the monitoring center with audio or video will not receive a police response. “Every location that has an intrusion system and surveillance system can immediately be brought into compliance,” Milliron said.

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