Next Level Arming with Smart Schedules, Double Badge, and Keypad Context Cameras

Verkada Alarms offers some of the most intuitive and flexible ways to arm and disarm, including schedules, access control, key codes, and Command app. Today, we’re excited to announce powerful enhancements across all of these methods:

• Smart schedules that adapt to site activity

• Double badge to arm via Verkada access control

• Pairing cameras with keypads for arm/disarm context 

• Arm/Disarm role in Command for non-admins

Smart Schedules: Dynamically Arm Based on Activity

Legacy systems are often left disarmed because they rely on someone remembering to arm them. While automated schedules can help, they don’t work well at sites with variable hours. These organizations often avoid using schedules altogether or set arming times much later than closing hours, leaving their sites unprotected for hours. That’s why we built smart schedules, which dynamically adjust the arming time based on site activity. 

With smart schedules, a partition will arm at the designated time only if there has been no activity on its sensors, doors, and cameras in the last 30 minutes. For example, imagine a retail store where the arming time is set to 8pm. If the last employee leaves early at 7:35, the store will arm at 8:05. If they leave late at 8:15, the store will arm at 8:45. This minimizes the risk of false alarms and reduces the unprotected period from potentially hours to 30 minutes.

Arm With Your Access Credential

Building on our existing badge-to-disarm feature, employees with Verkada access credentials can now also double badge to arm the alarm system. This makes it possible to eliminate key codes entirely and reduce management overhead.

Organizations that primarily use key codes can also take advantage of this feature. With the ability to both arm and disarm with their badge, employees who don’t have a key code can come in after hours without tripping the alarm and re-arm the system when leaving.

Similar to our badge-to-disarm feature, organizations can easily configure which doors arm which partitions upon a successful double badge. Supported credentials for arm/disarm include cards, fobs, mobile NFC, and PIN codes. Bluetooth and LPR unlock may only be used to disarm.

Get Video Context of Arm/Disarm Activity

Keypads are the most common way to arm and disarm, but can be vulnerable to key code sharing. That’s why we’re adding the ability to pair a nearby camera with a keypad, providing visual context of the person who is arming/disarming. And if employees arm/disarm with their badge, the event is also captured via the door context camera.

Organizations can apply this feature to operational use cases as well. Many customers today use arming/disarming as a proxy for stores opening/closing and employees clocking in/clocking out. Having video context for these events improves auditability.

Allow Non-Admins to Arm/Disarm via Command 

Many organizations use Command to arm/disarm their sites remotely, but until now this feature has been limited to Site Admins. Today we’re introducing the Arm/Disarm role, allowing everyday staff to arm via Command without over-permissioning. 

When assigned this role for a given site, users can arm, disarm, and resolve alarms, but cannot view or modify devices and settings. Additionally, Arm/Disarm users don’t have access to other Verkada products unless explicitly granted (e.g. a user could be assigned both Arm/Disarm and Site Viewer roles if they also need camera access).

Availability

Double badge to arm and arm/disarm context cameras are available today. Smart schedules and the Arm/Disarm role will be available on October 9th.

To learn more about Verkada Alarms, contact your Verkada sales representative or email [email protected] for a personalized demo or quote.