Smart schedules dynamically adjust arming time based on activity from sensors, doors, and cameras. With smart schedules, partitions arm only after 30 minutes of inactivity — in other words, after employees have left. This minimizes the risk of false alarms at sites with variable closing times. To learn more, read the full announcement.

Building on our existing badge-to-disarm feature, employees with Verkada access credentials can now also double badge to arm the alarm system. Organizations can easily configure which doors arm which partitions upon a successful double badge. Supported credentials for arm/disarm include physical badges, mobile NFC, and PIN codes. Bluetooth and LPR unlock may only be used to disarm. To learn more, read the full announcement.

Automated calls help organizations respond quickly to alarms that don’t necessitate police dispatch but require prompt action, such as water leak and temperature sensors. The system will call down the contact list until someone picks up, significantly increasing the chances of action compared to SMS or email notifications.

Walk tests are a streamlined way to verify that every sensor is working after an installation or as part of a routine inspection. Installers can launch a walk test on the Command mobile app and move through the site while viewing a live report of devices that have been triggered and devices that still need to be tested. The report also includes details like sensor battery level and signal strength in order to flag devices that warrant attention.

Organizations with Verkada Access Control can now trigger alarms with door opened, door held open, and door forced open events – enabling organizations to turn their doors into smart alarm sensors.

The BZ32 is an outdoor-rated siren and strobe light that can deter intruders when an alarm is triggered. The device can connect wirelessly to any VLink hub, such as a nearby BK22 keypad, allowing for easy deployment throughout sites of any size. For organizations that prefer a wired install, the BZ32 can be relay-controlled or connected to the BP52 panel via RS-485.

To learn more, see the BZ32 datasheet.

System changes are now captured in Command audit logs, providing admins a digital trail of user actions that affect alarm system behavior. Audit-logged actions include:

• Keycode created / modified / deleted

• Arm schedule enabled / disabled / modified 

• Site deleted / site address modified

• Disarm door created / deleted / modified

• Response contact created / deleted

• Response level modified

• Partitions moved between responses

Partition-based alarms allow organizations to have different alarm responses within a site depending on which sensors are triggered. For example, if intrusion sensors or cameras are tripped, agents can call security before dispatching police. On the other hand, when the panic button is pressed, agents can immediately dispatch police. With the launch of partition-based alarms, BR33 panic buttons are now also supported in new Alarms. Read the full announcement.

Site admins can now add non-Command users as alarm response contacts by inputting their phone number.

On the live incident page for an alarm, response contacts can see who else has opened the incident link in real time. In addition, response contacts can now also request dispatch police from this page without waiting for an agent to call. Read the full announcement.