Could these young techies have answer to Kenya's insecurity?

From left, James Kimani, 22, Emmanuel Kinyanjui, 20, Iyan Bett, 22, and Michael Mumo, 21, with their security device. [Photo: James Wanzala/standard]

Nairobi, Kenya: Getting into a building these days can be difficult, what with having to submit to body searches, and then writing down your name, national identification card (ID) or passport number, the person you are going to see and the floor he or she is on each time.

Sometimes the guards insist you leave your ID card behind, with the likelihood you’ll forget to pick it when leaving.

Illegible handwriting

The justification given is that in case a fire breaks out or there is a criminal attack, it is necessary to be able to account for everyone who went into the building.

But this is not always a foolproof security measure as many people, particularly in cases where ID is not left behind, give false names or use illegible handwriting because they feel put out or do not understand the reasons behind the scrutiny at the front desk.

Now, however, four engineering students from the Department of Mechatronics Engineering at the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT) are hoping to make the process of logging identities more effective by automating access to buildings.

Michael Mumo, 21, Emmanuel Kinyanjui, 20, James Kimani 22, and Iyan Bett, 22, are the brains behind a security system they say can be used to identify everyone who enters a building using near field communication (NFC) technology.

According to Mr Kinyanjui, the system, which relies on contactless technology, can also be used to automatically regulate the number of people who access public places.

The students says the system will work even better once the country shifts to automated national ID cards.

“The system involves a server — we are currently using a laptop — which records all details, including ID number, time and date of entry after you tap your ID on the reader module that will be placed at the entrance of public buildings,” Kinyanjui said.

“With this, we shall be able to know who went where and at what time, helping security organs with intelligence gathering,” added Mr Kimani.

The group is also hoping to modify their system more to get it to work in tandem with the planned installation of CCTV cameras so that the data recorded includes an image of the card holder.

They will pilot the system at iHub offices in Nairobi.

Identify suspects

The young innovators said they got the idea when watching the news a while back and saw several people being arrested for interrogation at the scene of a crime as the police looked for suspects.

“With our system, it will be easier to identify suspects since the data at the central server will reveal who was at the scene if a crime happens in or near a building with our system at the entrance,” said Mr Mumo.

“The police would only be required to retrieve the data from the servers, call the individuals in for questioning or track them down instead of arresting several hundred innocent passers-by.”

Privacy rights

The system will also help nab aliens with fake IDs as the system will be able to crosscheck data on the card with what is in the database.

The group is also hoping to extend their system to capture driving licence details, which would help in the arrest of car thieves or those using fake documentation.

Mr Bett added that their intention is not to infringe on Kenyans’ privacy, but to enhance security in an age of increasing terror attacks and crime.

“We will not be interfering with your right to privacy, but will touch on it a bit to ensure the security of the country.”

The students’ system recently won the Intel Galileo competition, which attracted 113 participants from three universities. It was held by Intel East Africa and driven by iHub at the University of Nairobi, Kenyatta University and JKUAT.

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