Put away the PowerPoints, next-gen 911 capabilities are real

Cybersecurity remains an ongoing, evolving threat, but next-gen 911 is far from unique in that respect.

Fortunately, a lot of smart people throughout the industry are working to address the technical challenges, and it seems that solutions are being identified to resolve the issues associated with functional capabilities. (It would be nice if similar ingenuity could be used to ensure that funding models are in place throughout the nation to pay for these technology upgrades, but that’s a subject for another time.)

But it is important to remember that all of this technology—impressive as it is—would have little impact without the tireless commitment of the men and women who work in thousands of 911 centers throughout the country.

With this in mind, it is critical that operational systems will be established to ensure that these new technological resources are used to help these telecommunicators do their jobs better and more efficiently, not overwhelm them with information that may have questionable relevance to the mission. Thankfully, this topic is a priority within the public-safety community, so I am confident that it will be addressed.

After years of trade-show sessions and PowerPoint presentations, next-generation 911 capabilities are being deployed and are improving safety by allowing the public-PSAP connection to better share relevant data in whatever form is best—voice, text, data, photo or video. When this capability is combined with the ability to share this information with first responders in the field via FirstNet or other broadband system, the ultimate result promises to have powerful impact.