LONGVIEW, Texas — The City of Longview is getting a brand new tool to keep its citizens safe. The city council voted to approve a long overdue upgrade to its public safety management system that's been in place for two decades.
The new system will speed up officer’s duties in the field. Longview spokesperson, Richard Yeakley said it will make the community safe.
"It’s a big system that impacts everything that the police do," Yeakley said.
Over the last 20 years, this system has needed major maintenance.
"Every year our maintenance costs goes up, so we just try to hold it together," Yeakley said.
In addition to the maintenance savings, Longview Police Chief Anthony Boone said the new system comes with a lot of positives.
"There will be GPS that will eventually be tied to our radio systems. The other advantage is with our records management system," Boone said. "There will be updates on our case management process and how that works."
The department's vehicles are outfitted with GPS.
"It’s recognizing where your units are at and who has the quickest response time," Boone said.
The new system will allow dispatch to see where each officer is located for quicker response to critical emergencies.
"When systems reach the end of their life and aren’t supported by their creators anymore, you might not get patches when there are vulnerabilities discovered," Yeakley said.
Cyber security expert, Andrew Stenke said those vulnerabilities could make older systems prime targets for cyberattacks.
"The dispatchers are typing in information that the police and fire and ambulance are using so that also entails personal identifier information on the individuals who are requesting the assistance," Stenke said.
Though that’s not the main reason for the upgrade, it is an added benefit.
"We’ll have that fresh out of the box feel. We won’t hopefully have to use the duct tape and super glue to keep the system together," Yeakley said.
This new system is going to cost $1.6 million and it's a cost the city sees as an investment.