Wireless CCTV

CCTV and burglar alarms make good bed fellows and when considering home security needs the benefits of CCTV should not be overlooked.

CCTV is becoming very popular amongst home owners as a crime prevention tool and, like security alarms, CCTV can act as a deterrent to burglars and thieves alike. However, before considering CCTV it is necessary to carefully plan the installation.

Like the wireless security alarms, wireless CCTV systems can be fairly cheap and easy to install with cameras recording the activities outside (and inside) your home. This means they can keep an eye on your car parked on the drive or who is using a side alley. When considering where to place cameras choose carefully. I hate to think of the number of times when, as a police officer, I would be given a printout of someones attempt at capturing an offender using CCTV only to find that making an identification was going to be impossible. Either the subject could only be seen in the bottom 10% of the printout i.e. the camera was too far away; or we could have a brilliant shot of the top of the subject’s head i.e. the camera was too high or, more usually, the subject could not be truly identified because the shot was out of focus or just too grainy. As far as quality is concerned I would recommend that you fit a system that allows for facial recognition and that when the image is printed the recognition is still available. Finally, ensure the systems clock is kept up to date and that it is altered for daylight savings.

Once you’ve decided where to position the camera for best results you should also consider what else, apart from your property, the cameras can view. You should always make sure that the cameras are predominantly viewing your property; you don’t want to be accused of spying and after all, your neighbours do have a right to privacy. If, as is likely, you will unavoidably be viewing public spaces such as the road outside your house if you are keeping an eye on you car, or the neighbour’s garden if you are monitoring an ally, then you should keep the intrusion to the absolute minimum. And whilst we are bordering on the legal side of things I can confirm that you do NOT have to register with the UK Information Commissioner in accordance with the Data Protection Act (DPA) 1998. Shocked??? Yes a lot of people are. Basically, if you have a home system which is not remotely operated and you are not using PTZ (Pan Tilt Zoom) cameras operated remotely, you do not need to comply with the DPA and you don’t have to keep records. You don’t have to erect warning signs either however, they may be a useful part of the deterrent effect. Now that you have your recording it is recommended that the images are stored within a secure environment. This could be inside a computer or on a tape secured elsewhere. I would recommend that you had sufficient space/tapes that would allow good quality images to be kept for 31 days.

We hope to be updating this guide shortly with advice and recommendations concerning the purchase of CCTV systems but if you have any comments or questions please don’t hesitate to contact us.

And so as to not confuse visitors we have included dummy CCTV cameras on a seperate page.