Halina Home CCTV Security Camera £9.99

moo_juice

IIRC, any home cctv footage cant be used as evidence if there is sound (easy, just re-record any criminal act again with another vcr, and mute the sound! )

I was also under the impression that home cctv's which record sound were banned, i may be wrong?

steady__eddie

I see that Aldi are doing one as from this Sunday but it is considerably more expensive (£29-99) http://www.aldi-stores.co.uk/ Warning labels are also supplied !

ace123_2

Hi There Thanks For Telling Us About The Cctv Im Getting 1 In 2 Weeks Time

Nilrem

Roger_Rampant wrote:

Sorry I don't know, can anyone else throw any light on this bizarre law, please?

I thought the law was that you had to display the signs only if it was public property, or somewhere public.
I don't beleive you have to have any signs if the camera is on, and aimed at your property.
I know a few years ago the local police didn't have any problem at all with our two cameras not being signed (we'd been having problems with some kids, so setup a camera to watch the car and front of the house).

A quick check suggests that the signage is only compulsary for businesses using CCTV, and in such cases should provide contact details for the person(s) or organisation responsible for the cameras.

gazbert_2

I'd agree with that. When we were setting up our Home Watch scheme the police told us it was fine as long as camera's were monitoring our own property.

Roger_Rampant

The video that the police were referring to showed the side of the house, a piece of grass that is part of the property (and that the bike was on), and also part of the pathway that comes down the side of the property (which is a public footpath)


The thieving little git came along the public footpath, stepped into the garden to steal the bike, then rode off along the public footpath

speedyjoe

The Data Protection Act generally does not cover private individuals processing data for personal/household use so long as it is not published - for example on a public web site or provided to another individual/organisation. I believe though that providing the information to a law enforcement agency does not bring it within the scope of the DPA, and that information could be usuable in court as evidence so long as it was clear that it had not been tampered with and was of sufficient quality to be of use.

So you can set up a cctv system, hidden or otherwise, and take pictures of whatever you like whether the scene viewed is public or private, and you can provide the images to the police if you wanted to without needing to involve the Information Commissioner's Office at all.

There are situations though where relevant law would apply, though not neccesarily the DPA. For example if you set up a CCTV camera to peer into your neighbours bedroom window or the area where they sunbathed then that may come under the relevant parts of the Sexual Offences Act.

simate

FunkyFeet wrote:

yes it most certainly is, i can vouch for it, uncle had one! no offence to the OP, Well done for finding it but the fact is these were made yonks ago and junk- it so is!

I didn't think you would come back and give us all an idea of what makes these so bad :think:

Nix

A few points here:

* First let me say that, in my humble opinion, the law's an ***!

* I deal with security systems and even I get frustrated with the application and apparent ambiguities of the Data Protection Act and the Human Rights Act. You need a specialised expert solicitor to get to the nitty gritty of it all.

* You are breaking the law and can be heavily fined if you do not comply with the law ie HRA and DPA (HRA takes precedence).

* If you are a business, there's a minefield of compliances and legislation - watch out!

* Many factors are involved, primarily whether the images on the cctv are of your private property ONLY and whether or not you have recording equipment.

* No, you are not permitted to make sound recordings of the public.


Re this particular camera that the OP highlighted, don't get it if it's no good. There's nothing worst than an image that isn't! However, as has been pointed out, it could have its uses as a dummy.

I tried one of these Aldi cameras several months ago, without the PIR and had to take the first one back. All I can say is that you pretty much get what you pay for. Night vision is just about useless over 6 feet away and the colour became extremely vague after a weeks usage. Maybe I was just unlucky but I couldn't be bothered to take it back a second time. It now just covers the interior of my garage in constant B&W mode, which is what it's best at.

Hope this helps...

Nix

Hmmm, looking over my previous posting, it looks a bit on the negative side!

If I could just address that please.

CCTV is a great idea. It is a fantastic crime prevention tool and if a criminal act does occur, it can be worth its weight in gold when shedding light on who/what/where/when/how. Like an alarm system, it's all down to peace of mind. CCTV can give witness to a situation where there would otherwise be none. A good example of that is when, two weeks ago, a bad 3" scratch appeared on our car when it was parked outside our house. Was it a deliberate malicious act or an accident? A quick search on my CCTV system revealed that it was clearly an accident with a young boy on his push bike not looking where he was going. No sweat, I'll sort it out myself. Also, no stress and anxiety on my part.

Re the police, courts and whether CCTV images are admissable as evidence, it appears it's down to what the crime was, what the area police policy is, and ultimately how good the courts/solicitors (both sides!) are. I've known police to humbly ask to see public images from a supposedly illegal private set-up where a crime was committed not too far away. If that same set-up was in a different area, it could be "You can't do that, mate!" instead!

£9.99 for a camera is an absolute bargain! Dummies can cost more. To contradict myself, if you get a half way decent image at only certain times of the day due to the limitations of the camera, then it really is better than nothing.

Nice post, simate.

Go for it!