Indoor security camera's and data concerns

ih8stress

Hi, I'm thinking of getting an indoor security camera which will send notifications, can live stream etc to a mobile phone.

I don't want to pay a subscription for cloud recording or app servers.

I'm worried about data breaches and insecurities with them, having heard different things about them and also not knowing

how to set them up securely and safely, if possible. 

I understand I can use an sd card instead but obviously

if someone broke in they could just nick the camera and card.

Non techie replies appreciated, thanks (despite being on the techie board, hee hee!)

Hope you are all well and getting ready for a good Christmas hopefully this year, folks

[Deleted User]

First a question - why indoor cameras and not outdoor? If you are after security then outdoor cameras act as a better deterrent before they actually break in.

Using an SD card in the camera is pointless for security purposes, because as you say, anybody that breaks in just steals the camera and/or SD card. You should be recording to a device located elsewhere.

If you want to live stream to your mobile phone, then essentially you are in the same boat as using a cloud recording service. The camera will need to be connected to the internet and therefore can be easily hacked if you haven't taken proper precautions to secure that camera and you sound like you are not techie enough to understand how to keep it secure.. 

Systems like Hikvision use a network recording device that you locate somewhere in your house away from the camera, but again it needs to be connected to the internet if you want to live stream remotely on your phone. Many of these devices are not set up properly by the consumer and are easy to hack into - much easier than a big brand cloud provider. Often users leave default passwords and don't bother update the software regularly.

So Hikvision could be a good option for you if you want to store your recordings on site and you will be able to view the remotely on your phone.

"Cloud storage" just means a computer connected to the internet. If you want to view your camera on your phone, you need to connect the camera to the internet so it is no different except the well known brands that store video in the cloud know a lot more about IT security than you do.

Given you have asked for non-techie replies, I would strongly recommend a cloud service as this will be more secure than you trying to keep your camera access and recordings secure. Ring for example use end to end encryption and combined with a strong password would be much more secure than an SD card in the camera. 

I use Ring outdoor cameras, the video footage is encrypted end to end so nobody is snooping on that. My account has 2-factor authentication to make it more secure, so even though I use a very complex password that nobody could guess, they still can't get in unless they have a code sent to my phone as well. 

googler

We have a 3-camera Arlo system covering all points of entry and the areas around.  I really don't see the point of internal cameras. Why would you want to look at people who've already broken in .......?

Arlo has a base unit which connects via Ethernet cable to your internet router. You can access this and control functionality and cameras from home PC, via remote login, and via app on phone or tablet. Cameras are motion-activated, or you can switch them to live view, vary other parameters like sensitivity, recording duration etc.

Video storage is in the cloud, free with the 3-camera package, extra available at cost with higher numbers of cameras.

Sandtree

ih8stress said:

I don't want to pay a subscription for cloud recording or app servers.

Why do you not want to pay for a cloud solution? Is it the cloud bit or the paying bit?

There are home based solutions you can use which mean you dont have to pay a subscription but you are then responsible for ensuring everything is set up right, apply security patches etc.

A cloud based solution means you have Amazon's/Google's etc engineers doing this all for you and unfortunately these people want to be paid for doing their job.  There are countless examples of new entrants offering free services to grab market share but ultimately introduce charges as hardware sales are finite and many mouths to feed in the supply chain. 

forgotmyname

Anything not offsite based can be stolen. If they are inside the property then onsite storage is less than ideal.

ih8stress

Hi, thank you for all the replies and taking time to do so at this busy time   @[Deleted User]  @googler @Sandtree @forgotmyname

I know that external alarms are best, to keep them out in the first place.

The reason for internal is because I don't have the means to rig one up outside, I would need more than one camera, and I already have a house alarm in place.

It is more for something to alert me on the rare times I leave the house and possibly at night-times.

It is both the cost of cloud storage and concerns about any data breaches that put me off but then like some of you have pointed out, my lack of techie knowledge is probably even riskier

Thanks

[Deleted User]

ih8stress said:

The reason for internal is because I don't have the means to rig one up outside

A step ladder, a drill and a screwdriver is all you need to rig one up outside - exactly the same a rigging one up inside.

You can get battery powered outdoor security cameras if the power / wiring part is the issue?

https://en-uk.ring.com/products/stick-up-security-camera-battery

Or even a solar one:

https://en-uk.ring.com/products/stick-up-security-camera-solar

Have you got security lights outside? If so you could replace them with a mains powered combined cam/light so you don't need to do any new wiring?

https://en-uk.ring.com/products/floodlight-cam-wired-plus

googler

ih8stress said:

I don't have the means to rig one up outside, I would need more than one camera...

... concerns about any data breaches 

I mounted all ours on window frames and sills. If you can lean out of a window and use basic tools....

What's the concern about data breaches?  If you have cameras looking at the outside of your house, all the "data" is basically the same as anyone can see by walking by....