If you are a member of your local NextDoor community, you probably see people posting security camera footage regularly of all types of things, from animal encounters to suspicious activity. While security cameras offer some protection and peace of mind, are they really the best for home protection when you’re away?

Security cameras can protect your home by deterring intruders, monitoring activity and providing evidence in the event of a break-in or crime. When they are placed in visible locations, they can act as a deterrent to would-be intruders. And if something were to happen, the captured footage can be used by law enforcement to help identify and prosecute the culprit.

Types of Home Security Cameras

There are a number of types of home security cameras including:

• Exterior cameras: weather-resistant and designed to be placed outside the home. Can come with features like night vision and motion detection.
• Interior cameras: smaller in size and designed for interior use
• Wired cameras: connected to your home’s power source and work via a physical cable to provide a more reliable connection.
• Wireless cameras: use WiFi or cellular connections to transmit footage to a remote device, making them easy to install, but more susceptible to signal interference.
• Pan-Tilt-Zoom (PTZ) cameras: controlled remotely to pan, tile and zoom in on a specific area to provide the homeowner with a wider point of view.
• Smart cameras: use artificial intelligence to detect an analyze movement. Can include advanced features like person detection or facial recognition.

Five Ways Your Home Security Cameras Can Fail

Just because you have some security cameras doesn’t guarantee success. Here are five ways they can fail:

1. Power failure: if your cameras are wired to a network, failure of the power source can shut down the cameras as well.
2. Connectivity issues: if your cameras are connected to a network and the network connection or Internet service has issues, so do your cameras.
3. Physical damage: storms, falling limbs and intentional tampering can damage your cameras causing their components to fail.
4. Malfunction: as with any device, technical malfunctions can occur.
5. User error: human error, such as caused by incorrect setup or configuration can cause your home security camera system to fail.

To help prevent failures, it’s important to choose a reliable home security camera system and to perform regular maintenance, such as checking connections and updating software. Having backup power sources and multiple cameras can also help to ensure continuous coverage.

Four Ways Criminals Can Tamper With Your Home Security Cameras

There are several ways criminals can potentially defeat your home security camera system, keeping them from being the best choice for home protection:

1. Physical tampering: criminals may try to physically damage or destroy your cameras to prevent them from recording. Someone could also reach up and unplug the device. Try to locate cameras in a difficult-to-access area and use tamper-resistant mounts.
2. Signal jamming: some criminals may attempt to jam the wireless signal to prevent footage from being transmitted or recorded.
3. Hacking: advanced criminals may be able to hack into the cameras or the system, potentially gaining access to the footage, or having the ability to disable the cameras. Hacking may occur if cameras connected to the Internet are not secure properly or if the manufacturer software has discovered a vulnerability.
4. Concealment: potential intruders may try to conceal their identity or actions through disguises or hiding in areas out of camera views.

To help secure your camera system and prevent breaches, choose a secure system, regularly update software and passwords, use strong encryption and physically secure the cameras.

Why is Home Watch Still Better than Home Security Cameras?

A Home Watch service provides a physical presence at your home while you’re away. It involves a trained and trusted professional who visits your home on a scheduled basis to check for any potential security issues, such as signs of forced entry, water damage or other problems. This provides you with a higher level of security than cameras alone.

While home security cameras can be a useful tool to detect and deter intruders and record activity, they can’t physically prevent a break-in, or address other issues that a Home Watch professional can. In addition, having a professional regularly visit your property gives the appearance of an occupied home—another deterrent.

At Golden Rule Home Watch & Concierge, we don’t discourage the use of home security cameras. But they may not be your best option for home protection. We suggest adding the additional layer of a Home Watch service to provide security and peace of mind to cover areas and issues that cannot be secured through digital monitoring.

Trust Golden Rule Home Watch for Northern Virginia Home Protection

Golden Rule Home Watch & Concierge provides the best way to protect your home while you’re away—a physical presence. We’ll walk through your home with our checklist to monitor systems and look for any signs of trouble, and provide you with a complete report of each visit.

There’s nothing like having eyes, ears and feet on the ground to protect your most valuable asset. Contact Golden Rule at 855-928-2424 to learn more about our Home Watch services, or complete our online form and we will get back with you. Golden Rule Home Watch is licensed, bonded and insured for your protection.

Contact us today.