Surveillance cameras installed by a home security company are a great way to protect your home or business. When it comes to security cameras, you basically have two choices, closed circuit television (CCTV) cameras or internet protocol (IP) cameras.
CCTV cameras use a coaxial video cable to transmit footage to a digital video recorder. In contrast, IP cameras don’t require a local recording device. Rather, IP cameras are connected to a network, much like your phone or computer.
Good News and Bad News
The good news is that IP cameras offer many outstanding features, and they’re suitable for virtually any home or business. Further, they have advantages over analog CCTV cameras. These include:
- Resolution – IP cameras provide much higher quality images, making grainy, blurry images a thing of the past.
- Storage – You no longer have to worry about preserving tapes or disks.
- Access – With an internet connection, you’re able to access your surveillance cameras anytime, from any place in the world.
Unfortunately, there’s also a downside to all this. The bad news is that hackers can break into your IP surveillance system if it’s not properly secured.
Why would they do that? Sometimes it’s just for the sheer fun of hacking into your system to view some of your more private moments. At other times, their intent is far more malicious. Hackers might, for example, be checking your daily routine hoping to break into your home when you’re normally away.
4 Security Tips
All is by no means lost, however. As a homeowner or business owner, there are a number of steps you can take to help secure your surveillance cameras.
- Encryption – Make sure you’ve purchased IP cameras with advanced encryption. Modern wireless modems use an encryption system known as Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA). This system is constantly being improved and will help protect your security system against hacks.
- Username and password – Create a username and password at least six characters in length. You should also use a combination of upper- and lower-case letters and special characters and numbers. Don’t just use your birthdate as that’s far too easy for hackers to crack!
- Firmware – Make sure you have the latest firmware installed on your camera system. This helps block any new break-in methods hackers come up with.
- Default port – Hackers often aim their efforts at default ports that frequently fall in the 8100 range. You can manually change your default port to a non-standard port. That makes it much more difficult for hackers to get into your system.
Alarm Monitoring Service in Chicago
Alert Protective Services provides the highest quality alarm monitoring services throughout the Chicagoland area and outstanding customer service and support. To protect your home or business we can provide you with outdoor cameras with night vision, motion detection, and more. And for the interior, HD cameras with whole-room coverage, along with night vision and motion detection.
In addition to cameras, we can also provide many other devices and services. These include window sensors, video doorbells, smart home security, home automation, a fire alarm system, and much more.
For home security or business security, you just can’t go wrong with Alert Protective Services. To learn more, simply get in touch with our security experts. We’ll be glad to answer any of your questions and provide a free system quote. Don’t hesitate, contact us today!
