There is a sobering statistic published by Vancouver’s Neighborhood Scout web site indicating that citizens have a 1 in 17 chance of becoming a victim of a property crime. By comparison a person has a 1 in 223 chance of being victimized by a crime of violence – still too high a risk to ignore. In August of this year Canada’s largest West Coast city had an overall drop of 7% in crimes of all types reported but there were increases in gun crimes, rapes, theft, and home invasions. In addition to insurance, a citizen also needs pre-emptive protection and a way to let criminals know they are under CCTV surveillance and likely will be caught once the security camera system has recorded their actions.

In the past when a business or home needed to dissuade trespassers, a vigilant guard dog was present to scare them away with its barking. There were also inexpensive sensors that turn high-beam lights on when anyone approaches. Assuming that burglars keep up with the times and have found their way around such measures, the digital age has made possible hi-tech CCTV systems for cameras to pan, zoom, and videotape anyone approaching or entering a building. Home alarms can notify police or the security company who would in turn call police.

Surveillance systems are moving from coaxial cable connections to wireless home security cameras. The trend has advanced now to the point where internet home surveillance is available where images and videos of the inside and outside of your house can be sent over the internet directly to your inbox or mobile. The stress of being away is lessened by being able to see real-time views of what’s going on back home by using a high-speed broadband connection. The color and resolution of the images would depend on the type of cameras used, from black and white with no sound to full color with high-quality sound clarity.

Home surveillance cameras are not just for peace of mind on vacations; they can record vandals, trespassers, and abusive babysitters when the parents are out of the house. The nannycam has been responsible for catching nannies and babysitters in the act of repeatedly striking a child. Children of any age can be at risk if the person hired hates her job, is sick of the baby’s crying, then goes out of control and slaps the child or worse.
One element of video surveillance is surreptitiousness (or even outright concealment) of the camera placement. The nannycam would be totally hidden out of necessity because the offender could move to be out of range before venting any anger at a child. Entrances to the home or business should be clearly visible to later identify the perpetrators. Outdoor security cameras in the home should be inconspicuous so that potential burglars don’t disable them before they break in. Another approach is to have back-up cameras more concealed than the normal ones, or even use some old equipment to set up some decoy camera positions for deterrence and new and smaller cameras at critical positions. You don’t want to be left in the dark while you’re being robbed, nor do you want someone breaking your new and expensive high-end equipment.