How To Choose The Right Nanny Cam To Protect Your Home
September 14th, 2016
For peace of mind, many people install “nanny cams” inside their homes to keep an eye on things while they’re away. It might be because they want the added assurance the babysitter is doing their job while the parents are out for the evening. It might be because the house has pets, and the owners want to check in on them. It might be because they have a valuable collection they want to keep an eye on, or they have a housekeeper or tradespeople working in their home during the day.
Regardless of the reason, nanny cams are a great option for anybody looking to increase the security of their home.
Of course, the first thing you need to be aware of before installing a nanny camera in your home is the laws regarding their use. In Australia, across all states, it is illegal to covertly record the actions of a nanny or other contracted person while they are conducting work on the property.
If you do have a babysitter or other employee in your home and would like to install a nanny cam, you need to make them aware that they will be recorded prior to the commencement of their employment. Additionally, they need to formally accept working under these conditions.
Obviously, these same laws do not apply to non-employees. If you set up a covert camera to monitor your home and someone were to break in, there is no law protecting them from being secretly recorded.
Once you’ve made the decision to install cameras, your next task is to choose the right camera to suit your needs. The quality of nanny cams can vary wildly, and the features they offer can be significantly different too. The best camera for you really depends on what your expected use of the camera is, and what kind of budget you are working with.
1. How do you access video feed?
The most critical decision you need to make is where you want to access your live video footage from. All nanny cams will record footage, but top of the line models will allow you to login from anywhere in the world, to watch the feed in real time. These WiFi-enabled nanny-cams are useful for people that work in areas with strong WiFi; just be aware that they will chew through mobile data very quickly. If you’re going to be accessing the footage from your mobile, you may want to explore other options. If you aren’t planning on watching footage regularly, you may want to consider other models, where you can download specific data at your convenience.
2. Where do you store the footage
Nanny cams send the footage they record to one of three places – a PC, SD card, or the Cloud. Of the three, a PC might seem like the best option, as PCs have a lot of storage space and make it easy to access the footage afterwards. However, they’re also the least secure; a PC is large and obvious, and it’s easy to destroy or steal, taking the footage with it.
SD cards, meanwhile, are small and inconspicuous, and are generally hosted within the body of the camera itself. Even if the camera is damaged, unless the culprit is aware that the data is being stored on the SD card, you’ll be able to retrieve footage right up until the last second before the damage occurred. The downside is SD cards don’t have a lot of memory. If you do go with this option, it might be a good idea to set trigger conditions, so that the camera only starts recording when it detects movement, for example.
Cloud storage is the final option. It is the most expensive alternative, and typically has a monthly fee attached to it, but it’s the most secure way you can store video information. Unless they guess your password and hacking into your online security camera account, there’s no way a third party can access your footage – nor is it possible to get rid of the evidence by damaging or stealing any of the technology in your home.
3. Keep it hidden or make it obvious?
As long as babysitters or other contracted help are aware they’re being recorded, there’s no further obligation to tell them how they are being recorded. This means you can then make use of hidden cameras, at your discretion.
However, hidden cameras are easier to bump or remove if discovered. The alternative is to install prominent cameras that are attached to the ceiling or wall. These cameras have the added benefit of deterring intruders. If your goal is to prevent bad things happening in your home, rather than simply monitor what is going on, then an overt camera is perhaps your best option.
There are plenty of options for nanny cameras available on the market. Determining how you plan on using them and finding a camera that matches your intent is key to ensuring you get the camera that meets your needs.