Alarm System vs. Offsite CCTV Monitoring

[Rod]

Hello everyone.

I'm curious as to what you all think about security for your place of business. I was reading up about offsite CCTV surveillance monitoring and thought about the benefits of using this service as opposed to a general alarm system in my office. The benefits of using this service would be that you have live surveillance instead of motion sensors. This could be extremely beneficial considering that criminals are getting more and more creative and clever when it comes to avoiding security systems.

Or am I just being paranoid?

[Just Gone]

you have live surveillance instead of motion sensors.

Yes you COULD have live surveillance instead of motion sensors ................... if you were monitoring it 24/7. If you are checking your monitor/phone every two or 3 hours you could miss an incident, whereas if you do have an alarm or an electric fence which can notify you via your cell phone for example, you would know immediately that you had a break in. On the down side doing it this way - you now have to either go out to your workplace or send someone, whereas if you did have a monitored alarm, they react ......... well they should react provided you are using a reputable response company.

[Rod]

Well this service comes with the "surveilance" part already. They monitor your CCTV and if something goes wrong, they will respond.

[murdock]

one of my customers had a breakin recently...R100 000 worth of cctv...monitors...massive hard drives also used to prevent theft of equipment and company time...on site security gaurd and armed response...electric fencing...they had a breakin during the night...they arrived in the morning for work...the office had been broken into...all the computer with flat screens were stolen...none of the computer with old screens were taken...the alarm didnt go off...the onsite security gaurd who has a route tag...didnt know anything about it...the hardrives with the footage between 3.25 am and 5.30 am was deleted...and the armed response wasnt called out because they allarm didnt activate.

another incident at a different location...the main office window was smashed and the glass removed...a sheet of cardboard was fitting in place...so when the armed response visited the site they couldnt find anything wrong so they left...the office was cleaned out later that night.

[Rod]

That's pretty hectic! It's amazing how organized breaking and entering is becoming now a days.

[Rod]

I found the updated infographic for this service by Vox. They offer the service I am talking about. Here is the infographic for Offsite CCTV Surveillance

[tec0]

I would recommend a few extras. Having a safe with a single person with access AKA the boss is a good start. Secondly most notebook computers are very powerful so you don’t really need desktop technology anymore. Having a properly installed safe to accommodate the notebooks is expensive but worth it.

Thirdly never have one company responsible for everything. The people providing the CCTV surveillance must not be the same people responsible for the alarm system and armed response. This will make it more difficult as the criminals have two independent systems to deal with.

Thirdly you can have a 3rd system that will contact you directly. This system can be wired in on your electric fencing, security doors and so on as mentioned before. Thus you can react and log into your CCTV system have a look and call the responsible people. "Never ever go and see for yourself in person as this can be potentially be dangerous"

Your security system is only as good as the installation and the people responsible. The question is how much are you willing to spend on security?

[Rod]

Your security system is only as good as the installation and the people responsible.

I totally agree with that. This is a huge problem in this country. There are a lot of cheap installation companies that make massive promises about quality but in the end you find out that they created a CCTV blind spot or something as equally devastating.

I found a great piece on the offsite monitoring service here

It explains the positives of having experienced people monitoring your CCTV. This can come as a huge benefit when it comes to parking lot hi-jackings, and muggings. They can react accordingly when something like this happens.

But as you say tec0, it all depends on what you're willing to spend on your security.

[kingpinbusiness]

This CCTV monitoring is a great concept. This will definitely be a plus factor in the war against crime in SA.

Rod that offsite monitoring service has even convinced me that CCTV is the way to go, i am now interested in that Guardian Eye website as it looks like a great was in which i can keep my family, business or my home safe and keep security very tight.

Rod, if you are deciding which to use, in my opinion, you should without doubt, consider the CCTV monitoring.

[Rod]

@Kingpinbusiness thanks for the push. I also strongly believe in this. Where I would pay for a security guard, electric fencing and recording CCTV, I could just as easily pay for the Offsite monitoring service, at the same monthly fee.

[kingpinbusiness]

Exactly, this will be more cost effective and safe.
Response will be a lot quicker which can be vitally important.
Your post has really interested me and i went onto the Guardian Eye site you were considering and it looks to be a very reliable site and i will be furthering my research for my personal use of CCTV surveillance through Guardian eye.
I feel they have a great concept.

[roryf]

I worked on remote monitoring systems in the UK for 5 years.These systems had external detectors connected to the DVR and switched the corresponding CCTV camera into view.Once triggered the system would alert the remote monitoring company via (ADSL or Broadband) and they would be able to view what was happening at the site. If there were trespassers,the remote monitoring company would be able to do an audio challenge remotely via loud speakers that were connected to the system.If needed the remote monitoring company could call the Police/Security company.

These systems were often used together with proper burglar alarms.

There is so much technology out there that you could do almost anything with your systems nowdays.

[Just Gone]

Thirdly never have one company responsible for everything

I would not agree with this. In my experience over the last 14 years we have found that it is better to have one company doing your security. ie one company looking after your motors, electric fencing, cctv and monitoring etc, reason being - if something goes wrong it is one guy that is responsible - too often installers blame the other guy eg if an alarm triggers - the alarm company blames the electric fencing installer and vica versa. It happens time and again. We have been operating for over 14 years and offer the complete package - we are affiliated with a guarding company and an alarm monitoring company therefore we handle everything - the complex or the client does not have to worry about phoning each and every one after they tell him it is not their problem.

It has worked for us over the years and we have plenty of happy customers out there.


Ps. Obviously this does not work with every installer out there - there are some guys that have only been operating for a short while, therefore cannot handle the complete package - you do have to be aware of this.

[IanF]

Rod and Kingpin I see you guys share an IP address. Are you in the same office?

[tec0]

Rod and Kingpin I see you guys share an IP address. Are you in the same office?

Thank you!!! I was just about to get paranoid. The conversation seemed to be "to dynamic"

Then I clicked on page two. and saw your post