Security camera recommendations

[Fuzz]

I'm not sure how much I'd trust Amazon on that one...
Quote:
When a person using Amazon's voice assistant in Germany requested to listen to his archive of recordings, he got much more than he was expecting.
Along with receiving his own audio history captured by a home microphone, the user also gained access to 1,,700 audio files from a person he did not know.
Amazon sent the man a link that contained a stranger's recordings, allowing him to listen to another man speaking inside his home with a female companion, Reuters reported Thursday, citing a German trade magazine, c't.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/techn...=.b0ba97e2e303


To me ok, it's bad that they sent the wrong recordings, but I'd be more concerned that they are keeping recordings of stuff you say around the house. It's like we have decided to just invite surveillance into our own homes, and who knows who really has access to them. No thank you.

Now, would I trust buying a Nest over a Hikvision? Sure, absolutely.

Sorry if this is a little off topic, but I think these considerations are important when looking at what devices you get.

[Stealth22]

Originally Posted by OldDutch

Nest is owned by amazon Google

FTFY

Originally Posted by OldDutch

who I am confident has a good idea about cyber security.

No connected device (especially one marketed to home users) is completely impervious to attack...

https://www.csoonline.com/article/33...f-the-iot.html

I'm not saying we should all just live in tents out in the mountains with no connectivity, but blindly trusting these types of devices without taking at least some measures to safeguard yourself is just foolish, IMO. And I say that as an IT professional who loves these types of geeky toys.

[psicodude]

Originally Posted by OldDutch

As I posted earlier I have 4 Nest cams and they work flawlessly. Nest is owned by amazon who I am confident has a good idea about cyber security.

You bring a good point to segregate the devices on a guest network, but I have yet to see evidence that Ring products under Amazon are a major risk. Enough so to say they shouldn’t be considered.

I own several Nest products myself and quite like them. My point was that:

• The general public knows nothing about cybersecurity and makes bad decisions. Companies like google and Amazon need to find a way to protect us from ourselves.
• Any device that requires an internet connection to work shouldn't be relied upon for a home security system. Residential internet is horribly unreliable.
• Any device that is cloud-connected is at risk of becoming a door-stop at any time. If the company decides to cease operations, the devices become useless.

I didn't mean to suggest that devices like Nest or Ring shouldn't be considered, but they do have some serious drawbacks that consumers need to be aware of before purchasing them. The Iris trainwreck was an eye-opener for me and I've begun the process of reducing my reliance on cloud-connected devices. Like I've said though, I understand that my comfort level with technology far exceeds the average Joe and options are limited.

[OldDutch]

I see I typo’d earlier. I actually own Ring cams not Nest. I do have a nest thermostat however.

I am totally getting a Ring security package. It has cellular backup. It also rolls into my $10/mo monitoring.

I also never advocted for blind trust. However, to link cheap Chinese cams off Amazon like Hik and Ring is wrong. Neither are perfect, but cams like Ring have a lot more corporatly to lose if they get hacked.

To me Ring is the same as Windows PC. They are vulnerable too but we use them. Just like Windows, Ring/Nest enforce passwords.

I too am IT Professional with a Comp Sci degree, although I moved into mangement years ago. So maybe I have too much business ease of use lens built into me now.

[psicodude]

So we agree, like you said, that all of these devices are vulnerable to being hacked. But for some reason, the less expensive units are "wrong" but Ring is good? What happens when Amazon decides that Ring is no longer profitable and turns off the back-end? What happens when some random website gets hacked and the credentials that you happen to use for every cloud service in the world are put up for sale? If it's connected to the internet, it's vulnerable.

I am merely saying that there are other legitimate options out there than continuing to hand Google and Amazon hundreds of dollars per year and hoping they don't get bored of the product and kill it.

[Stealth22]

Leave IoT devices aside for a moment...there are plenty of examples in history of "big" companies (both tech and otherwise) having their infrastructure compromised. And big companies getting bored of a product and shutting down their infrastructure.

My Hikvision cameras aren't perfect, and someone previously posted that apparently their security is pretty bad.

Well, while I didn't know that, because they're not impervious to attack, I originally quarantined them in a separate physical network, isolated from both the internet and my home network.

[TorqueDog]

There are basically two ways to handle this:
1. Use a major company like Nest or Ring with their cloud connectivity, provided that they support multi-factor authentication. You are still at the mercy of their own security, but you are protecting yourself against your account being compromised.
2. Use whatever cameras you want -- whatever brand you want really -- but restrict them and the NVR from accessing the internet at all, forcing them to be viewed from inside the network only. Then set up a VPN in your router's configuration, and use that when you want to view your cameras. Connect to the VPN on your mobile, load the app, and connect to the NVR. Most consumer routers now offer VPN functionality, or you can flash DD-WRT firmware or similar to open up that functionality on supported routers.

Blue Iris and Reolink's NVR apps support direct connections from the app without any sort of manufacturer-provided gateway service to facilitate the connection.

[J Diddy]

Currently I just have two Wyze cams...one at the front window (behind glass) and one at the back door outside. Great cameras for the price ($50 total for both). Lots of features and constant improvements. No subscription! Back door camera lasted outside with no issues all winter. Even if these cameras aren't your permanent security solution for the price they are good to have around. I used one to watch my basement renovation when I wasn't at home.

Only real con I can think of...when they are behind glass the night vision does not work because the night vision light reflects off the glass. I would put the front one outside if i had a method of powering it...which brings me to this question...

Does anyone have any experience with the Toucan security cameras?
https://getkuna.com/pages/toucan-surveillance-kit

I was thinking of one of these under my front door light (instead of a Nest Hello and to replace my front Wyze) and one under a front garage light (opposite side of the front of the house from my front door).

Pros:
retro fit...don't have to replace the lights or run power.
can pair with maximus flood lights for the side and back of the house down the road...keeping everything in the same eco system

Cons
Subscription (if I want more than 2 hour playback)
no night vision but with the motion detection and smart light socket the light will turn on.
Subscription
720p
Subscription