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Saturday, November 7, 2009

Selecting The Most Effective Video Security System

By Dominique Engelbach

For a video security system to be effective, it should be able to avert potential criminals and burglars. It should protect your house when nobody is home, let you stay updated to happenings and events, and if something goes wrong, it should provide concrete evidence for clear investigation. With all this capabilities, video surveillance systems must be easy to install and user friendly. Having such equipment for security measure should imply strong fortification and solid defense.

Some people who purchase a video surveillance system are unlucky enough to have bought sub par products because they were fooled by a consultant, dealer or some website. And as expected, they end up regretting what they had purchased. To prevent this, here are some useful guidelines you can use in selecting the right video security camera system for your home or office. It includes very important considerations that can assist in the selection process.

Proper Security Camera Positioning

"What is the right quantity of surveillance cameras do I need to purchase?" This is the question most consumers ask when buying video camera systems. In answering this question, it does not matter how many or few the security cameras you have but the ability to identify and recognize every individual who is entering in your premises. It should also have to capture high quality videos to be able to properly archive their activities and behavior for evidence and other legal purposes.

1. Identify the suspect - If you have limited funds, then I highly recommend that your surveillance system is able to clearly identify people as they come and go. Odds are that if something happens at your home or business that is noteworthy, you'll know about it. And the only question you need to answers is: "Who did it?" If you know who is coming and going, figuring out "who" is in most cases very simple.

Providing customer safety is a business priority. After all, it is by this means that they are able to secure great transactions. By taking care of your visitors' lives and interests, you'll be able to establish good relationships with them. This will consequently result to better business dynamics. Now it will help the protection process if you can identify and prevent any incoming danger. By installing video security cameras in your store, you will not only be aware of what's going on, you will also be able to take control of unexpected situations. With a camera, you can identify who goes in and out of your shop and what goes on in and outside of the premises. It's best to apply cameras in areas of your store or private property that is prone to crimes, such as doors, windows, gates, parking lot entrances etc.

I would also recommend that you think like a criminal for just a minute... If you were a burglar, how would you enter your home or property? Would your approach be different during the day than at night? What areas on the property are least visible to your neighbors? The results of this exercise will confirm the number of video security cameras you need to rest easy and will likely surprise you.

2. Document activity - For a business, having sufficient video surveillance cameras in place to provide an overview of activity is usually not an option. There are simply too many instances that call for documentation of what happened. An easy case in point is shoplifting... By law in most states, a suspect must be observed actually concealing an item and leaving the threshold of the building before the activity is considered a crime. Additionally, and many times more importantly, documentation of activity in your home or place of business will help to protect you from prosecution for "Slip and Fall", and other litigious activities that may occur on your property.

At a residence, using surveillance cameras which view a wide area often provide some very valuable clues beyond identification, such as the direction of travel, a vehicle description, identifying accomplices and neighbors that may have witnessed the crime. In many cases, you can gain many of these important details with as few as four surveillance cameras located around your house.

Safety is another popular reason to have security cameras providing overviews of your property. It's quite a comfort to be able to watch children at play in the pool, trampoline or yard knowing they are safe and having fun at the same time.

3. An accurate sketch can be created - sketch the location to familiarize some possible ways to capture the future crimes. It is useful in determining field of views for your security cameras, ensuring the full coverage.

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