How To Keep Your Home Security Cameras Safe?
By: John Garcia | Date Posted: April 19, 2022
Table of Contents
Not keeping a cautious watch on the home security cameras may prove counterproductive to their original intent which is to protect homeowners and their belongings.
Lack of security awareness increases the risk of hacking surveillance cameras and intruding on your privacy.
Just as you can access your home security cameras over the internet, so can someone else. This is due to the common security weaknesses of the users.
The most common reasons that make your cameras susceptible to hacking are reused or easily guessed passwords, connecting cameras with unsecured internet or Bluetooth connection, not updating the new version, and using expired antivirus software.
Tips To Keep Your Home Security Cameras Safe
Security cameras are great for protecting both the home and office. While these are widely used in different working areas, the number of houses using security cameras is relatively low.
Apart from the fear of being watched in their personal space, the one fact that discourages and prevents many users from enjoying the benefits of home security cameras is their price.
Although these reasons are primarily responsible for not using security cameras at home, these reasons should not convince you to give up security cameras.
Following this guide can ensure that your home security cameras are safe and you are not watched by anyone with an ulterior motive. On the other hand, you can easily buy the best home security camera system for under 200.
Make Your Home Wireless Network Secure
The first thing you should do to protect your cameras from being hacked is to secure your WiFi network. This may include setting a strong password for your home router, utilizing the WPA2-AES encryption method, switching off guest networking, altering the default SSID name, and so on.
Turn Off Remote Online Monitoring
Some WiFi-enabled cameras offer remote viewing. In this case, you will be able to monitor your home despite the fact that you are far from your home.
However, there is a hidden drawback to these types of cameras: hackers can also log into the app or website of your security cameras. Hence, you should turn off this feature if your camera has.
Keep Your Camera’s Firmware Up To Date
Periodical updating of the software of your camera makes certain that hackers will not be able to access your camera. Some cameras get updated automatically, or the camera app gives you notifications about the update.
On the other hand, some cameras need you to keep a regular check for any new updates. So, remember to check any firmware updates in the “Settings” section of the camera app.
Create A Strong Password
A strong and unique password is a great hurdle to the way of hacking your home security cameras. Even though it is difficult to set strong different passwords for different sites, it is a great way to protect oneself from being hacked.
Hence, you will be making your security cameras vulnerable to getting hacked by using the same password for your other app as well as your home security cameras.
Set your password using numbers, symbols, and both capital and small letters. Do not use any meaningful word or name, rather something meaningless invited by yourself.
Make your password long and difficult. When you have decided to set your password, you should note it in your diary or a notepad so that you do not forget it later. Do not note that password in your mobile or any other electronic device as these devices are vulnerable to getting hacked also.
Change Password Frequently
Some people stop by only creating a strong password. No matter how strong your password is, you should change it after some time. Some people use their old password only because they think that the password is strong. They modify the old password with lowercase and uppercase letters or change the positions of some numbers.
You should not do so but rather create a new and complex password. Changing passwords frequently and creating a complex one every time makes it difficult for hackers to hack your device.
Set Up Two-Factor Authentication (2FA)
Two-factor authentication (2FA) is a security measure that confirms your identity by utilizing an extra layer of security along with your password.
Even if someone gets your password, he/she can not access your account. Once you set up two-factor authentication on your account, you will see options for text messages, email, and phone calls to deliver one-time codes.
Beware Password Recovery Emails
Now almost every online service has the option to recover a password that is forgotten. This option is the main target for cybercriminals.
Everybody uses a Gmail account to change a forgotten password. Now imagine what will happen if a hacker gets access to your Gmail account. Well, you can not and should not remove the forgot password option.
What you should do is beware of password recovery emails and make your email addresses as complex as you can, mainly for this purpose.
If In Doubt, Turn It Off
No matter how many effective ways you adopt, if you still think that there is someone stalking you using your own home security cameras, you should deactivate them.
Delete Your Data
If you want to buy new, improved wireless cameras and sell your old cameras, you should delete all the data from the history. Check the manual, where you will find instructions on how you can restore your cameras to factory settings.
Conclusion
It is not enough to install security cameras at home. Just as security cameras keep a vigil watch on your home, you need to keep a vigil watch on your security cameras.
Maintain all the suggestions given in this guide to keep your home security cameras safe. Even after this, we recommend you be cautious lest you should be hacked by some hackers. In spite of adopting the necessary measures, if you think you are being watched, take help from an expert.
Thank you for reading!
