- Home security cameras.
They can be great for monitoring deliveries,
keeping an eye on your house.
And of course, spying on your cats.
In fact, around 14% of US households with broadband
now use an internet connected camera,
and the US market for home security cameras
is projected to continue growing rapidly through 2030.
But their popularity has come at a cost.
- Amazon's ring doorbell may not be as private as you think.
- [Newscaster] Hackers tapping into those home cameras.
- [Hacker] I'll leave you and your family alone
or I could do this.
(alarm blaring)
- Just this year, Amazon-owned ring
handed over surveillance footage to law enforcement
11 times without a warrant or customer consent.
- The company said the request met its exception
for emergencies, which it defines as danger of death
or serious physical injury.
And since cats have nine lives
and always land on their feet,
I figured Koneko, a Manhattan-based cat cafe
wouldn't it be at any risk of law enforcement stepping in.
But there's a stereotype with cats
and it's that they're burglars.
And we'd like to prove otherwise with this video.
So, that's why it's the perfect place
to come and outline some dos and don'ts for you to consider
when setting up and installing
some of the latest smart surveillance cameras.
Of course, Joe Golka, Koneko's cattery guide
was with us all day to ensure that these rescued
and adoptable cats were happy and comfortable.
- Right?
You're gonna hang with me?
- [Kenny] And that no real paws were used.
- [Nicole] Is my hand in it.
- [Staff] Yeah.
- [Kenny] If you want your valuable recordings
shielded from prying eyes
you should try to enable end-to-end encryption.
But what does that mean and what does it do?
To keep it simple, let's say cameras typically use
one of two encryption types.
There's standard encryption
and then there's end-to-end encryption.
Imagine two companies, Cat Cam and Dog Cam.
Cat-Cam has end-to-end encryption which means the only user
with the key to decrypt your video files is you.
Well, you and anyone you share the account with.
So, end-to-end encryption protects your data from hackers
and prevents it from being viewed by others
such as law enforcement or Cat Cam.
Dog Cam encrypts your video
when it's traveling from you to company servers,
but it doesn't do it end-to-end,
which means the company can also hold the key
to decrypt your recordings.
If you're looking for end-to-end encryption,
Nicole recommends a camera that works
with Apple's Smart Home platform called HomeKit.
- I like these devices because end-to-end encryption
is on by default.
Logitech's circle view camera or doorbell are good picks.
They work indoor or outdoor and have face recognition
to identify different people in your household
or frequent visitors.
- [Kenny] End-to-end encryption isn't limited
to just HomeKit cameras.
For instance, you can now enable it on some ring cameras.
But it's not on by default and another important note,
it's not available for their battery powered models
and disables some key features.
No matter which brand you choose,
be sure to use a secure password.
Don't point your camera at private spaces.
Security cameras usually have ultra wide lenses
that capture far more
than say a normal smartphone camera would.
So it's important to consider the expectation of privacy
when installing one.
Ask yourself.
What would you be comfortable with?
If you've got a doorbell-style security camera,
try not to capture a shot into your neighbor's front window.
And if there's a zone in your camera's field of view
you'd rather not capture,
try enabling motion detection or privacy zones.
- Cameras from these brands all feature
activity zone triggering.
Any HomeKit camera, such as those from Eve or Logitech,
Ring, Google Nest and Arlo.
Ring devices can also set up privacy zones,
which will black out areas from being recorded in videos.
- [Kenny] Do consider location factors.
If you're looking to monitor an entire space indoors
it's best to keep your camera at a higher location.
This will give you the widest field of view.
Then ask yourself,
"Do I need night vision in my camera's location?"
If so, make sure your security camera
has an infrared spotlight which will enable it
to capture video and images in little to no light.
Also, if your camera is being used as a baby monitor
or in a location where silence is important,
it's worth noting many security cameras can click
when activating their infrared light.
- If you're in a noise sensitive environment
try disabling night vision
and buying a separate infrared illuminator.
And always be sure to let everyone in your household
or location know there's a camera.
- [Kenny] Don't forget about hardware quirks.
In the world of security cameras
you have outdoor cameras and indoor cameras.
Battery powdered cameras can live outside for months
without having to be recharged
or having any pesky wires run to them
which makes it easy to forget when they need to be charged.
Don't be a jerk or creep.
- [Nicole] Many brands let you clip recordings
which can then be posted to social media.
Ring even has its own network called Neighbors.
- This for a place like Koneko can be great
when they wanna post clips of their in-house influencers
for public consumption.
But security cam users should always think twice
before posting to social media.
That's because it's easy for nefarious internet passersby
to triangulate your location simply by landmarks outside.
Also a case of mistaken identity or misunderstanding
can lead to an accidental tragedy, somebody getting fired,
all sorts of bad things.
So, before you post something online, take a breath,
think twice and consider the outcome.
(staff member laughing softly)