Why Did I Choose Security Doors Over Cameras?

Working in the information technology sector for the past fifteen years, I seem to be the perfect advocate for how technology can enhance the lives of humans. However, the results from my work told me nothing but not to use security cameras.

Firstly, the cost

The cost of installing security camera systems is not a massive difference when compared to installing security doors and screens for an entire property. I would discourage not installing any security solutions to a property. It is a bare essential to keep everyone in the property safe.

Then why are you talking about cost?

The initial cost of getting both measures are not hugely differentiating. The maintenance cost, however, could be tremendous for camera systems. Not accounting the power consumption to run the system 24/7, technology is not as affordable to maintain than traditional physical defenses.

The storage drive for the video footage, for example, requires long-hour operation and extreme durability. The vibration from one hard drive could damage others in the long term. Hard disks that run all day would have to be replaced in 5-10 years, without considering random drive failures. Setting up redundant data protection would require more drives and increases the chance of failure.

But that is not my biggest concern

As the world becoming connected through the internet, security camera systems are becoming one of them. Nest, for example, was purchased by Google that can be accessed by the larger Alphabets corporation.

And the privacy intrusion from Facebook and Google is not news to us anymore. With the two media companies reaching almost the entire population on earth, the data that they can obtain is beyond imagination.

In fact, if you look into the privacy tab in your account, you would realize the two companies collect also every touchpoint you make contact with the tech giants. If you think Facebook is merely a social media that you read interesting content, think again. Every now and then, the Facebook app on your phone is recording your location to “share to your nearby friends”, which also meant someone online will know where you are currently regardless of their intention.

There were also reports that the interviewee mentioned a brand to his/her friends in the messenger of Facebook but did not make a Google Search still saw ads from Google that are related to that particular brand. Even with a home assistant like Google Home, the company was not transparent with its privacy terms and disclosure terms as well.

More terrifyingly, these privacy terms are likely to be hidden in the extensive terms and conditions that literally no one would go through. As media giants do not voluntarily disclose the collection and use of data while users are not required to read or even scroll through the terms before accepting it, god knows what data they collect from us.

Network security, on the other hand, poises a similar danger. According to clearshield.net.au, network-connected devices can be accessed from distance clients while it is also possible to collect the data from the transmission process.

If you wonder what the data can do, it can basically tell everything about you. And with a few hints, they can pretty much guess who you are.

Therefore, I would rather not risk my privacy for an “innovative” security solution.