Twelve practical, no-nonsense steps to make sure the system that watches your business isn’t the weakest link in it.
Video surveillance protects your people and property, but only if the system itself is secure. Use this checklist to audit your cameras, whether you have four of them or four hundred.
Access & identity
- Eliminate default credentials. Every camera, recorder and app account gets a unique, strong password.
- Turn on multi-factor authentication (MFA) for every user who can view or export video.
- Use role-based access. A store manager should see their store, not every location. Installers should not keep permanent admin accounts.
- Review users quarterly and remove former employees and vendors immediately.
Network
- Segment cameras on a dedicated VLAN with firewall rules that block traffic to business systems.
- Close inbound ports and disable UPnP. Remote viewing should go through a secure cloud service, not port forwarding.
- Disable unused services on cameras such as Telnet, FTP and unused discovery protocols.
Devices & firmware
- Patch on a schedule. Track firmware versions and apply security updates at least quarterly.
- Retire end-of-life hardware that no longer receives security updates.
- Buy from reputable manufacturers with published vulnerability-disclosure and update programs. Government and regulated customers should also check federal procurement restrictions on certain brands.
Data & monitoring
- Store footage off-site with encryption in transit and at rest, and set a retention period that matches your legal and insurance needs.
- Monitor health and audit logs. Alerts for offline cameras, failed logins and unusual exports catch problems early.
Put this list on a calendar. Security is not a one-time project; a 30-minute quarterly review covers most of it.
Need a second set of eyes?
Our certified team performs camera security assessments across San Diego, Orange County and the Inland Empire. We will document what you have, flag the risks and hand you a prioritized plan, whether or not you move to the cloud.
Certified IT and video-surveillance specialists supporting Southern California organizations for over two decades.
