Over the past few years, the IP security camera industry has grown a lot. From consumer grade products to professional grade products, the technology is getting much easier to use and more people are using it to keep an eye on their homes and businesses.
One thing that a lot of people haven’t considered though is how do you keep hackers from finding your camera feeds on the internet and using them against you?
Here are a few tips to keeping your security cameras secure and keeping those malicious hackers away from your business.
Keep Your Firmware Updated
Most modern security cameras use firmware that is upgradeable. If there are any bugs that are found, or people start to catch on to a way that the software can be hacked, the camera’s manufacturer will fix the vulnerability by putting out a firmware update. You can check for and install updates from the admin console via your web browser.
Check the manufacturers website often to make sure there isn’t an update out that you have missed and that you’re not using a version with an unpatched vulnerability.
Local Only Mode
You should make sure that you keep your cameras on a local network and assign them to non-routable internal IP addresses. Even with this though, your camera could still end up being exposed by software that sets up forwarding or uses UPNP to expose your camera’s feed to the internet. Look at the manufacturer’s website to learn more about how you can set your camera to local-only mode.
Password Protection
Most cameras do not require setting up a password during the initial set up. Most people either don’t think about it, or just simply forget. Make sure that your camera’s video feed is protected by a good, strong password. It’s also a good idea to change your password regularly, just in case.
Rename The Admin Account
Most cameras come with a default username and password that is set by the manufacturer and is available on their website. If you don’t change it right away then anyone in the world can literally just go to the website and figure out how to hack your feed and take control of your camera.
Don’t Put Cameras Where They Shouldn’t Be
Even if you think your camera is secure, what if there is a newly discovered software flaw that hasn’t been patched by the manufacturer yet? Although I feel like this should go without being said, it’s probably not a good idea to either walk around your office naked or put a security camera in the restroom. But, just in case, you have been warned. If you wouldn’t be comfortable with anyone seeing something, it’s best to keep it off the camera, no matter how secure you think it may be.