What You Can And Can’t Record With Your Personal CCTV

If you are considering investing in a CCTV system for your home or commercial space, or already have, it can be handy to know what you can and can’t do with it. A CCTV system includes the CCTV camera, storage, recording and all associated equipment.

As an individual, you have the right to protect your property, which a CCTV system can help with significantly. Using CCTV as a security measure is a very sensible option as long as it is operated responsibly and is respectful of others’ privacy.

It is now a very common occurrence for homeowners to use CCTV systems to protect their domestic space. It may seem reasonable to safeguard your home but the number of complaints from members of the public or people’s neighbours is on the increase. Complaints are often made by neighbours who believe that the CCTV systems are being used to impeach their privacy and to spy on them.

To ensure that you use your personal CCTV effectively and respectfully, see the list of rules and tips below.

Consider how your system may affect others

• Will a certain positioning of your camera intrude on your neighbour’s privacy? If yes, consider options like privacy filters
• If your system captures images outside of your household, you become subject to the Data Protection Act.

Being transparent about your CCTV system

• You can inform the public that recording is taking place on your property or premises by having a notice, which may reduce the number of complaints.
•  You should also inform your neighbours about your new or existing CCTV system

If you have an existing CCTV system you should:

• Make sure it is still essential
• You regularly go through the footage and delete recordings that are unnecessary to keep
• Ensure that it is not intruding on your neighbour's property which could result in complaints of a breach of privacy or harassment.

Take responsibility for your system

• You are responsible for what your CCTV records or captures images of
• You must ensure that the footage or images are not used for anything other than to protect your home
• Ensure that you know how to operate your system and that it is installed correctly, if not, make sure to read the manual.

Storing footage or images

• The date and time stamps for the footage should always be correct
• You must ensure that all recordings are kept safe and secure with access at a minimum
• Make sure that the information that is recorded is used for the reason for installation

Using recorded information as evidence

• If your CCTV system records an incident, it may be called upon as evidence by the police to help an investigation.

If you have any further questions or concerns about your CCTV system you should contact your installer. Elsewhere on our website, you can also find advice on which CCTV equipment could be the best for you and helpful video tutorials with installation advice.