Wireless cameras are pretty popular as home security devices. I admit that I have recommended them to friends and family. But no security device is 100% foolproof – not even wireless cameras. And unfortunately, smart burglars are starting to use the cameras to their own advantage.
Yes, the criminal set is getting into the video surveillance game. According to numerous news reports over the last 12 months or so, enterprising criminals have started installing wireless cameras in neighborhoods for the purpose of scoping out houses they think might make good targets. It is pretty easy to do if you know how to use a mobile app and a trail cam.
Surveilling Potential Victims
Using wireless cameras against victims is rooted in the idea of surveilling them before you hit. Remember that burglars don’t do what they do out of an innate desire to get caught. They are not committing burglaries as deep-seated a cry for help. They are criminals looking to support themselves by stealing from hardworking people.
Because they do not want to get caught, they take the necessary precautions. Some even go so far as to watch their targets for several days in order to determine habits and schedules. Doing so from a distance – by way of a wireless camera – is a lot safer than standing on a street corner for several days in a row.
Video surveillance allows burglars to monitor several homes simultaneously. Again, it is pretty easy for anyone who knows how to use a camera and a mobile app.
The Basic Process
The basic process criminals are using is pretty simple. A thief will set up a wireless camera at home. He will connect it and make sure he can access the feed with his phone. Then he will take the camera into a targeted neighborhood and look for a place to install it.
Let’s say he finds two houses, side-by-side, which appear to be good targets. He might place his camera in the branch of a tree across the street. Installation is as easy as installing a field cam in the forest. Just wrap the strap around a branch and attach it to the camera. Done and done. It only takes seconds.
Afterward, the thief can monitor both houses for several days. If he can establish a pretty consistent schedule that he’s comfortable with, he will make plans to break into the houses while the owners are away.
Taking Advantage of Our Schedules
Criminals are not doing anything new in terms of casing potential targets. They are only using new technology to do something they have been doing all along but in less tech-savvy ways. The experts at Vivint Smart Home explain it this way: thieves surveilling their victims with wireless cameras are looking to take advantage of their schedules.
Vivint explains that the majority of burglaries take place during the daylight hours. It makes sense. Parents are at work and kids are in school. Entire neighborhoods are all but empty during the work week. So if a criminal determines that your home is likely to be vacant with most of the others on your street, it suddenly becomes a target.
Wireless cameras just make it easier for thieves to identify their targets. That is of little comfort to anyone who has been a burglary victim. The lesson here is that we all need to be more diligent about protecting our homes and families. We cannot stop burglars from using wireless cameras, but we can harden our homes against break-ins. Making the job as hard as possible has a way of chasing burglars away.
