By Dan Cash Business Security • CCTV • Design • Do It Yourself • General Information • Home Security • Tips and Tricks • 0 Comments

Lights, Cameras, ACTION! How To Ensure Your Security Lighting And CCTV Work In Unison

CCTV camera, smart CCTVSurveillance cameras along with home and business CCTV have been with us for years but it’s only now that wireless data in the home has become ubiquitous enough for everyone who has a wireless router to be able to take advantage of Smart home and office security technology.

They’re a low cost, low barrier to entry security system, and are recognised widely by users, police and insurance companies as one of the best deterrents to burglars, vandals and housebreakers.

They work as a deterrent only when people know they’re there though. If nobody knows they are there the burglar will still break in, they’ll simply get a big surprise when their picture is known to the police and splashed around in the local papers.

Another drawback many cameras have is that at night they’re not always that effective. In poor light lower quality cameras struggle to create the best picture quality and even if they provide excellent quality images at night, if they can’t be seen, they’re not going to work as a deterrent and because their mere presence won’t put the unwitting intruder off. Read more

By Dan Cash Business Security • General Information • Home Security • Management • • 0 Comments

Your 2020 Vision For Online Security Is Here

wireless, smart home, home automation, smart speaker, Technology and the way we organise our lives around it is rapidly changing, and not always for the better. There has been a great deal of controversy about how social media and online data has influenced recent elections in the UK & the US as unaccountable agents have poured money into advertising and ‘fake news’, targeted undecided voters, and used data captured from unwitting citizens who’ve done nothing more than like or share a post they’ve seen.

Data is big business. It can be used to affect elections, to help decide where public money is spent, when to buy and sell assets, and it can also be used to get access to your home.

Shortly before Christmas Ring was dealing with a controversial data breach when it was shown that if customers don’t take the initiative to change their passwords and security settings it was relatively simple for people to access home cameras in order to see into children’s bedrooms and talk to the occupants. And while it’s easy for the tech savvy to scoff and wonder “well what were they expecting if they didn’t secure their devices?” it’s also equally true that most people don’t understand the ramifications of installing popular Smart devices into their homes and assume that if they’re going to be sold as security and monitoring tools there should be a certain amount of security built in. Read more

By Dan Cash Business Security • CCTV • Do It Yourself • General Information • Home Entertainment • Home Security • Uncategorized • • 0 Comments

Get Smart, Get Superfast WiFi Access Throughout Your Home And Garden

The convenience of wireless it that you can take your networked devices anywhere with you. Desktop computers no longer outcompete laptops, except that they don’t need recharging and the screen size isn’t limited to the dimensions of a laptop. Phones work everywhere, and Wi Fi enabled speakers can be set up anywhere you want throughout the home to enjoy hifi quality sound in every room. The only drawback was that stray too far from the router, into the garden for example, and your wireless connected devices would start to misbehave. Sound stutters, downloads pause and streaming TV or movies pause (invariably at the moment where the action gets exciting).

While this is irritating for those of us who use Wi-Fi strictly for entertainment, for those of us who have Smart Home Automation a poor Wi-Fi signal means that devices such as burglar alarms and CCTV can’t be relied upon. If you work from home as a writer, designer, musician, or any other profession which requires instant and dependable access to digital communication, including internet, Skype, or file transfer platforms a poor signal in the home is a problem. And if you’ve set up your office or studio in an outbuilding or converted the garage into a workshop then one option is running a cable from your Wi-Fi or internet router to your laptop or desktop. A far from perfect solution. Read more

By Dan Cash Business Security • CCTV • General Information • Home Security • Tips and Tricks • • • 0 Comments

Chip Shop Uses Smart Security Systems To Catch A Criminal

break in, shop, security, smart security, police, crime prevention,Shopkeepers have always had to have an eye to their own security. While any homeowner can simply shut their doors to strangers, it’s retailers and service providers who have to keep their doors open to all comers in order to make their living. We’ve all seen the hand-written crime prevention signs saying “no more than 2 schoolchildren in the shop at one time” and felt the indignation of the young. But the store holder clearly felt that insulting and alienating what is probably a large part of their passing trade, by implying that they couldn’t be trusted if not closely observed, was worth it.

Today we’re much more familiar and comfortable with CCTV cameras than we were in the past. We understand that observation protects us, notwithstanding some people’s paranoia about mass surveillance and government intrusion. With police cuts there are fewer police on the beat, and city centres are overstretched at night over the weekend, so CCTV monitoring is in place to deploy police where they are needed the most, breaking up disturbances and preventing assaults more efficiently than patrolling the streets, despite this having the notional effect that the police are now paramilitary, while ‘community policing’ has gone by the wayside. Read more

By Dan Cash Business Security • CCTV • Construction • Design • General Information • Home Entertainment • Home Security • Tips and Tricks • WiFi 0 Comments

Looking For The Best Electronics Installation Professionals In The South East Of England? They’re On This List

installation engineer, fibre optic, flat screen, satellite dish, aerial, security, CCTV, burglar alarmInstalling home entertainment and Smart Home Technology, including flat screen TVs, wireless burglar alarm systems, Smart CCTV cameras, aerials and satellite dishes isn’t a job for just any old handyman. For a reliable installation carried out by expert professionals it’s best to call in specialised tradesmen who carry regulatory body membership, insurance, who offer warranties and also guarantee their work and the products they use.

Before you agree to allow workmen to carry out work installing TV receivers, cables, security cameras and alarms, as yourself, and them these questions:

Is this company qualified?

Anybody installing Smart Home Automation devices should be a CEDIA member. CEDIA are the Smart Home trade association so you can rest assured that if your installer is a member they will hold all the necessary certification required.

Companies who carry out other home entertainment installations, such as flat screen TV installations and putting aerials or satellite dishes on the roof don’t need to be members of a trade body, but should carry insurance to protect themselves, and you, in case of any accidents during the installation, or as a consequence of the work they undertook. Read more

By Dan Cash Business Security • CCTV • Design • Do It Yourself • General Information • Home Security • • 0 Comments

Thinking of Boosting Your Home Security With CCTV Cameras? Here’s What You Need To Know

CCTV camera, smart CCTVCCTV cameras have been shown to be a fantastic deterrent against opportunist burglars targeting homes in Britain and abroad, making them one of the most popular options for many people boosting their home security.

When burglars plan a break-in it’s not usually well thought out with floor plans and circuit diagrams like the movies would have us believe. In many cases the planning aspect is simply looking a the property and thinking “is it worth me climbing in that window or putting in that door?” and if you own nice things and you don’t have obvious crime prevention devices, the answer is going to be “yes”!

Once inside your property the burglar will generally not spend more than 15 minutes collecting your possessions, putting them all in a sheet, and dragging them away. Opportunistic burglars don’t like to carry any tools or bags with them as they look suspicious, and ‘going equipped’ shows intent and carries a longer sentence in the event of a conviction. Once they have your valuables outside your house they’ll leave them somewhere secluded until they can return to collect them unless they live so nearby that they can get them home safely. If you have a car in the drive and leave your keys where they can be found, then that’s a different story. Read more

By Dan Cash Business Security • CCTV • General Information • Home Security • • 0 Comments

Smart Home Security Is A High Growth Sector, What’s In It For You?

burglar alarms, cctv systems, home security, security feature, security,Smart home security is becoming one of the most rapidly growing sectors in the Smart Home Technology sphere. It’s simple to install, easy to use, and is incredibly cheap compared to other home security systems.

Home security has always been a fine balancing act between effectiveness and access. Nobody wants to live in a house with security screens over the windows, steel doors and barbed wire fences surrounding the property, but neither does anyone want a house which anyone can simply walk into, notwithstanding the aesthetic.

And so a compromise has to be met. Of course reasonable precautions are quite sufficient for most of us. Sturdy doors and frames, toughened double glazing which not only keeps intruders out but keeps the heat in at wintertime keep us, our property and possessions safe. So where does Smart home security come in?

Smart home security systems become desirable for homeowners who embrace technology and prefer to boost their home security without compromising on style and aesthetic. Steel security grilles might tell a burglar “you’ve not getting in here today” but a Smart CCTV camera will send the message “you can try, but the police will be on their way and we’ll have HD footage of every move you make”. Read more

By Dan Cash Business Security • CCTV • Do It Yourself • Energy Saving • General Information • Home Security • Older People • WiFi • • 0 Comments

Is Your Smart Home Really Smart Without Sensors To Tell It What’s Going On?

If you’re a recent convert to Smart Home automation you may be starting to think “well this isn’t all that smart at all, is it? I still have to tell Alexa everything I’m doing before she’ll help me with anything!” and you’d be right. But only because you’ve got Alexa’s ears set up, without sensors’ she’s got no eyes.

A truly Smart home system relies on sensors to be able to work efficiently. Sensors feed data back to the Home Hub enabling it to make decisions and obey commands which would have been set up in order to make the Smart Home system integrated and intelligent.

There are a wide range of sensors which will serve various different purposes, from fire and smoke detectors to thermostats and motion sensors which will tell your hub not only when you enter a room, but when an intruder breaks into your home. Making use of these sensors as part of the everyday home hub utility will vastly improve the intelligence of the system since you won’t have to tell it directly what you want to happen, and make you safer since you will be able to rely on your home hub to react to changes such as movement, smoke, fire, or gas and water leaks. Read more

By Dan Cash Business Security • CCTV • Design • Do It Yourself • General Information • Home Entertainment • Home Security • Tips and Tricks • • • 0 Comments

Light Bulbs Featuring Motion Detection, Speakers, And More!

GE LED+ LightingWhat if you want Smart lighting, but don’t want lighting attached to your Smart hub?

There could be any number of reasons why you want the advantages of Smart lighting but would prefer not to attach your lights to your home hub. Security is one issue. It has been found that in the past some manufacturers were not adding sufficient security to Smart bulbs, which left a huge hole in people’s security. You may want to keep your Smart Home hub sleeker, adding only the most necessary items to your portfolio of apps, but still with to take advantage of energy saving lights with offer more than just on, off or dimmed. Or you may not even have a Smart Home, but you like the idea of lightbulbs which have several functions.

If that’s the case then GE, Philips, Feit and Ecosmart have a range of LED+ lightbulbs which are intelligent enough to install into your home without needing to be added to your home hub.

What Do They Have To Offer?

Specialised LED bulbs are a relatively new addition to the market and offer several features and benefits which up until now had only been available through specialist retailers or via Smart Home technology. These features include:

Motion sensors

Bluetooth speakers

Colour control

Battery assistance and backup

‘Dusk to Dawn’ outdoor lighting Read more

By Dan Cash Business Security • CCTV • General Information • Home Security • Tips and Tricks • • 0 Comments

Briant Security Systems

Briant Security Systems are here to help you keep your home & business a safe, comfortable place to live or work.

As part of Briant Communications, our engineers and installers have accrued many years’ experience fitting a range of electronic and entertainment systems throughout the south east of England, and those electronics often included CCTV, intruder alarms and fire safety equipment.

Briant Security Systems primarily take advantage of the latest Smart Home technology in order to be able to give you an easier to manage, controllable, integrated home security system which is far superior to the traditional ‘box on the wall’ deterrent we’re currently used to seeing. Read more