Home Security Archives – Briant Communications

Why Adopting Full Fibre Is A Smart Decision For IoT

Remember when you were a kid and dreamed of having robots help with your homework, do your chores and even beat up the big kids who hung around the end of your street giving, you a hard time when you wanted to go to the park?

Today that dream is a reality (except for the bully-thrashing droids: ethics and all that). With the Internet of Things making many of our electronic purchases ‘Smart’ we can now talk to the objects which surround us and they will do as we ask.

Whereas once we could only access the internet via a computer, the Internet of Things (IoT) means that all connected devices are able to communicate with one another, sharing information which makes it possible for them all to work in conjunction, and therefore more efficiently. Many of these devices could be considered gimmicky, and only ‘Smart’ for the sake of being smart, and not for any functional necessity. Read more

07/09/2022 By Dan Cash Briant Broadband • Broadband • General Information • Home Security • Uncategorized • WiFi 0 Comments

Now is the best time to upgrade to Superfast and Ultrafast Broadband

Fibre broadband is being rolled out throughout the UK, a project which should see more than 85% of homes throughout the UK having access to Gigabit data before the end of 2025.

With every day that passes more and more people are able to access fibre broadband at superfast and ultrafast speeds, and those who aren’t are seeing other options emerging. You can get mobile Wi-Fi from most mobile phone providers if you don’t use much data per day, or you may be able to opt for wireless broadband. While wireless isn’t as fast as Full Fibre, it is still many times faster than broadband delivered over copper telephone lines which is how many of us still get our internet.

Who Needs Faster Broadband?

You may be quite happy with the speeds you already receive. If you’re on a standard package on a copper connection you could be receiving 50 or 60 Mbps which is fine for streaming a movie or downloading a high quality album in a few minutes (or seconds if you don’t mind sacrificing a little sound quality for faster downloads and more tunes on your device). If you’re looking at newspapers or online magazines you might notice it takes an instant for pictures to load because all the ads are fighting for the same share of data. Read more

21/02/2022 By Dan Cash Business Security • CCTV • Do It Yourself • General Information • Home Security • Tips and Tricks alexa • Google Assistant • smart home devices 0 Comments

How Cleaning Up Your Google Assistant or Alexa Device Will Improve Performance

Google Assistants, smart speakers, Alexa devices and all kinds of IOT Smart stuff are a way of life for many of us. While once they were a gadget which it was just kind of cool to have around the house, their usefulness and practicality has made them a firm favourite with anyone who used them regularly. However, over time you might find that your home network is slowing down. And here’s why.

Of course it’s down to age, but this isn’t a blog bemoaning built in obsolescence. The fact is that if you’ve been living with a smart home network for any length of time you’re going to have added smart devices which you no longer use, they may have not been as useful as you expected, you may have bought it on a whim, connected it and forgotten all about it, or, the device may have been lost, got broken, or thrown out. Read more

26/11/2021 By Dan Cash CCTV • Do It Yourself • General Information • Home Security • Tips and Tricks • Uncategorized 0 Comments

New £10m Fines To Ensure Smart Home Devices Are Secure

The British government are showing how seriously they are taking smart home security by introducing laws to protect consumers from poor smart products.

With many generic manufacturers using apps which are vulnerable to hacking or scanning and Black Friday deals which see some less scrupulous retailers attempt to sell off old tech which has a very limited period of ongoing software support, (as well as offering “deals” on goods which have been the same price for weeks prior to the sales) the government is putting responsibility for basic security protocols onto shops and makers by ensuring that insecure devices are not put up for sale.

Manufacturers, importers and retailers will face fines of up to £10m if they fail to comply with the requirements. While that seems like a huge fine for what is to many simply a software issue, it demonstrates how seriously security for consumers is being taken. It also reflects the size of the market in smart home devices, as only a fine this size can act as a deterrent for businesses who continue to make or sell substandard home automation. Read more

12/11/2021 By Dan Cash CCTV • Do It Yourself • Home Security 0 Comments

Your Smart Home Checklist For Leaving Your Home Alone

Hikvision security camera mounted on a brick wall next to a drainage pipe. Many of us were stuck at home last year, unable to do the usual rounds of Christmas visits to parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles. This year it looks like we’ll be able to make those trips again, but who’s going to look after the house while we’re away?

The appeal of Smart Home technology to most people is the convenience it offers to people as they potter around the house. Mundane tasks can be done by voice command or set on a schedule which can be set via an app on a phone. Thing is, those tasks can be just as easily taken care of if you’re away from home too.

The first thing people think about when leaving the house for a few days is whether they should leave the lights on or the curtains closed. Putting a table lamp on a timer isn’t fooling anyone any more! Instead you can use your home automation technology to turn lights on and off throughout the house, turn on a radio or TV and turn it off again as part of a routine that makes it look to anyone outside the house like the family are going to bed. It’s far from the perfect security solution, but if it keeps burglars guessing while you’re away for a few days, it could make a real difference.

Give The Impression Someone’s Home

Other signs of human activity which keep intruders on their toes is automated blinds and curtains. Anything that makes it look as if there is someone at home will help them move along, and curtains which are either shut all day or open all night are a sign that nobody’s home. Read more

10/11/2021 By Dan Cash CCTV • Do It Yourself • Home Security • Tips and Tricks Black Friday • gadgets • presents 0 Comments

Buying Tech Presents Early During The Black Friday Sales

We, like you hate the encroachment of Christmas into months where it doesn’t belong. Yule is at the far end of December, and if it’s to remain special, that’s where it should stay. Mince pies becoming part of Halloween fare indeed! BUT… But with the supply chain problems that many retailers are currently experiencing, for whatever reason, it may be worth getting a few of the presents which are going to be most in demand early, rather than trusting Santa to deliver a little Christmas magic nearer the time.

So how do you decide which presents it’s worth buying now, and which to leave until Christmas Eve when you can rush around the High Street in a blind panic? (You know who you are!)

On the one hand shopping for kids is pretty easy. They like toys and sweets. They don’t like clothes, books, or educational games. To find out what your, or any child wants for that matter, just watch an hour of kids’ TV with them. You’ll be subject to so many ads and characters from favourite TV shows that you’ll find that you want them as badly as the young ‘uns do!

But buying for a discerning teen or young adult is a trickier proposition. I bet secretly they’d love some Octonauts or Alphablocks merch, but not from you, that just wouldn’t be cool! Instead they’re going to want something beautiful, or practical tech. Both if you can find it. Read more

03/11/2021 By Dan Cash CCTV • General Information • Home Security • Tips and Tricks crime • heist • jewellery 0 Comments

World’s Great and Good Victims of Cyber Security Data Heist

Information is rapidly becoming one of the most valuable assets we have. Businesses, governments and criminals all seem to be keen to get their hands on our data, either to find out what we think, influence what we think or not really caring what we think, so long as they can use the information they have about us to fleece us out of our savings.

The more we find out about Facebook the more it makes us wonder how safe we are online. When an innocuous site which is meant to let us keep in touch with our friends and family is accused of being instrumental in spreading hate speech, fake news and propaganda, and are giving as much as 5 times more value to Angry reactions than Likes, Loves or Care reactions, meaning that other users and group members are much more likely to see posts that cause fury than they are to see those that are touching or simply agreed with.

But this isn’t a blog about the ongoing tribulations that Facebook, aka Meta is currently experiencing. Rather this is a blog about data being taken and used as a hostage to blackmail retailers who depend on discretion to attract their customers. Read more

04/10/2021 By Dan Cash Briant Broadband • Broadband • CCTV • General Information • Home Security • Management • Tips and Tricks • WiFi 0 Comments

Looking For a Luxury Lifestyle? Try Living In A Smart Home!

Smart Home Technology offers a level of convenience and control which most home-owners haven’t seen for over a hundred years, when it was common for the affluent to have housemaids and servants living in the house. Instead of having people hovering around waiting for your commands, now we have technology such as Smart Speakers, Home Hubs and a slew of other devices which can all be controlled from a central station or an app on your phone or computer.

But at what cost? All that convenience which is afforded by connectivity comes at a price. If privacy is a big deal to you then the thought of having devices which have been shown to use recordings of consumers without their permission always listening is anathema. If you shop regularly online, or pay bills over the phone, as many more of us are doing all the time, then the thought that your data or conversations could be stored and shared, revealing your financials and personal information would put you off of investing in any kind of Smart device. Read more

23/09/2021 By Dan Cash Business Security • CCTV • Do It Yourself • General Information • Home Security • Tips and Tricks hacking • home security • passwords • smart home • smart home security 0 Comments

Common Cyber Security Threats, And How To Protect Yourself

Naturally devices which are constantly connected to the internet and sending information to one-another and to you wherever you are in the world are going to be vulnerable to cyber attack. That’s not a surprise to anyone. What is a surprise though is how easy it is to use basic security measures to prevent, and more surprisingly yet, how people still get it wrong!

It’s perfectly natural to want to feel secure and relaxed in your own home, that’s what it’s there for after all. And it’s nice to have the convenience of labour saving devices around you which you can control without getting out of your chair, but what if those gadgets which do so much work for you could be put to work against you without your even knowing? What if they spied on you, collected your financial and personal information, let burglars know when you’d be at home and when you’d be out, and even let them unlock the doors to let themselves in?

Well, that’s all perfectly possible, but only if you DON’T follow the basic steps it takes to secure your Smart Home devices against hackers, scanners, and all other kinds of cyber intruders. Read more

21/09/2021 By Dan Cash Business Security • CCTV • Do It Yourself • General Information • Home Security • Tips and Tricks access control • smart CCTV • smart doorbell 0 Comments

Security Problems with Cheap Smart Doorbells Set Alarms Ringing

Thinking of buying yourself a Smart Doorbell as a gift this Christmas? It’s a good idea, they’re rally handy devices to have, but beware of low quality products.

If you really want to treat yourself don’t scrimp and invest in the best quality goods you can afford. And that’s not just the advice coming from the marketing department! Surveys of good bought online from such retailers as eBay and Amazon discovered that many goods which are in the “affordable” end of the pool come with multiple security risks which could put your home and data in more danger than you ever would have had if you’d just stick to a good old fashioned Yale or mortis lock.

The devices which were reviewed weren’t just inferior products, they included goods which sent photos, usernames, passwords, GPS data and emails back to the manufacturer, all for no discernible reason. This is all data it’s necessary to input into the device for it to work properly, but you certainly don’t want it being shared unfiltered and unbeknownst to you with anyone.

Which? and NCC Group bought 11 video doorbells on the most popular sales platforms. Despite all looking very similar to one-another they were from a range of manufacturers, and all had prices which were remarkably competitive when compared to well known brands such as Amazon Ring or Nest on Google Home. Read more

Category: Home Security

Fibre broadband is being rolled out throughout the UK, a project which should see more than 85% of homes throughout the UK having access to Gigabit data before the end of 2025.

Who Needs Faster Broadband?

Give The Impression Someone’s Home