Whether you’re a homeowner or a business owner, vandalism is a constant threat. Vandalism can be anything from graffiti to destroying windows or any other form of intentional property damage. The first line of defense for preventing vandalism is to improve the chance for a crime to have consequences. This makes security cameras one of the best tools for fighting property damage both residentially and commercially!
How Do Security Cameras Prevent Vandalism & Crime?
Deterrence
Security cameras, like any part of a security system, function to discourage would-be perpetrators from committing their crime on your property. Visible security cameras are easily recognized, and statistics show criminals tend to avoid properties protected with surveillance equipment.
A large percentage of vandalism is committed by teens or those in their early 20s, and in many cases isn’t targeted. In these instances, security cameras create an environment where vandalism, or any crimes, are likely to be noticed immediately and the perpetrators identified.
Security cameras also give you the benefit of being able to monitor your property directly. While you may know what goes on during the day, it can be challenging to know what happens around your home or business in the evening hours. Reviewing security camera footage can provide you with important information! Often, you can catch someone casing your property or planning a crime before it happens!
Identification & Capture
When vandalism happens on your property, security cameras are also one of the best tools to help capture those responsible. This can help you in several ways:
Capture – More information for law enforcement leads to higher chances of capture. This can avoid repeat offenses on your property or elsewhere.
Protected Area – If vandalism is common in your area, knowing offenders were captured from your security system can decrease the likelihood of others vandalizing your property.
Improved Community – Vandalism hurts the community, so identifying vandals will help promote a better community image by reducing property damage.
The Best Ways to Use Cameras for Preventing Vandalism
Place Cameras Out of Reach
The most important step in using cameras for preventing vandalism is to avoid the cameras being a target for vandalization. If cameras are placed within easy reach, it won’t take much effort for someone to consider breaking them as an act of vandalism, or breaking them and then committing additional property damage.
Our security evaluation includes planning for places to install outdoor security cameras for both protection and maximum visibility. Places like high walls, near the roof or on available poles are all good options to keep your cameras out of reach while giving them a wide range of area to cover.
Don’t Hide Your Cameras
It may make sense on the surface for property owners to consider hiding their cameras. After all, you don’t want potential vandals to know where your cameras are watching, right? Unfortunately, hiding cameras can undermine their two most important benefits:
Deterrence – An unseen camera won’t deter criminal activity. While it will still be useful for keeping an eye on your property and identifying criminals after the fact, it’s much better to prevent the crime in the first place!
Viewing Angle – It’s much more challenging to install a camera in a hidden location while retaining a wide viewing angle. To get the most out of your cameras, you’ll want them to see as much as possible!
Don’t worry about perpetrators noting your camera locations to find “blind spots.” A professional security installation from experts like ours avoid blind spots as much as possible. It’s better to have visible cameras covering every angle of your property than hidden ones which may leave parts of your property unmonitored.
Combine Cameras with Better Lighting
When looking for ways to prevent vandalism, improving your property’s lighting is a surprisingly effective tactic! On its own, it denies would-be vandals places to hide before or during any attempt at damaging your property. Lighting alone can be a massive deterrent!
However, lighting and security cameras make a great team. While modern security cameras are excellent at keeping an eye on property even in the dark, a brightly lit area can enhance the details collected in a surveillance video after the fact. This provides you or law enforcement with higher quality evidence to reference when looking at identifying criminals or even just reviewing your general security risks.
Businesses in particular benefit greatly from investing in their lighting. Parking lots and the outside of your building are common places for lighting to miss. After all, most businesses are primarily concerned with their business property itself. But keeping people safe comes with the additional benefits of increasing the chances they’ll visit your business when it’s dark out. During the winter, improved lighting can really impact your bottom line!
Monitored Cameras Are the Best Option
Security systems are only as effective as the monitoring team behind them. An unmonitored camera, alarm or other security device stops being useful the moment nobody is around to react to it. But a monitored security camera or system is protected by professionals working around the clock to keep an eye on your property!
We consider Video Monitoring to be a critical part of our business security camera service. In addition to the security benefits of a camera and alarm system, Habitec Security’s Central Station receives a notification whenever your system is triggered. Our dispatchers review the footage to check for threats or to confirm if it was a false alarm. If the alarm was set off by a legitimate issue, we contact law enforcement for dispatch immediately!
Video monitoring not only helps law enforcement respond appropriately; it cuts down on needless wasted resources from false alarms. Because of this, it’s easier for local law enforcement officers to focus their efforts on real crime – cutting back on potential delays in response time!
Contact Us Today to Secure Your Home or Business!
Continue to keep your home or business safe! Our security experts can perform a security evaluation and provide custom-designed, integrated security solutions backed by award-winning, 24-hour local monitoring. Contact us today!
Connect with Habitec Security on social media.
4.8 
