Home security

[JohnnyJazz]

Hi I'm new here, in this forum and in Thailand. We have just move in in our new house in Bangkok and my wife is concerned about security. We want to install a video surveillance system that we can access from our phone. Does anybody has experience about this kind of system ? I'm just looking for something simple like a couple of cameras and maybe a door lock that can be operated remotely.

Many thanks in advance

Johnny

[dharmabm]

i built my own system, currently using 2 foscam FI8918W wireless IP cams (about 3k baht each) and zoneminder (free) on a linux server (actually a VM, also free) and use tinyCam monitor pro on my android. tinyCam has a free version as well, but it was worth paying 300 baht for. i also bought IPCam viewer pro (which also has a free version) but haven't tried it in awhile as tinyCam does everything i need.

zoneminder is pretty cool, it can record on motion detection, send email alerts and upload to cloud services and also has home automation capability. i even replaced the crapware chinese CCTV monitor i inherited at my workplace with it, monitoring 16 traditional cctv cameras.

and oh, welcome to bangkok!

[JohnnyJazz]

i built my own system, currently using 2 foscam FI8918W wireless IP cams (about 3k baht each) and zoneminder (free) on a linux server (actually a VM, also free) and use tinyCam monitor pro on my android. tinyCam has a free version as well, but it was worth paying 300 baht for. i also bought IPCam viewer pro (which also has a free version) but haven't tried it in awhile as tinyCam does everything i need.

zoneminder is pretty cool, it can record on motion detection, send email alerts and upload to cloud services and also has home automation capability. i even replaced the crapware chinese CCTV monitor i inherited at my workplace with it, monitoring 16 traditional cctv cameras.

and oh, welcome to bangkok!

Thanks for the very quick reply.

Is it something simple to set up ? I already installed a small computer network in my home but I'm far from a computer wizard and not really familiar (yet) with linux.

On the positive side, studying this new system may give me an excuse for escaping the now ritual Sunday afternoon in shopping malls. Talking about shopping, is there any shop you can recommend where I can find quality equipment at reasonable price ?

[dharmabm]

pretty simple if you can follow some basic directions i installed a headless VM of ubuntu 14.04 server adding only ssh server during setup, then installed the zoneminder package from the repo. you can easily test this in virtualbox on any machine (even winbloze). most of the zoneminder configuration is done through the web interface (from any other computer in your network), although you might have to tinker with some config files to get the home automation stuff to work, never tried that myself. i'd be interested to know if and where you can get an x10 door lock around here.

i get my cameras from http://www.warf.com/ , they don't really have a shop but do have an office in bangna if you prefer to pick up in person, as far as i know they are the only foscam dealer around but i could be wrong about that. They are very helpful and speak english, tell Sandy that Kevin sent you, maybe I can get a discount on my next order! They also have very fast delivery if you order online.

[gerry123]

i have seen some pretty good systems on LAZADA

[Rorri]

Just a reminder, if you go the PC way, make sure you leave the PC/router turned on, and have a UPS for when the power fails, the other option of course is a proper alarm system, set up to text you if an alarm is triggered, No need to monitor any thing.

[recycler]

I use 4 D-Link wireless IP cams. They come with a D-Link remote access and I also hooked them to a surveillance system on our Synology home server. Basically all that moves is recorded.

Problem only is that this is monitoring and not security, it will not prevent burglary or other incidents, therefore you will need active and passive security. Bars on windows, sirens, guards, etc.

[soisanuk]

Just a reminder, if you go the PC way, make sure you leave the PC/router turned on, and have a UPS for when the power fails, the other option of course is a proper alarm system, set up to text you if an alarm is triggered, No need to monitor any thing.

Personally, I prefer having the alarm vs a cctv system -- the cctv system doesn't scare off a burglar. I have a wireless alarm system - if the alarm goes off, it doesn't take but a few minutes before Village security is on the scene - it has an outside strobe light making it easy to identify the house that the alarm is from. So, the expectation is that whoever tries to break in will be taking off in a hurray when it goes off. The system also telephones my mobile (I have one specific ringtone for the alarm) and it also sends a text message identifying the specific sensor location that activated the alarm. It has a built in battery, but I also have a UPS back up to extend the time in case of long power outage.

[Chazchallenger]

If your stuck in a shopping mall in Bangkok when burgalries happen, cameras won't stop them, and you wouldn't want to get back in time if people were robbing the property as most thiefs here are also armed. Having been robbed twice, I think the money is better spent on making your home like Fort Knox to get into in the first place, whilst I accept it's a deterrent even with video evidence the police tend not to act.( unless they get there reward money). My last robbery took place and about a week later the file had still not been reported at the police station.

[Greg Nixon]

Thais are generally quite honest. My wife does not know anyone who has had a car or motorbike stolen. I have seen the same with keys in. No problem. I have seen all sorts of valuables left on the street without consequence. Actually surprised at the level of honesty in a poor country.

One of the precepts of Buddhism is; " Take nothing that is not freely given. "

[ggt]

Home invasion is unfortunately a way of life in Thailand...your wife is wise to ask for beefed-up security...ask your neighbors about the crime rate in your neighborhood...and what they do to feel safe...good luck...

[grandpa-m]

Put security bars on all your windows and steel screen doors for the doors and make your house a fort when you turn in for the night and when you leave . always keep the steel screen doors locked even when we are at home especially the back one . better safe than sorry , and cameras do nothing don;t waste your money anyway they will wear a mask , and you don't want to catch them , It's like catching a skunk if you get my drift , and they are sooo tense they will hurt you bad if not kill you JUST MAKE A FORT . and Sleep tight and don't let the bedbugs bite lol

[Doc46]

Why all the security systems,,Like living in a Jail.The crooks don't care about them,they rob you blind anyway.

So you report a robbery get the video's to the cops,,,,,What then???? A GREAT BIG NOTHING.

[gandalf12]

Thais are generally quite honest. My wife does not know anyone who has had a car or motorbike stolen. I have seen the same with keys in. No problem. I have seen all sorts of valuables left on the street without consequence. Actually surprised at the level of honesty in a poor country.

One of the precepts of Buddhism is; " Take nothing that is not freely given. "

I guess it depends where you live. Where I live we have not had anything taken but we do have CCTV in the soi and there is 24 hour security that monitors the area. Vehicles without the proper pass have to leave their ID card and they get a slip of paper which has to be signed by the person they are visiting before they are allowed to leave

[akentryan]

My neighbor installed several cameras around his house. Thieves stole all the cameras and cables. Periodically, thieves come through and steal everyone's water meters. My wife says there is a metal strip inside that is worth 30 baht. Other than losing a water meter we haven't had any problems. Maybe the 5 meter high chain link fence across the back of the property helps?

[Ashto]

Thanks for the detailed info from dharmabm re his CCTV system and from soisanuk re the merits of CCTV v alarms. Really helpful for my own thinking re current renovations of my own home and an investment property I have in NZ.

Re the various perceptions of risk by responders it looks as though risk varies from area to area in Thailand much as it does in NZ although guns are v rare in burglary there.

[louse1953]

Just a reminder, if you go the PC way, make sure you leave the PC/router turned on, and have a UPS for when the power fails, the other option of course is a proper alarm system, set up to text you if an alarm is triggered, No need to monitor any thing.

Cameras dont stop crime and maybe not even help in catching perps.Grills on windows and secure door and alarm is the way to go.Just have escape route incase of fire.

[dharmabm]

Just a reminder, if you go the PC way, make sure you leave the PC/router turned on, and have a UPS for when the power fails, the other option of course is a proper alarm system, set up to text you if an alarm is triggered, No need to monitor any thing.

Cameras dont stop crime and maybe not even help in catching perps.Grills on windows and secure door and alarm is the way to go.Just have escape route incase of fire.

my cameras aren't so much for security but to keep an eye on my son and make sure our nanny/housekeeper isn't doing the bump and grind with her boyfriend while we are at work (which i did catch a few years ago)

[JohnnyJazz]

There are many reason why one wants to install a video surveillance system. How to best protect your home is big debate. But it is not the subject of this thread. If you want to discuss these points, I opened a thread in general forum and I invite you to move there http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/721580-home-security/

I would appreciate it if we could keep this thread focussed on the technical issues related to the installation of video surveillance system that can later be part of a larger home automation project.

[JesseFrank]

At the far left on the groundfloor of Phantip plaza is a guy who sells wireless/wired IP cameras at 2200 Baht. They are not the top of the range, but I have 9 of them installed for over 3 years now and no problem. The are day/night and have movement detection and come with free DDNS server account

Enter Maygion in google for the firmware updates and some more information, they are some kind of open source.

http://www.tokopedia.com/dlast/ip-camera-maygion-outdoor-03-mega-pixel-wireless-nightday-ir

For surveillance software, have a look at BlueIris. It is simply the top. It will take video or snapshots and send them to your email or wherever you want. It has a lot of functions.It is available for windows, Android and Iphone

http://www.blueirissoftware.com/

[JohnnyJazz]

Just a reminder, if you go the PC way, make sure you leave the PC/router turned on, and have a UPS for when the power fails, the other option of course is a proper alarm system, set up to text you if an alarm is triggered, No need to monitor any thing.

Personally, I prefer having the alarm vs a cctv system -- the cctv system doesn't scare off a burglar. I have a wireless alarm system - if the alarm goes off, it doesn't take but a few minutes before Village security is on the scene - it has an outside strobe light making it easy to identify the house that the alarm is from. So, the expectation is that whoever tries to break in will be taking off in a hurray when it goes off. The system also telephones my mobile (I have one specific ringtone for the alarm) and it also sends a text message identifying the specific sensor location that activated the alarm. It has a built in battery, but I also have a UPS back up to extend the time in case of long power outage.

It doesn't have to be alarm vs cameras, it can be both. As an other poster, we live in a quite secured area and outsiders have to provide identification before entering our village. Burglars are usually causal workers who work in a nearby house and sneak in when people are at work. If we can have a system that can inform us of an intruder, we can call the security who will stop him before he has the chance to leave the village.

This system should also be the first step of a future home automation system that's why I'm looking for an open system rather than a proprietary alarm system.

[dharmabm]

At the far left on the groundfloor of Phantip plaza is a guy who sells wireless/wired IP cameras at 2200 Baht. They are not the top of the range, but I have 9 of them installed for over 3 years now and no problem. The are day/night and have movement detection and come with free DDNS server account

Enter Maygion in google for the firmware updates and some more information, they are some kind of open source.

http://www.tokopedia.com/dlast/ip-camera-maygion-outdoor-03-mega-pixel-wireless-nightday-ir

For surveillance software, have a look at BlueIris. It is simply the top. It will take video or snapshots and send them to your email or wherever you want. It has a lot of functions.It is available for windows, Android and Iphone

http://www.blueirissoftware.com/

that one on the right looks like a clone of the foscam i use - a great camera for the price, but i would probably advise spending the extra 100 baht for the genuine one, if for nothing less than the frequent firmware updates and support.

[TommyUK1960]

What about home insurance in Thailand, Is it any good? You can't stop them robbing you but if the insurance can cover then just make sure you have insurance.

[JesseFrank]

At the far left on the groundfloor of Phantip plaza is a guy who sells wireless/wired IP cameras at 2200 Baht. They are not the top of the range, but I have 9 of them installed for over 3 years now and no problem. The are day/night and have movement detection and come with free DDNS server account

Enter Maygion in google for the firmware updates and some more information, they are some kind of open source.

http://www.tokopedia.com/dlast/ip-camera-maygion-outdoor-03-mega-pixel-wireless-nightday-ir

For surveillance software, have a look at BlueIris. It is simply the top. It will take video or snapshots and send them to your email or wherever you want. It has a lot of functions.It is available for windows, Android and Iphone

http://www.blueirissoftware.com/

that one on the right looks like a clone of the foscam i use - a great camera for the price, but i would probably advise spending the extra 100 baht for the genuine one, if for nothing less than the frequent firmware updates and support.

I think it are indeed clones of the foscam, but you just said you paid 3000 Baht, that's not 100 extra but 800. The price of 2200 I mentioned is also for the outdoor type, the one on the left.

No idea what the indoor version cost.

By the way, you bought them in Thailand or online, always important in case of a warranty.

[dharmabm]

I think it are indeed clones of the foscam, but you just said you paid 3000 Baht, that's not 100 extra but 800. The price of 2200 I mentioned is also for the outdoor type, the one on the left.

No idea what the indoor version cost.

By the way, you bought them in Thailand or online, always important in case of a warranty.

that was a typo, i meant to write 1000 - but if you saw that i paid 3000 you also saw that i bought them locally from warf.com, who not only honor warranties but go far beyond - they gave me a free power supply when my 3 year old camera's got fried in a power surge. i do recall reading on a hacker forum though that the clones are actually unbranded foscams, so there is a chance that you could use foscam firmware on them but that is a chance i would not want to take. unless you are a teacher, if you are a foreigner living here then 1000 baht is insignificant to pay extra for a quality product, no?

[connda]

I use 4 D-Link wireless IP cams. They come with a D-Link remote access and I also hooked them to a surveillance system on our Synology home server. Basically all that moves is recorded.

Problem only is that this is monitoring and not security, it will not prevent burglary or other incidents, therefore you will need active and passive security. Bars on windows, sirens, guards, etc.

I've always wanted to ask this question:

What do you do if the break in and steal your server, monitoring equipment, and/or recorder?

[dharmabm]

I use 4 D-Link wireless IP cams. They come with a D-Link remote access and I also hooked them to a surveillance system on our Synology home server. Basically all that moves is recorded.

Problem only is that this is monitoring and not security, it will not prevent burglary or other incidents, therefore you will need active and passive security. Bars on windows, sirens, guards, etc.

I've always wanted to ask this question:

What do you do if the break in and steal your server, monitoring equipment, and/or recorder?

i don't worry about breakins as i live in a relatively secure condo (if anyone broke in while i am away it would either be the maid, yams or their friends!), but zoneminder uploads all motion detection videos to an ftp server or other cloud storage, and is very easy to setup, so you would still have the evidence.

[JesseFrank]

I use 4 D-Link wireless IP cams. They come with a D-Link remote access and I also hooked them to a surveillance system on our Synology home server. Basically all that moves is recorded.

Problem only is that this is monitoring and not security, it will not prevent burglary or other incidents, therefore you will need active and passive security. Bars on windows, sirens, guards, etc.

I've always wanted to ask this question:

What do you do if the break in and steal your server, monitoring equipment, and/or recorder?

If you have the right software, Blueiris for example, it will send snapshots to you email account as soon as it detects any movement. You can enter in the settings how many and the timespan between each snapshot.

So the pictures are in your email already when they reach your server.

[JesseFrank]

Just a reminder, if you go the PC way, make sure you leave the PC/router turned on, and have a UPS for when the power fails, the other option of course is a proper alarm system, set up to text you if an alarm is triggered, No need to monitor any thing.

Cameras dont stop crime and maybe not even help in catching perps.Grills on windows and secure door and alarm is the way to go.Just have escape route incase of fire.

Cameras outside a house work very effective, but you have to make sure they are visible. A burglar who sees some eyes watching him will in most cases choose an easier target.

[JohnnyJazz]

Are the systems mentioned above easily hacked ? What are the chance that an outsider gains access to your camera, monitors what's going on in you house, checking when the house is empty and blocking the connection to your phone or internet when he is inside ?

For reference :

Researcher Reveals Flaws In Video Surveillance That Let Hackers Spy On You : Bharat Jogi, a security researcher with Qualys, presented a session at the BSides Las Vegassecurity conference entitled “You Are Being Watched!” In it, he explored how and why these systems are insecure, and demonstrated the ability to hack into certain models of D-Link NVRs.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/tonybradley/2013/08/01/researcher-reveals-flaws-in-video-surveillance-that-let-hackers-spy-on-you/