Last week I wrote about a major burglary at a warehouse that was solved by video footage of a suspect and his vehicle from a fast food drive thru camera.  Cameras are a great method of prevention and crime solving for homeowners as well as various types and sizes of businesses.  The sophistication and capabilities of security cameras are advancing rapidly.  Entire reality television series are based on events and moments captured on video cameras and cell phones.

Businesses mount cameras in the parking lot and inside the premises mainly to deter and detect crime.  Many even have blinking lights attached to them to draw attention to them.  Monitors are also present to show public views of the camera.

Cameras mounted in plain view are utilized to deter crime.  So, with that in mind, some businesses have used this crime prevention concept and mounted “dummy” cameras.  They look like real cameras, but are just shells, cost very little, and do offer effective external crime prevention.   But, and this is a big but – before you install “dummy” cameras on your property, there are some very important issues to consider. 

If you plan to deter internal theft with “dummy” cameras, it is a bad idea.  It will not fool your employees.  Another issue with “dummy” cameras relates to “implied security and safety”.   When a customer or passerby sees the camera, they have a reasonable expectation that the area is secure and that someone is watching the camera,  creating a false sense of security.  If they rely on that assumption and they get assaulted, robbed, or worse, the company may be susceptible to being liable.  This same scenario also applies to broken cameras, and/or those not being recorded.  Signs that state the areas is being monitored by video surveillance when no such monitoring exists may also be liable if criminal incidents occur.

Real camera systems not only deter crime, the video recordings can provide indisputable evidence of any number of illegal activities including theft, shoplifting, burglary, robbery, assault, even homicide.  They also can provide protections from injury claims and assist with effective operations in attendance tracking, alarm verification, access control, and auditing, just to name a few.  When used properly, they can be a very valuable asset to crime prevention, profit management, life safety, and provide a substantial return on their investment. 

The “dummy” camera can be a wise investment when used in certain context, but most security practitioners do not recommend them.   The risk of liability is far too great versus the return on investment, inherent protections, and investigative benefits of security cameras with a minimum of digital recording capabilities.  Why fake it when correctly applied systems can offer so much more?