Almost every electronic gadget we purchase these days is connected to the Internet. While the Internet can be a useful resource for information and entertainment, it is also an easy gateway for hackers to enter your home or business network. Purchasing a security camera system that you can watch remotely away from home is certainly useful and comforting to satisfy your concerns regarding physical security. However, after the system installation is complete and you've been acquainted to using the system, we at CCTV Camera World suggest taking some simple steps to ensure that your newly purchased security system is secure.
There are a few layers of protection you can implement to ensure that bad actors can not access something they aren’t supposed to. The last thing you want after installing your system is to have it compromised.
Tighten password security for your security system
At the heart of every professional security system or NVR system is a video recorder which gets connected to the Internet so you can watch security cameras from a smartphone. Depending on the type of system you have, you may have a DVR or NVR. Regardless of which type you have, you would want to ensure that the admin password is set to be a complex password and known only by users you trust. Don't forget to keep the password in a safe place, as password resets can be cumbersome and even costly on some recorders that require a factory reset.
In the video below, we show how to modify the password for the Admin user, or any other user on one of our DVR or NVR recorders. The video guide uses the display output to a HDMI monitor from the recorder. You would carry out these steps by being in front of the recorder. If you would like to administer these privileges over the web interface of the recorders, please continue reading below.
Our professional security systems allow administration over the web interface of the recorder as well. Below we show the steps you would need to take to create user accounts using Internet Explorer.
How to modify the password for the Admin User
- Using IE11 navigate to the IP address of your NVR or DVR and log in as the "admin" user. The default password is written on a label on the top of the recorder.
- Select the “Setup” tab at the top of the screen.
- Now select "System" > “Account” from the left side menu
- Select "Modify" on the admin account then check the "Modify Password" box.
- Change your admin password to a complex password without any spaces. Don't forget to keep the password in a safe place!
Create and Assign User Roles on your Security Camera System
Another important security tip we recommend is to create secondary user accounts other than the main Admin user for daily use for yourself. If you have other users who you would like to allow access, create unique and separate accounts for those users.
In the video below, we use one of our Network video recorders to demonstrate how you can set up different user accounts with unique permission privileges. The original "Admin" username would remain with Admin level privileges. For new users you create, we recommend assigning permission from the "User" group which has limited privileges, which reduces the potential for disruption from a hack.
The video guide uses the display output to a HDMI monitor from the recorder. You would carry out these steps by being in front of the recorder. If you would like to administer these privileges over the web interface of the recorders, please continue reading below.
Our professional camera systems allow easy administration over the web interface of the recorder as well. In the steps mentioned below, we show how to create user accounts using Internet Explorer.
After continuing steps in the section above that show how to access the web interface, create a new user by selecting the "Add user" button at the bottom. These users will be generic rights templates for the users that will have access to monitor, playback, record etc on the recorder.
You can create more than one user if you have roles that need to be filled separately. (ie: Someone who monitors live feeds vs. someone who views old footage).
- Create a username
- Select Reusable (very important)
- Create a complex password without any spaces
- Select "User" from the group drop-down box
- Adjust System Manager, Playback, and Monitor privileges as needed
Summary
By following the steps above you would introduce proper user and password management that is the easiest and most effective way of safeguarding your security camera system from getting hacked. For further reading we suggest reading our article about Tips on how to protect your Security Cameras from hackers.
