Recently, we had a post on our Advice and Tech Support Forum in which we were asked how an average customer, new to CCTV, can tell if a company he or she is dealing with is reputable or not. Indeed, this can be the most challenging hurdle for the beginner to surmount; a lack of familiarity with the technology can be helped by an experienced salesperson, but without any experience to go on, it can be extraordinarily difficult to gauge a salesperson’s skill, but more importantly, it becomes equally difficult to establish trust.

Everyone knows that surveillance cameras were primarily designed with the intent of providing security for a building, however outside that realm there can be advantages to having inexpensive, high resolution cameras monitoring areas where products are made or tested. Not only can this enhance the level of quality control a company exerts over its product line, it also can provide valuable reference footage down the road when trying to improve products or processes. Here, more than anywhere else, surveillance equipment is an investment.

Warehouses are unique in the scope of closed-circuit television systems for the same reason it so crucial t hat they be equipped with cameras: their inventory. Though homes and businesses do have assets that can be targeted by thieves, they both pale in comparison to a large warehouse with literally millions of dollars worth of inventory moving in and out on a daily basis, every bit of which a tempting target for an employee who needs an extra buck.

Flying back from San Francisco the day after Christmas, I was struck during a brief layover in Dallas by the January 2008 issue of Popular Mechanics. Their cover story, "New High Tech Cameras are Watching You, " by James Vlahos, compares large-scale surveillance systems to the Panopticon, a prision designed in the 1700s that would allow prisoners to be seen, at all times, whether they realized it or not. During my short redeye I intently read the article, and I feel that Vlahos echoes the (admittedly valid) concerns of many privacy advocates: with cameras everywhere, how can we ever truly have privacy?

Big or small, the benefits that can be had from having surveillance cameras up around a school, college or university can be huge. Not only do they provide added security (and, by extension, peace of mind) for administrators and students alike during times when classes are in (for instance, helping watch for students sneaking out of class or providing valuable evidence should a fight break out), they can also watch for vandalism and theft when school isn’t in session. Perhaps most grimly, though, the staggering instance of violence on school campuses  both in the United States and abroad has made surveillance cameras a necessity for many schools.