If you’ve kept up with recent technology trends, you’ll have surely noticed a sharp increase in wifi-enabled devices. The advent of high-speed wifi has added tremendous convenience to peoples’ lives. No longer do you have to run a wire from your internet-enabled appliances to connect them to your network. People connect devices ranging from televisions to video game systems to cell phones to thermostats and everything in between to their wifi. Doing so allows them to access internet-dependent content, control devices remotely, and even surf the web easily and efficiently. In this post, we detail some of our most effective wifi-enabled security measures!
First, we’ll see how wifi-enabled alarm monitoring can add security to your burglar and fire alarms. Then, we’ll shift our focus to remote access control options, one of the newer forms of internet-based security. From there, we’ll look at wifi smart cameras. These cameras represent one of the fastest-growing areas of the security industry over the last decade! Finally, we’ll review some smart appliances that add both security and convenience to your every day life. Now, let’s dive in with a highlight on the benefits of wifi security monitoring.
Wifi-Enabled Alarm Monitoring
Having your alarm monitored represents one of the soundest security decisions that you can make. Monitoring your alarm involves connecting your security system to our central station. In turn, this connection creates a central station response to an alarm activation. If necessary, this can also lead to a police or fire department dispatch in the case of a true emergecy!
Traditionally, creating this monitoring connection involves using phone lines to connect your alarm to our central station. Unfortunately, phone-line based monitoring can create some issues. For starters, phone companies no longer maintain phone lines the way they used to. Furthermore, many burglars cut a property’s phone lines before attempting a break-in. This type of action would nullify your monitoring if you counted on your phone lines.
Now, we can use wifi-based security dialers to monitor your alarm. This means that interruptions in phone service no longer affect your alarm monitoring. Instead, our wifi-enabled dialers use your existing wireless network to create reliable, high-speed security monitoring. In addition to creating more security, this type of monitoring often proves cost efficient. After all, many customers pay for phone lines for the sole purpose of monitoring their burglar and/or fire alarms. Wifi monitoring eliminates this monthly expense altogether. Now, let’s look at another one of our favorite wifi-enabled security measures.
Remote Access Control Security
In last year’s post on Access Control Options, we spelled out the different ways that companies create access control for their business. This security measure involves using advanced lock equipment to control access to your property. Access control systems utilize electronic locking hardware to operate specific doors within a business. Rather than using a key at these doors, users approach a keypad or a reader and present either a code or a physical credential. We’ll get into the specifics regarding these options a little later. Users who present an approved credential will then be able to open the door after the reader interacts with the door’s electronics to unlock it. Business owners can assign each credential to open only certain doors at specific times, giving them tremendous control over who can open which doors, and when.
In the past, we’d run wiring from each and every access control door to a main controller. This obviously proves exceptionally difficult in some situations. Luckily, wifi-enabled controllers and door equipment now allow the pieces of an access control system to communicate with each other wirelessly. Additionally, many of these wifi-based systems also allow for remote control over access doors. This means that you can control your access doors while offsite! Obviously, this represents one of the most effective and convenient of our wifi-enabled security measures. Now, let’s take a close look at adding smart cameras to your suite of security products.
Wifi-Based Smart Cameras
Cameras have long represented one of the most effective types of security equipment available. However, they could also prove cost-prohibitive to many customers. Traditional camera systems require wiring each and every camera to a central location. At this location, we generally install a power supply and recorder. Additionally, a network connection often requires a hardwired connection between the recorder and the network as well. Since customers generally wish to view their cameras remotely, we provide this connection whenever possible. However, the work involved in wiring cameras to one location for power and then running a wire from the recorder to the property’s main internet device is often difficult. This is where wifi-enabled cameras come in especially handy.
Wifi cameras connect to a home’s network wirelessly, just like any wireless home network appliance. This allows us to install cameras that customers can view remotely without creating a hardwired network connection. We simply plug these cameras into a power source and install them around the property. From there, wifi connectivity allows them to store motion-based clips in the cloud. Furthermore, it also lets you look in on your cameras’ live view at any time. This easy-to-install, powerful security measure has grown tremendously in popularity recently! Next up, let’s shift our focus to some wifi-based smart appliances that can increase your overall security.
Smart Appliances
Over the past several years, smart security solutions have risen sharply in popularity. The smart security devices described in this section take advantage of a wifi connection, allowing you to use smartphone apps to control them and receive important alerts as well. For example, smart lights allow you to turn your lights on and off and even dim them remotely. This can add security by making your home look occupied in your absence, while also allowing you to always return to a well-lit home.
Smart locks can also let you track access to your home, and even control your locks, remotely as well. Moreover, they also let you add and delete codes from anywhere at anytime. For example, if you need a contractor to stop by while you are away, you can pick up your phone and add a temporary code to grant access. A few hours later, simply pick up your phone and delete the code!
Some smart appliances can greatly help with energy costs as well. For instance, smart thermostats give you control and insights over your property’s environment at all times. Moreover, they also allow you to create temperature schedules to keep the temperature nice and low in your absense while also keeping things comfortable from the moment you get home. Finally, these appliances even send you alerts if your temperature falls outside of your chosen parameters! This means that you will receive instant alerts to extreme hot or cold temperatures at your home or business. As you can see, smart home appliances add quite a bit of security while also giving you the type of user experience you’d expect from your wifi-powered appliances!
Putting it All Together
We hope that this post helps you see how wifi-enabled security measures can add security to your property. Of course, we also encourage you to contact us with any questions this post may raise for you. We will happily answer any and all of your security-related inquiries. Moreover, we also invite you to take advantage of our free site survey program. We’ve long offered complimentary security audits and equipment quotes to both new and existing customers alike. While on site, we can address any and all of your existing security concerns. Furthermore, we can make our own suggestions based on observations made during our visit.
Perhaps you have a full security plan in place, but wish to add a few of the measures we discuss in this post. Or, maybe you have yet to create a complete security plan, and want to get it done right the first time. Either way, we are here to help! In our 35-plus years of business, we’ve helped well over a thousand customers design complete security plans that provide the security and user experience they desire. Together, we can help you fully secure your property, keeping you as safe and secure as possible!