Offsite Monitoring:

Offsite monitoring is a term which can be quite loosely interpreted. It can take on a few forms i.e.:

•  A control room located off site which will dial into a CCTV system if an alarm or event is triggered to verify whether the alarm is because there is an intruder or eliminate potential false alarms. This could, in turn, reduce your overall monthly spend as armed reaction contractors who would not be responding to false alarms.

There is usually a monthly fee attached to this and is based on the number of cameras and expected alarms which would need to be “remotely investigated”.

•  Dial in yourself: Most modern-day recorders will provide (usually at no charge) software for dialing in remotely to your CCTV system. This gives you great access to view current and recorded footage from anywhere in the world (as long as you have an internet connection). Most recorders will also come with an input/output board and if it does, you can use your phone, laptop or whatever you're dialing in with to switch on / off lights or other devices or receive alerts if you want it programmed as such.

There is no monthly costs associated to this format other than your bandwidth consumption.