How CCTV Can Help Reduce Crime

Benefits of CCTV

Crime is still prevalent in a country as safe as Singapore, thus we must never give up on the fight to deter or prevent crimes. This can be done easily with the implementation of CCTV at housing estates, shops and offices. Here are the reasons why crime can easily be deterred because of a CCTV system:

A CCTV system can prevent a crime by deterring potential criminals with the physical presence of a camera. This can be done with presence of cameras and CCTV monitors to staff at cashiers and the front of house staff. This prevents crime committed by criminals who do it on impulse and greatly reduce the numbers of shoplifters and car theft as fear strikes them at the core and thus paralyzing them from committing the crime. Not only does it deter unplanned crime, but it also gives a sense of security and safety to your other customers and employees knowing that everything that happened at the location is recorded.

The next thing a CCTV system does is to filter out potential criminals. In the case of shoplifting, a well-trained staff may see the anxiety of a potential shoplifter and deter the potential criminal from committing the crime by approaching the potential criminal and discouraging him personally before he even commits the crime. This can also be applied to crimes committed in highly secluded areas like car-parks and the security personnel may accompany overtime staff at office building to their cars if he notices any suspicious person or activity at the car-park. Seeing that someone else is in the vicinity, crime involving rape, murder and robbery which happens when one is alone can thus be avoided.

Even if the crime occurs future perpetrators will avoid committing the crime at a place where it seems that all the criminals paid highly for their crimes. This could be done in conjunction with staff putting up reports and photographs depicting the criminals paying for their crime. Likewise, this is done to deter opportunist criminals and possibly reduce the crime in that area. The news could also leverage on this by releasing footages of a crime which happen which will not only lead to a faster arrest on the criminal, but also warn other like-minded people that their wrongdoings are caught on footage. The public thus becomes more educated in spotting crimes and they will also become informants for the relevant authorities as well.

When a CCTV system is set up with a validated security firm, these two will form a system that will break down the open opportunity of crime even more. With cameras around remote areas acting as watching eyes of areas not covered, a trained security guard may inform the guard on patrol of any suspicious activity in another area. As such, the CCTV plays the role of an informant to the security firm who will take the appropriate action to stop or prevent a crime from happening.

In order for a CCTV system to work to its maximum advantage, it is important to note 2 things; location and people. Location is extremely important to the placement of the cameras as well as the surveillance area. Trained personnel can react better to the situation on the ground if the surveillance area is close by to all the areas being monitored. That way, potential crimes can be prevented swiftly and also the criminals arrested swiftly when deterrence fails. People are extremely vital in preventing crime as more eyes on the ground means an earlier detection of crime. This could mean a potential crime is avoided all together which not only ensure the place is safe, but also a second chance to criminals who have plans for those locations to abort their plans and seek help if necessary.