How Long Do Businesses Usually Keep CCTV Footage?

Security Camera Recordings

As digital cameras have become smaller and less expensive, they’ve become much more commonplace. While surveillance video systems used to be expensive and unwieldy, they can now be operated at little cost and with little technical know-how. You have no doubt noticed that video monitoring is essentially everywhere, throughout public spaces and on private property. Because of privacy concerns, the law dictates that the public must be made aware of the presence of security cameras, and that security camera recordings must be destroyed after a certain amount of time. How long do businesses keep CCTV footage? Let’s take a closer look.

Understanding Closed Circuit Television

Security cameras used to record video onto tapes or DVDs. Today, most surveillance camera footage is digital, and it can be stored in a variety of ways. SD cards, similar to the ones found in digital cameras can be used, or the camera can be connected to hard drives that store the footage. Footage can also be recorded to DVRs, or it can be stored in the cloud, owned and managed by a hosting company. The method of storage has an impact on how long the footage is stored: small storage formats like SD cards must be overwritten frequently because they fill up quickly.

Why Keep Security Footage?

In most stores, restaurants, and other businesses, footage from security cameras is not being continuously monitored. Because no one is watching the footage live, it is often kept until it can be reviewed. Under Canadian law, there must be a good reason for the footage to be collected in the first place. In other words, business owners cannot set up security cameras just to spy on their employees. Because the cameras are used to capture footage of incidents that occur, many property owners or managers only view the footage after something has happened. Depending on what was captured on tape, there may be a reason to keep footage for longer than it would normally be kept.

How Long Do Businesses Store Security Camera Footage?

Most businesses keep video footage for 30 to 90 days. After that, it is sometimes backed up to the cloud before being discarded. Businesses maintain security camera footage longer if they’re investigating incidents or need it for compliance with regulations. Certain businesses, like banks, may need to store their footage for 6 months or more for purposes of security.

Trust Accurate Security for Safe and Secure Locks

Since 1968, Accurate Security has served homes and businesses in the Lower Mainland, and we’re the Greater Vancouver area’s premier choice for safety and security. One of the few family businesses left in the industry, Accurate Security was founded by Mark Oljaca and is now led by his son, Tony Oljaca. From our beginnings as a single locksmith store, we have expanded to seven different locations, offering a wide range of product and services beyond and including locksmithing. Our nearly 70 employees have vast knowledge and expertise, and we are committed to the safety and security of our customers. Providing a complete range of safety and security systems, various products, and state of the art services, we provide prompt and professional services that ensure you never have to feel unsafe in your home or workplace again. For a free security screening or to learn more about all we have to offer, get in touch with our seasoned team by calling 604.777.3888 or contacting us through our website.