Is it possible to stay "invisible" i.e. freeze CCTV image?

[ThomasSmith 0]

Hello,

 

The issue I came here last years is still not resolved (someone still visiting our house for fun, despite of the complex security). We really devoted (and wasted) so much energy on this issue, so I'd like to ask only a single question here. (Please, don't try to help generally; or if you wish, I can dig up the old thread we posted here with my wife long ago, I have the whole issue described there.)

 

So, facts are: we are 100% sure that someone enters our house approx. once per month (when we are away for night). We guess who he is (a former friend with military past who couldn't accept we ceased contact with him after he stole from us). He wants to harass us. We have modern cameras and alarm system, yet he is "invisible" on the recordings -- he leaves signs inside the house, but the outdoor recordings don't show anything.

 

A policeman told us it's possible to "freeze" CCTV image by manipulating the voltage in the electric network. Is this possible? As I said, there are no black parts or missing timestamps in the recordings (only the hourly files are broken sometimes to two pieces, but timestamp continues properly in the second file). Is it possible that he (or his assistant) freezes the image for a few seconds while he reaches the next hideout (e.g. a bush in our garden), and thus slowly reaches the front door? (which he lockpicks -- we found lockpicking traces). Is it possible to "freeze" CCTV via manipulating the voltage in electrical network?

 

Thanks a lot,

 

P.S.: if you think this is some scam (like last time someone asked), then I can just say that I don't wish the same nightmare for you to be experienced.

[tomcctv 190]

Hi. manipulating some basic DVRs is not a problem. but he would need to have access to it when in house or have remote access to it via mobile software to stop and start recording.

 

either way he would need to know your system and if he has been in your home then he will.

 

first thing I would do is swap your dvr.

 

 

sounds like your system does not have watermark or electronic signature.

 

 

new DVR with a NEW DDNS service is your first place to start.

 

also like in your other post I would install a GJD sensor inside by your front door where he enters and have that switch on your home light at front door area.

 

with it all being new equipment he will not get passed it (as he does not know)

 

also NEXT dvr look for watermark or electronic signature

[dvarapala 0]

A policeman told us it's possible to "freeze" CCTV image by manipulating the voltage in the electric network. Is this possible? Is it possible to "freeze" CCTV via manipulating the voltage in electrical network?

 

Wow, so not only can you feed camera images over the power lines, but you can manipulate them, too?!?!?! Astounding!!!

 

Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.

 

I agree with the new DVR suggestion, but you might try leaving the existing one intact as a decoy. Maybe hide a new camera pointed right at the old DVR, or the place where he leaves his little signs, or the door with the picked lock. You might also have a friend with a shotgun hide inside your house once a month when you go out; maybe he will catch your prowler in the act.

[rrruuunnn 0]

He might be disrupting the electricity to the DVR by tampering with an outside breaker box. I'd install a backup battery with a built in voltage regulator. And don't use infrared illuminator cameras. Use intensifier instead. The camera will look like it is off but still recording.

[rrruuunnn 0]

If he turns the power off and on from the outside breaker. The dvr will take 20 seconds to reboot. He can reboot again before he leaves. You would not notice anything unless you look really hard for a 20 second skip of time. There would be no black spots just a jump in the time. Which could explain why your file is broken.

[ThomasSmith 0]

[see the screenshot]

 

The issue is still not solved, but after an RFID entry system was installed to the main entrance, there was no intrusion for 9 months. Recently, however, they broke again to our house when we were on holiday. Nothing was stolen, just the usual traces that say: "We were in! We did it again!".

 

As always, video recordings show nothing suspicious (no intruder outdoors). We didn't leave hidden cameras indoors, because we thought the stalking was over (9 months is a long time).

 

I attached CCTV DVR log screenshot. Is this normal that DVR has TimeChanged events? Anything suspicious on the log? Sorry, I'm no expert in this.

[Daryl733 0]

[see the screenshot]

 

The issue is still not solved, but after an RFID entry system was installed to the main entrance, there was no intrusion for 9 months. Recently, however, they broke again to our house when we were on holiday. Nothing was stolen, just the usual traces that say: "We were in! We did it again!".

 

As always, video recordings show nothing suspicious (no intruder outdoors). We didn't leave hidden cameras indoors, because we thought the stalking was over (9 months is a long time).

 

I attached CCTV DVR log screenshot. Is this normal that DVR has TimeChanged events? Anything suspicious on the log? Sorry, I'm no expert in this.

 

From your log, it seems like this is could be what the intruder did.

After coming into your house, e.g. 5.23pm and exit out at 5.33, the intruder changed the time of your DVR so that it become 5.23pm again, in effectively overwriting the 10 mins of recording when he's present in the house. That might be how he cover his track.

But then again, I'm not familiar with how this system log down events and what exactly each event specific, it could be just the timing chip is lousy and the system keep updating the time from NTP server.

 

It's NOT normal to have so much time change event in your DVR. Either someone keep messing around with the time of your system, or your system have a really lousy timing cheap that cannot keep accurate time and keep getting NTP update to keep the time accurate. I've seen that in some cheap system or some batch of branded DVR that happens to use a batch of bad timing chip.

 

It's also not normal to have Disk Over/Shutdown/Reboot happening. The word "Abnormal" at no. 70 should give you some indication. Either there is something wrong with the hardware of this system, or the configuration is mess up, or someone is messing around with this system.

[Daryl733 0]

Cheapest way to do it.

 

Get a dashboard cam, set it up for motion sensor recording.

 

Install it with a view of your DVR or your main door and conceal it.

 

If you suspect any intrusion when you where gone, check the recording of the dashboard cam when you are back.

[Sam228 0]

Cheapest way to do it.

 

Get a dashboard cam, set it up for motion sensor recording.

 

Install it with a view of your DVR or your main door and conceal it.

 

If you suspect any intrusion when you where gone, check the recording of the dashboard cam when you are back.

 

 

+1

 

Don't start trying to fix a problem you haven't identified yet. You have your suspicions and they're probably right, but what if they aren't? I was going to suggest a trail camera personally. They aren't thought of as concealable, but there's a hundred ways to them, especially around a home.

[Sam228 0]

Your time log shows a very obvious problem. Lines 72 and 64. Login from "user: default" directly from the GUI. In this case the GUI means whoever logged in was standing in front of the DVR and had the username and the password. After logging in, they made several modifications which then required that the DVR reboot in order to make those changes. Then they did it again.

 

If you're telling us that you weren't home at this date and time, then someone else was standing at DVR making changes to it. Not outside messing with power cable, not aliens...just breaking and entering...and then tampering.

[ThomasSmith 0]

The "user default logged in with GUI" is normal; we realized it happens after the DVR reboots (default user is itself the DVR).

 

About abnormal shutdowns: the power supply had issues (I suppose this is why its clock had issues). It died a few days ago. We bought a new one, and an UPS as well. We have set camera time properly as well.

 

But power supplies have died surprisingly fast in our house in the recent 4 years. The manufacturer (Paradox) of alarm system will also check the device, because it had very unusual symptoms (gibberish in user interface, alarm activated after accepted PIN code) before we finally turned it off last year.

 

We changed the code of the tags of the RFID entry system as well. (There was no suspicious entry in the log in the past half year, unfortunately.)

 

We were thinking to this, but a friend said it costs $15K to buy such a device, and it's not easy:

https://www.cl.cam.ac.uk/~sps32/ECRYPT2011_1.pdf

 

We shall see what Paradox finds in the early-died alarm system.

 

No, there is no secret tunnel under our house.

[ThomasSmith 0]

Also we were thinking to these, but the friend that it's very expensive and if they had used, it would have affected all other houses in the neighborhood too, causing issues with other electrical devices in households etc.

 

http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/xpl/login.jsp?tp=&arnumber=6855584&url=http%3A%2F%2Fieeexplore.ieee.org%2Fiel7%2F6847848%2F6855557%2F06855584.pdf%3Farnumber%3D6855584

 

http://www.newae.com/sidechannel/cwdocs/tutorialglitch.html

 

I'm sorry for partially off-topic post, I know this is CCTV forum, but your advice is very useful, thank you, we have no idea where else to ask.

[journey_era 0]

Have the Wireless camera setup with the back up battery and let the recording saved on your server .

[ssmith10pn 0]

I noticed you said you used "Intensifier" cameras. I have a couple of those on an encoder and the rest of my cameras are IP Mega Pixel. I noticed in extremely low light the Mega Pixel cameras will pickup people in the scene but the intensifiers will pick up nothing.

 

Just be aware.

[ScottyD 0]

We have only used the intensifier 1 time and have not been happy with them. We can get really good night vision but all movement is "ghosted". If we lower the intensifier so that we dont lose the movement the image quality is not good. I have talked to a few people and none have found a set up that allows both.

 

Have you found a low/no light camera that you really like?

 

I noticed you said you used "Intensifier" cameras. I have a couple of those on an encoder and the rest of my cameras are IP Mega Pixel. I noticed in extremely low light the Mega Pixel cameras will pickup people in the scene but the intensifiers will pick up nothing.

 

Just be aware.

[bjohnhoffm28 0]

I wish I knew the answer to your question. Because I am new to this website and new to the group chat thing, I don't know if it is appropriate or not to tell an experience of my own in this thread but it sort of relates to what you have described.

 

 

Without getting into all the details, I will just say what I've seen in my cctv after someon has enters the property an/or home.

 

It's happened during the day and the night. I will see a bright flash of light from under Or behind the FOV of the camera or from outside over the neighbors wall. During the day, the cameras image will turn to black and white then freeze for a short period of time, then they slowly fade back to normal. At night, because of the night vision, the camera picture is already black and whit but still freezes then slowly comes back on.

 

i have showed this to people who you would think are experts and all have said it was very strange and they've never seen it before but couldn't explain it. One person speculated that someone manipulated the voltage to the camera but the flash of light comes from areas where there is now electric panels, like the neighbors yard.

 

I have been trying to find an answer for years and no longer use cameras because in my situation they have been easily tricked.

 

I wonder if ago made EMP device would be capable of doing this.

[Johnboy 0]

Hello,

I have the same situation as yourself have you got any further resolving the problem?

Would like to have a chat and see If there is a way of resolving this ?

[lv426 0]

Wow, I empathise with your predicament! It's the unknown that makes it worse. Not to parrot what others have already mentioned, what I would suggest is to invest in a GSM enabled bug. Yes it's audio only, however is easier to conceal and doesn't need vision. You can configure it to dial your mobile (or Cell phone) if it detects noise, you can then listen in live.

"Sophisticated" equipment can be had to perform live taps to digital CCTV (it was demonstrated at Defcom), however from what you are describing it doesn't sound like anything that advanced is happening...

[kfauy 0]

I wish I had read this before I spent so much money on CCTV.

 

I have a similar case. A guy in my townhouse complex whose wife had dispute with my mean sister in law, her colleague They have been harassing me by doing small things around my house.

 

I even moved away but unfortunately he found out where I am living now and re-started the same kind of harassing again, like killing my flowers, moving things around, scratched my car in the carport I cannot even leave the waters hoses outside.

 

I installed a set of CCTV.

 

I can swear he was here again and again. Stones in a tiny stone garden moved around and a smooth edged hole was dug, a branch on driveway, stuffs placed on stair outside the kitchen door. all of these I found in the morning and checked the video right away.

 

The camera does not even show animals there to tamper the things around.

 

It is driving me nuts after spending so much money and so many hours going through the tapes.

 

I am not a techie. The not-too-technical solutions for capturing the guy going into the house do not apply to my case

[MichaelHarris259 0]

simply yes

[kfauy 0]

any suggestion on how to solve my problem. i am so tired of the continuous harassments.

[51cent 8]

Stones in a tiny stone garden moved around and a smooth edged hole was dug:stuffs placed on stair outside the kitchen door.

Cats dig holes when they poop, and leave "presents' by the doors. Branches falling or getting moved is not unusual.

Set your motion detection to more sensitive, or record all the time, or both.

[kfauy 0]

you can tell from the shape of hole if it is man-made or animal dug. anyway the hole was filled back in smoothly a couple of days ago by the intruder who wants to make sure i know that he is still around to harass me. the branch was not fallen it was moved from side of carport being used as an edging for flower beds onto the driveway. it was 2-1/2 ft long and 3 in in diameter, only wild animals of size of coyotes can move it and there is no sighting of coyotes in the neighborhood.

 

the cameras are on 24x7. they can capture rabbits skunks running around but not a 6ft 4in man.

 

i know it is a v bizarre case and have difficulties to convince people that the guy is harassing me

[cctvman1379 2]

What would suggest is changing port numbers to eve and user name and password so only you know the code put dvr in lock box cabinet with only one keyholder so eve cannot be got at from in front of unit without key install a separate camera and hidden second eve looking at eve area and front door separately this way there's no internet access and no knowledge of second dvr location then see what happens on the intrusion also change burglar alarm codes one per user not all on same code

[Lupin 0]

Please email me when you get a chance.