"Brownie" wrote
| "geoff" wrote
| I said in my original post the sight of an alarm will deter many
| burglars as they will go to an easier house
| Or make them think that there is something worth stealing in the house
| That used to be the case when only 'wealthy' people had them. Nowadays
| anyone can afford them and they are on any house and despite your
| alternative thoughts are a known deterrant. Ask a burglar.

It has been said that yours should never be the first nor the last house in
the street to get an alarm.

| I don't think that this is true - look at all the police cameras around,
| They are filming in public places. I don't know the exact law, but I
think
| filming someone on private property without their knowledge is an
| infringement of Human Rights and Data Protection hence the signs.

Individuals aren't bound by the European Convention on Human Rights. I have
heard that filming on private property for domestic purposes (i.e. not
shopping centres etc) isn't covered by the requirements under the Data
Protection Act to register with the Information Commissioner and erect
warning signs - but anyone relying on this should check the DPR / IC website
for the CCTV code of practice.

| Except that anyone with half a brain can tell the difference between
| most dummy cameras and real ones - for example, our local magistrates
| court has a couple of dummy cameras and big signs advertising "CCTV
| cameras in operation" - lying *******s !
| Well I agree with that to some extent as some are obviously dummy cams but
I
| have seen many that look real or can't even be seen.

An established technique is to have a couple of visible dummy cameras, and
covert working ones.

Owain