CCTV has never been cheaper — or easier to get badly wrong. Here’s how South African businesses can spec a system that actually earns its keep.
Why most CCTV installations underperform.
Three reasons: too few cameras in the wrong places, storage that rolls over before you notice the incident, and footage nobody can retrieve when it matters. All three are design problems — and none are fixed by buying more cameras.
IP vs analogue: what actually matters.
Analogue (HD-TVI, HD-CVI) systems are cheaper up front and still perfectly fine for single-site shops. IP cameras cost more but give you better resolution, PoE cabling, remote access and AI features like people-counting and licence-plate recognition.
Rule of thumb: 16 cameras or fewer at a single site, analogue is viable. Beyond that — or across multiple sites — go IP.
How many cameras do you actually need?
- Every entrance and exit — mandatory
- Every till point / cash handling area
- Stockrooms, loading bays, yard gates
- Parking and perimeter (with ANPR at gates)
- Server room or comms cabinet
Storage: cloud, on-site or hybrid.
30 days of retention is standard. Longer than that usually means hybrid — a few days of high-resolution on-site, with rolling cloud archive for compliance. Budget for storage, not just cameras.
POPIA and CCTV.
Under POPIA, filming people creates a processing obligation. You need visible signage, a CCTV policy your staff have signed, controlled access to footage, and a retention policy. A good installer provides all four.
Questions to ask any CCTV installer.
- Will you do a site survey before quoting?
- What resolution and frame-rate am I getting?
- How long will footage be retained?
- Is there a mobile app, and does it cost extra?
- What’s your SLA if a camera fails?
- Are you POPIA-compliant in your documentation?