Have the French become
“
Big Brothers
”
?
For several years now, owners have no longer hesitated to equip their homes with surveillance cameras.
Outdoor or indoor, equipped with an alarm or not, the demand for this type of technology continues to increase.
“The market has doubled in five years,
” says Somfy, which specializes in home automation.
It’s the device we sell the most.”
“We are both absent during the day, a surveillance system seemed essential to us with a burglary rate that is that of France”
, testify for example Cécile and Freddy*, both 28 years old, who have installed in their home a year and a half ago four exterior cameras, as well as motion detectors and door switches.
Since 2022, the number of residential burglaries has actually started to rise again in France, according to data from the Ministerial Statistical Service for Internal Security (SSMSI), with 217,600 burglaries recorded (+3% compared to 2022).
“Moreover, there is a very reassuring side which allows you to check at any time that everything is fine, especially during long absences, for example
during the holidays ,
”
believes the young couple from Ile-de-France.
Increase in burglaries, media coverage of news items and cases of squatted houses,
“
wilding” of society put forward by some… This whole atmosphere contributes to the development of this market.
“People are increasingly facing insecurity, with everything we see on television or through the experiences of loved ones, which encourages them to want to secure themselves,”
confirms Robin Benito, security expert at the Selectra online comparator
.
Added to this is
“the growing publicity”
of this equipment, offered by more and more players, who offer
“attractive and more personalized offers”
, adds Robin Benito.
“Cameras without subscription didn’t exist barely five years ago, or very few years ago
,” he emphasizes.
Also read: Installing an alarm or surveillance camera at home, is it really effective against burglaries?
Affordable and easy to install
And the prices are very affordable, starting at 20 or 30 euros.
“But to have a product worthy of the name, it is better to be ready to spend at least 50 euros
,” recommends UFC-Que Choisir.
“The prices of connected cameras are increasingly affordable, they are easy to install and pair
,” confirms Boulanger, while traditional alarms suffer – in particular – from their high prices.
The latter
“remain expensive, are poorly integrated into home automation ecosystems and do not prevent intrusions”,
we observe from the household appliances and multimedia device brand.
However, a certain number of French people seem willing to pay the price to protect themselves.
Video surveillance kits, for which you have to pay at least 150 to 200 euros, have seen growth of 28% in 2023 at Leroy Merlin.
As for remote monitoring, which makes it possible to delegate the management of alerts to external companies, it is also riding this wave: the turnover of the sector represented in France in 2022 almost 1.2 billion euros, an increase 9% compared to the previous year, according to data from the 2023 Atlas of En Tout Sécurité, a bimonthly newspaper specializing in security.
However, this service is not within the reach of all budgets.
“Most often, the installation costs between 500 and 1000 euros, to which must be added a subscription of 40 to 50 euros per month
,” reports Cyril Brosset, from
Que Choisir.
Mélanie, for her part, did not want to break the bank, after the burglary of her neighbors in 2022.
“I bought a camera from Action for 25 euros, to tell myself: “if something happens, I have an eye on the apartment,”
says the 29-year-old young woman
.
It reassures me, I think.”
“Simple cameras, without being accompanied by an alarm, are rarely enough, but they can still deter certain thieves
,” judges Robin Benito.
However, safety was not the only argument for Mélanie, happy owner of a four-legged animal.
“It lets me know what my cat is doing when he’s in the apartment, hopefully.”
Also read: How to install a camera legally in a condominium
Monitor your cat, but also your children
A misused use which is far from isolated.
“We are not at all in the logic of monitoring our property,”
begins Magalie*, 30 years old.
We've always wondered what our two cats do with their day when we're at work.
Out of curiosity and as a joke, without knowing if we would keep it long term, I bought my husband a camera for his birthday at the end of January, for around 30 euros on Amazon.
And both get something positive from it.
“Actually spoiler: our cats don't do much all day, but it's calming and comforting to be able to watch over them with the click of a button.
It often happens to me at work that I plug in my phone and leave it on the broadcast screen, I feel like I'm teleworking.”
Robin Benito confirms:
“These kindness cameras really don't cost much, and for around thirty euros it gives a morale boost to see your cats.”
But not only.
They are also ideal for checking that your children have returned home from school, for example.
The camera
also “responds to a new need for comfort”
, we observe at Somfy, taking the example of home deliveries, a growing trend since Covid.
“The number of home parcel deliveries has increased considerably, and there is an increasing need to monitor our homes.
For example, the delivery person rings via a connected videophone, the user receives the call remotely, opens the gate for the delivery person and verifies via the camera that he has dropped off the package and left immediately afterwards. ,
describes the specialized company.
And the camera can also be an attractive solution for owners who regularly rent their accommodation on Airbnb, to check that their hosts are not doing anything in their home.
Or for those who are considering it for the period of the Paris Olympic Games.
But be careful, the regulations of the American platform are about to change.
It announced last week that it had decided to ban, as of April 30, surveillance cameras inside rented accommodation on the site, in order to protect the privacy of its customers.
Smile, you (are) (not) being filmed!
*The first name has been changed.