Choosing a Cloud CCTV system is a strategic decision that touches your network, security posture, compliance responsibilities, and long-term scalability. With so many vendors claiming to offer “cloud” solutions, it can be difficult to understand what truly matters.
This checklist is designed to help you ask the right questions, to find the video surveillance as a service (VSaaS) that’s right for your business.
Start by understanding the system architecture.
Choosing the right approach affects remote access, resilience, hardware footprint, and long-term flexibility. True cloud deployments offer simplified management and eliminate reliance on fragile on-site hardware — though they do place more importance on network stability. A good VSaaS provider will help you evaluate whether your infrastructure is ready.
High-resolution Cloud CCTV systems can quickly consume significant bandwidth, making thoughtful planning essential to maintain both performance and reliability. Each camera’s bandwidth usage will depend on factors like resolution, frame rate, compression, and scene complexity. As such, estimating consumption isn’t a one-size-fits-all; your VSaaS provider should guide you through these calculations and help optimise your deployment.
With these factors in mind, you can avoid unexpected issues like latency or dropped frames, ensuring a seamless and scalable CCTV solution that integrates smoothly with your existing network infrastructure.
CCTV systems handle sensitive personal data, making it essential to ensure compliance with GDPR and other relevant regulations from day one to avoid legal and financial risks.
Key considerations:
By addressing these key areas, you can safeguard data privacy while staying compliant with regulatory requirements.
Effective support is crucial, particularly for organisations with multiple sites or limited internal resources. Ensure your provider offers comprehensive assistance when you need it most.
With these features, you can ensure consistent and dependable support for your CCTV system, allowing you to focus on your core business operations.
Where and how your CCTV footage is stored directly affects compliance, reliability, and overall system resilience. The right infrastructure ensures uninterrupted access and regulatory alignment.
A dependable, well-structured infrastructure forms the backbone of a reliable cloud CCTV solution.
Cloud systems should handle updates seamlessly, without requiring manual intervention or downtime on your end.
Some Cloud CCTV providers require proprietary hardware, which can limit your flexibility and make switching providers costly and complex.
For example, Verkada limit certain features of their video management platform to their own proprietary hardware, meaning you're effectively locked into their ecosystem; if you ever choose to move to a different provider, you'd need to replace all existing cameras.
This dependency can lead to higher long-term costs and reduced adaptability as your needs evolve.
A transparent exit strategy protects you from vendor lock-in and ensures you’re not tied to a system that no longer meets your needs.
Modern cloud platforms offer far more than basic video recording.
AI-driven analytics can support both security and operational efficiency. Whether you need smarter alerts, occupancy insights, or custom analytics, make sure your provider’s capabilities align with your goals and that features are delivered reliably at scale.
These advanced features can help turn your CCTV system into an asset for both security and strategic decision-making.
Your CCTV system may need to integrate with other platforms, such as access control, intruder alarms, or building management systems. Seamless integration helps streamline operations and reduces the risk of siloed data.
A flexible, interoperable system will scale more easily and adapt to your organisation’s evolving needs.
Your CCTV system should be straightforward to deploy and manage, especially if you're working across multiple sites or user groups. Efficient setup and granular access control are key to keeping things secure and scalable.
A system that’s easy to configure and manage will save you time and reduce the risk of misconfigurations and access issues.
A CCTV system should be easy for end users to navigate without relying heavily on IT support. A well-designed interface improves efficiency and ensures footage can be accessed and acted on quickly.
An intuitive platform helps teams respond faster, reduces training time, and supports smoother day-to-day operations.
Your Cloud CCTV platform will sit at the intersection of security, IT, compliance, and operations. The right system will be scalable, secure, and easy to manage, while giving you the flexibility to adapt as your organisation’s needs evolve. Use this checklist as a practical guide when comparing providers and asking the questions that matter.
SEiNG is a true cloud CCTV platform that delivers flexibility, security, and peace of mind. It works with any ONVIF/RTSP camera, so you’re never locked into a single vendor, and it requires no on-site hardware. As a fully managed service, SEiNG handles onboarding, training, and continuous system health monitoring, ensuring your cameras always perform at their best. UK-founded and supported, with all data stored in a UK-based data centre, the platform combines advanced AI analytics — including object detection, filtering, and counting — with business-specific customisation. Built secure by design, SEiNG offers end-to-end encryption, SSO, 2FA, and full GDPR compliance, making it a smart, reliable choice for modern CCTV.
| Criteria | Key Questions to Ask Cloud CCTV Providers | SEiNG Answers |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Cloud Managed vs. True Cloud | Do you store footage locally or is all footage streamed and stored in the cloud? | SEiNG is a true-Cloud solution, so all footage is streamed and stored in the Cloud – unless you’d prefer a hybrid approach, in which case SEiNG can work alongside your existing hardware. |
| If local storage is involved, what happens if the gateway or camera fails? | We’ll work with you to ensure failover mechanisms such as redundancy, a backup gateway, cellular backup using 4/5G, or alternate routes are present if you use Cloud Gateway. | |
| How is remote access to the footage handled? | Access your footage anytime, anywhere, via a web browser. SSO and MFA are supported for secure access, with full compatibility across operating systems. | |
| 2. Bandwidth and Network Considerations | What is the recommended bandwidth for each camera based on resolution and compression? | Bandwidth needs vary by resolution, settings, and scene complexity. Get in touch for your site-specific estimate. |
| Do you offer any tools to help assess or optimise bandwidth needs for large deployments? | Yes, we’ll work with you to find the right strategy to optimise your bandwidth needs. | |
| Can you help with network segmentation to prioritise CCTV traffic? | Yes, through strategies like VLANs and QoS. | |
| 3. Data Privacy, Compliance, and Sovereignty | Where is my footage stored, and is that compliant with GDPR or other relevant regulations? | Data is stored at a fully compliant UK data centre. |
| Is all data encrypted in transit and at rest? | Yes, SEiNG keeps your data safe with end-to-end encryption. | |
| How do you handle user access, and can we customise access controls? | Yes – SEiNG supports fully customised role-based access controls, with MFA and SSO. | |
| 4. Technical Support and Managed Services | What support channels are available? | Get in touch via phone, email, or a support ticket. We also have guides and FAQs on our website. |
| What are your SLAs for response times and issue resolution? | During business hours, we will respond to any queries within 1 hour. Outside of business hours, we’ll respond the next business day. Additional 24hr remote monitoring is available. | |
| Do you offer proactive services like camera health monitoring or remote diagnostics? | Yes. As a managed service, the SEiNG team proactively monitors system health. Cameras’ status is visible in the SEiNG dashboard with automatic alerts if any go offline. | |
| 5. Data Centre Location, Uptime, and Redundancy | Where are your data centres located? Are they Tier 3+ certified? | SEiNG uses a UK-based Data Centre. |
| What is the uptime SLA, and how do you ensure system resilience? | SEiNG offers a 99.9999% uptime guarantee. | |
| What redundancy measures do you have in place? | SEiNG uses distributed cloud storage for redundancy and rapid recovery. Proactive system monitoring ensures reliable service. | |
| 6. Updates and Maintenance | How often are software and firmware updates rolled out? | SEiNG rolls out updates at least quarterly, or as required. |
| Are security patches deployed immediately, or is there a delay? | Updates are instantly available to SEiNG users. | |
| How do you notify customers of scheduled maintenance or any potential service disruptions? | Customers are notified by email of any scheduled maintenance or potential disruptions. | |
| 7. Vendor Lock-In and Data Portability | Can footage be exported in standard formats like MP4? | SEiNG allows export in standard formats like MP4 or via web link. |
| Is there an easy migration path if we decide to switch providers? | Yes. SEiNG is hardware agnostic, so migration is straightforward. | |
| What AI-powered features do you offer? | Motion detection, object tracking, object filtering, demographic analysis, and custom AI analytics. | |
| 8. Advanced Features: AI and Analytics | Can we set up real-time alerts via mobile apps or integrations with current systems? | Yes – via inputs/outputs. |
| Do you support Single Sign-On (SSO) for easier user management? | Yes – SSO and MFA supported for all customers. | |
| 9. Custom Integration and APIs | Can we set up role-based access control and define permissions for different user groups? | Yes – explore more here. |
| How easy is onboarding for adding new cameras? | SEiNG’s team manages setup as part of the managed service. Adding your own cameras is simple via the “devices” tab, with subscription update notifications to support. | |
| Is remote monitoring possible? | Yes – accessible anywhere via standard web browser, fully compatible across major operating systems. | |
| 10. Setup and Access Control | What search and filtering features are available for locating specific footage? | Filter recordings by date, time, site, group, device, object, or region. |
| Can we easily share or export footage securely for incident management? | Yes – footage can be exported or a case created for investigations. | |
| 11. Usability and Day-to-Day Management | How intuitive is the interface for daily use? | SEiNG offers a user-friendly interface across desktop and mobile. |
| Can users quickly search, filter, and review footage? | Smart AI-backed filters help find footage in seconds; recordings can be securely exported or shared as needed. |