Show HN: Privacy-first home security on mobile with smart alerts | Hacker News Reader

Show HN: Privacy-first home security on mobile with smart alerts

ai-cam.app

51 pointsHuongngtm30 comments

For Android, there's a project called Haven [1] made by Edward Snowden. It doesn't use fancy AI, but it does monitor the camera, mic, and other sensors for changes, and sends notifications via Signal.

[1] https://guardianproject.github.io/haven/

Thank you, I've been looking for a privacy-first baby monitor app for Android, and it looks like Haven was inadvertently made into one of the best options [1].

[1] https://guardianproject.info/2017/12/22/haven-building-the-m...

Smartphones in the 21st century have become surveillance devices for unaccountable corporations, and governments by extension. It's cathartic to see that capability being put into the common individual's hands.

Thank you for sharing. Interesting project!

This app lets you turn your unused phone into a security camera. It has AI event detection (person, face, animal) and smart alerts, but the smart functionality runs offline. No footage is sent to our server. Actually we don't have a server. You don't need to sign up or create a profile. Notification is sent through Apple's server (we currently have only iOS app).

We are doing beta program (free). We'd love to hear your feedback, and especially learn about your use case.

I would give it a try if there was an Android version. I don't have an unused iPhone, basically because their value in the second hand market makes it worth to sell it insted of keeping it.

An Android version is also planned.

We have cameras on driveways, etc where there is no power or ethernet. These cameras (and perhaps a solar powered wifi mesh network, which these could form if they had the right software) are a reasonable solution to that problem:

https://m.reolink.com/

I’d love to have it take video feeds from something like those. (Perhaps via a standard network protocol.)

Store + ml recognize them locally, and simultaneously client-side encrypt and stream them to an s3-compatible bucket (eg backblaze b2).

Bonus points if the gizmo has a sim card and backup battery so it keeps working if power / internet are cut. (Most of the time it’d upload via residential broadband (wifi/ethernet), but while the house is being broken into, it’s fine if it burns a few GB of cell plan data.)

Make sure the box is compatible with some sort of ssd/nvme drive (no moving parts), and not just hdd.

One model for monetizing it: AGPL or BSL it, and offer some cloud side services for convenience features like managing the encrypted bucket, pruning “boring” videos after 30 days, etc. edit: or, provide a nice (open source, simple) nat hole punching vpn service so phones can see the video in real time. Maybe charge for access to bounce servers and automatic setup.

Thanks for sharing this. I was not aware that Reolink was introducing solar-powered cameras. I like their brand because back in 2017 I was searching for 802.3af PoE IP cams and they were the most recommended. Been running a couple since then and have had good results overall. I hope they are still producing them as good now as they were back then.

Thanks for your suggestion. But are these functionalities not better implemented on a desktop computer? A mobile phone is limited in compute capability but very portable, so it easy to use it for occasional situation like when traveling, or when you only need a security camera for a short time and do not want to invest much.

You say "unused phone" but the minimum iOS version is 14.1. As a comparison, I think apps like Baby Monitor 3G required iOS 9 until recently.

This app focus on running on-device AI algorithms so it needs latest OS software in able to do it.

In this day and age with all sorts of different cameras we also need a better NVR system to be doing continual recording and accurate away from home motion alerts. Perhaps such a thing could be shoved into a raspberry pi 4.

The current state of consumer cameras are either spend $300 for an indoor one that's "cloud enabled". Or $100 for a bullet that you need an NVR to have effective.

Totally agree. Sadly, outdoor pi cams are not cheap. In the meantime I think Ubiquiti might be the best option.

I can't recommend them anymore. Hikvision cameras with a Synology NAS is far better in every way.

Ubiquiti cameras are way overpriced. The NVR has no real advanced functions. And their small indoor cameras are wifi only but require POE to power up. Everytime a power interrupt happens the wifi cams don't reconnect and start broadcasting their setup ssid and have to be manually reconnected. Their awesome tech support has turned into absolute garbage and can have hours long queues to only have an inexperienced person tell you they will follow up with an email. I was once a fan, but now will not install anymore of their equipment.

Would agree. Ive got a synology nas with a handful of wyze cams using rtsp (with no internet access).

Granted I had to somewhat beef up my wifi in the house to get everything working as expected. But it is pretty nice.

I use Shinobi, which works okay. You can run a modest system on a raspberry pi but really needs something with hardware accelerated h264 such as an Intel CPU or geforce card.

https://shinobi.video/

There is a similar app for Android called Haven that can use TOR to access remotely.

https://www.expressvpn.com/blog/turn-your-old-android-phone-...

Looking at your website this seems well done.

> require device with iOS 14.1 or later

This means an iPhone 6S or newer. Not often an unused device, I think ;-) I have a 6 that I use for tests, but otherwise I could get good money even for that one.

I have been on 6S+ for YEARS - and have no desire to upgrade due to, I believe, this is the last iPhone before facial recognition - which I DO NOT WANT.

---

We bought a house recently and it came with a Cobra 8-camera security system - which comes from Harbor Freight (inherited - I didnt install it) -- but its remote mobile app is some shady 3rd party app from China - and it rarely works, but I am convinced it allows for backdoor access by the dev... so I don't use it...

Is there any way to use this with the cameras I already have installed (inherited) with this app?

Your upgrade path would be the new SE, which is fingerprint and not faceID and has the A11 processor

I still use a 6S as a burner and have another for tests, they’re a great device

If your cameras are IP and not coax you can just run a NVR locally. If they are coax then another dvr would work. Blue Iris is great for home use as a windows NVR server.

I'd like the best of both Worlds, remote access to my (as yet hypothetical) cameras while being secure from others. Plus being wireless, with decent encryption. It seems reasonable, yet everything I've looked at is a joke.

Maybe take a look at RTP cameras on a no-Internet network with Shinobi for remote control and monitoring.

https://moeiscool.github.io/Shinobi/

Is this always on? Or event triggered?

I have a use case and an iPhone 7 that stopped reading SIM cards. But I wont have a cord long enough to keep it plugged in all the time. And the battery doesn’t hold a charge very long...

You need to plug it to a power source because the AI algorithms run on-device require energy.

"No footage is sent to any server."

Hopefully, it can be sent to my own server for backup.

You can optionally turn on iCloud synchronization, then videos will be uploaded to your iCloud account.

Isn’t this just exactly what Eufy does?

Those from Eufy are physical cameras. Their mobile app is used to control their camera. But this one "ai-cam" is a mobile app which use phone camera and do not require another physical camera. Also the smart alerts of "ai-cam" are much more advanced.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com