IP WiFi Camera

[Lawrence]

Just bought a cheap one and it works surprisingly well. To use it on the net you have to register it on a server. The software will do this semi automatically so I have no idea where this server is. Presumably the camera sends data to the server and the viewer( my tablet) picks it up. But the viewer can also pan/tilt the camera so the server must be able to send to the camera. I have not had to change any router settings and I haven't set up dynamic DNS. Does this mean that the server(probably Chinese) has access to my network? Are there security implications?

[dennis]

The server only needs to do dynamic DNS. Whether it only does dynamic DNS is a different question.

Given that most IP cameras run an unknown linux OS with unknown patch levels I would block them on the routers firewall and not bother with remote access.

[Mike Tomlinson]

En el artículo , Lawrence escribió:

No offence, but what does this have to do with DIY? You'd be more likely to get an informed response from a more suitable group had you bothered to look.

[Harry Bloomfield]

Lawrence wrote on 02/11/2015 :

The camera regularly reports its present IP to the server. Any user trying to view the camera, then has to query the server, to find the current IP, after which you are seeing the picture direct from the camera.

[MM]

I would think it has everything to do with DIY. He's "Doing It Himself", not employing somebody.

MM

[Muddymike]

So do I.

Mike

[Belperite]

Possibly. Without sniffing the traffic you can't be sure.

I have several IP cams. What I've done is the following:

1. Disabled UPnP on router and cameras.
2. Disabled all the "cloud" options on the cameras.
3. Changed the default password on the cameras.
4. Set up a Raspberry Pi as a VPN server*
5. Only forward the relevant port on the router to the VPN server, nothing else.
6. Use the VPN functionality included in most modern smartphones, tablets and desktop machines to connect back to my home network.
7. Use whatever app/web browser to directly connect to the camera's IP on my network (most IP cameras have a direct URL for streaming, although the PTZ functions may be more problematic. What's the make and model?)

*An increasing number of home routers come with a built-in VPN server, which would be easier to set up.

[Capitol]

If you are lucky and your ISP is not blocking the connection. Mine disappears for days at a time, purely down to DNS problems I assume. My friends Talk talk connection has never worked.

[polygonum]

TalkTalk the other day were insisting that there is no such thing as a fixed IP address. They all change all the time. Yes, even for servers. It is, therefore, no surprise whatsoever that "My friends Talk talk connection has never worked." - the only question is whether you limited that to the IP cam or for anything at all?

[Harry Bloomfield]

polygonum laid this down on his screen :

..and mine, also on TalkTalk works fine.

[Lawrence]

camera so

connection.

servers.

I'm on talktalk and have no problems. I suppose that this will only work while the server remains in action. I suppose that the camera keeps asking for ptz data and that is how it gets through. I do wish I knew more about how this works. BTW I've tried a few alternative P2P software packages and none work as well as the one that came with camera.

[Capitol]

My friends Talktalk which doesn't work is a fixed ip!