There’s been a lot of talk about AI recently, and CCTV is certainly no exception.
The UK Government is putting serious money into AI-powered policing and facial recognition, including £75 million for the new PoliceAI programme and funding for another 40 live facial-recognition units.
That sounds very high-tech, but there’s a more interesting question for our customers: what does any of this actually mean for the CCTV protecting your home or business?
Quite a lot, actually.
CCTV has changed massively
We’ve been installing CCTV systems since 2003, and the difference between what we were fitting back then and what we install today is enormous.
Older CCTV was relatively simple. A camera recorded a picture, the recorder stored it and, if something happened, somebody had to sit there going through the footage.
Modern systems can be much smarter.
A properly set-up system can distinguish between people and vehicles, monitor specific areas of a property and alert you when something relevant happens.
That last bit is important.
There is absolutely no point having “smart CCTV” if your phone goes off every five minutes because a tree moved in the wind or a cat walked across the driveway.
We see this quite regularly when looking at systems that haven’t been configured properly.
Good CCTV isn’t about turning every available feature on. It’s about setting the system up so that the features are actually useful.
AI is already being used by UK police
This isn’t technology that’s supposedly coming at some point in the future.
The Government launched PoliceAI in June 2026 as a national centre for developing and using artificial intelligence within policing in England and Wales.
According to the Government, one police investigation involving a kidnapping used AI to review around 800 hours of CCTV footage in approximately three hours.
Think about that for a moment.
Without technology helping to search that footage, somebody potentially has hundreds of hours of video to work through manually.
That’s where we think AI genuinely becomes useful in CCTV. It’s not about replacing people. It’s about helping people find the footage that matters.
Facial recognition is expanding as well
The Government is also increasing the use of live facial recognition by police, with funding announced for another 40 units.
Understandably, this is where the privacy questions start.
The Government has recently confirmed that organisations using facial-recognition CCTV must make sure its use is lawful, necessary and proportionate.
For an ordinary home or business CCTV installation, that doesn’t suddenly mean everybody should be installing facial recognition. Far from it.
In most situations, getting the basics right will make a much bigger difference: correct camera positions, good night images, sensible recording periods and reliable notifications.
Don’t forget the network behind the cameras
Something else that has changed dramatically is how CCTV connects to the outside world.
Years ago, most systems were effectively standalone. Today, customers expect to see their cameras on their phone wherever they are.
That’s incredibly useful, but it also means the recorder and cameras are network devices.
The National Cyber Security Centre continues to warn businesses about internet-connected equipment that isn’t properly secured or updated.
Passwords, firmware updates, network configuration and secure remote access therefore matter just as much as having a decent camera.
A fantastic 4K camera isn’t much use if the rest of the system has been badly configured.
Do you actually need to replace an older CCTV system?
Not necessarily.
We’d much rather look at what somebody already has before telling them they need to rip everything out.
Sometimes replacing a recorder or a few cameras can transform an existing system without starting again.
On older installations, though, the improvement can be substantial. Better night-time images, human and vehicle detection, much faster searching and reliable mobile access can make CCTV considerably more useful than simply increasing the number of megapixels written on the box.
And that’s really where CCTV is heading.
It’s becoming less about recording everything and hoping you’ve captured something useful, and more about helping you identify what actually matters.
Thinking about upgrading your CCTV?
24-7 CCTV Security Ltd has been installing electronic security systems since 2003.
We’re SSAIB certificated and install and maintain CCTV, intruder alarms, access control and other security systems for homes and businesses across Essex and surrounding areas.
If you’ve got an older CCTV system and aren’t sure whether it needs replacing, upgrading or simply setting up properly, we’re happy to take a look.
Contact 24-7 CCTV Security or call us on 01268 452602.
Sources checked 7 October 2026: UK Government/Home Office PoliceAI announcement; UK Parliament written answer concerning AI-enabled facial-recognition CCTV; National Cyber Security Centre guidance on internet-connected systems.
