8 replies to this topic

[barnimal]

Hello, I am not a hacker and don't really want to be

I am thinking the baby sitter has a guest in my house when we are out, so I want to use the webcam on the kids computer in the den to check. The program or whatever needs to run undetected and record to the computer in my office on the same network. Is this possible?

Edited by barnimal, 25 November 2012 - 12:41 PM.

[Bit Viper]

Sure. In fact, a quick web search for "use webcam as nanny cam" returns a bunch of hits. Have you taken a look through that information already? Is there something else that you're trying to do with it that's not already out there?

[barnimal]

never even thought to google it thanks

[Swerve]

You can get IP camers bro, they have their own little webserver built in. Allow remote viewing, pan/tilt and you can even speak to the room through them.

[haxin]

You can get IP camers bro, they have their own little webserver built in. Allow remote viewing, pan/tilt and you can even speak to the room through them.

old cell phones make great little sneaky ipcams too. i have 4 android phones setup in different areas of the house and a couple ip cams outside and i can watch them all locally or remotely from my phone or tablet, motion sense, email, record or send you a text on motion detect, etc etc. everyone has at least one phone sitting in the junk drawer that they arent using anymore. and noone really thinks twice about a phone sitting on the desk or shelf or wherever.

[ntheory]

If you have the budget a company called Axis makes some IP cameras that are really good. Or, also with a sufficient budget, you can create your own DVR (digital video recorder) with a Synology NAS and their surveillance station module.

If you are looking for a solution with an existing laptop you can try:

- iSpy (claims to be open source but removes all comments from open source code, Windows)
- ZoneMinder (LiveCD)

However, your requirement was to run undetected. If this is a computer that the "nanny" will be using it will be a bit more difficult. If you are using iSpy you could always log in as your own user, run it, switch users, and then let the nanny have her own account. They would never see it running.

If you want to be even more sneaky you could run the ZoneMinder VMware Virtual Appliance using VMware workstation in the background but that is a more advanced option that requires a bit of finesse.

If the nanny isn't computer savvy you can try WebCamImageSave but it will be easier to detect. I have not used this software though and cannot attest to its effectiveness or quality.

[adlard.matthew]

If your thinking of going down thee smart phone line try using IP Webcam and then link it to a streaming site like http://www.ustream.tv, this then has the option to allow you to look up while out or use IP webcam with camtasia passwrd 0123456789 and have an old pc record the footage, trick here is to stick a piece of tape or blob of paint over the harddrive light and unplug the cable from monitor to pc inorder to stop accidential spotting.

[Voodoo2]

Speaking more on the home survielence angle, ISpy sounds like a magic bullet when it comes to home security.  I've been wanting to set it up for a while now, but I havent gotten around to it.  I like it because it has features like: 

• Motion Detection Thresholds
• Audio Detection Thresholds
• Script Launching
• Smart Phone Support

I've been draggin my feet on setting up this project.  The manual seems very long and I dont feel like reading it.  Also, I tried doing this with Linux motion which burned me out to this idea. 

 

I'm sure is has the capability of being a nanny cam. 

 

I just noticed how old this thread it.  The dude probably isn't even checking it anymore.

Edited by Voodoo2, 04 March 2013 - 01:08 AM.

[5imp7y]

Im sure this problem is solved, but i feel as though you could record what the camera sees using software that comes with the computer. 99.99% of the time there is some bloatware that is used for video recording. I feel that if you are gone for awhile it might make a HUGE file but maybe not it might compress as it records. Also you can buy actual nanny cams on ebay for like 10$ and a rf reciver for them for like 15$ and they run off DC (9v) or a standard wall outlet. I bought a set of 4 like 3 years ago on ebay with the receiver for like 30$ shipped. The ones i bought dont record sound though. it outputs to a simple video cord (yellow one) and you can record it with a vcr or most computers that have a VGA instead of onboard graphics.