HENRICO COUNTY -
It's a high-tech, high-priced device parents say they love.
"It gives me piece of mind to look at my child in the middle of the night."
But the reaction changed when I approached the door.
"It's not even on and you're picking it up," said Sara Lewis, a mother, that didn't know her baby monitor was giving us access to her children. "It means just anybody can come by and see my child sleeping."
Armed with a video baby monitor, I took a short drive through a couple of Henrico County neighborhoods. I drove for one mile and was able to pick up crystal-clear pictures of eight babies lying in their cribs - a couple of them were sleeping.
It was easy and simple to tune in the signal with a hand held cordless monitor and see what was going on inside various homes.
The strength of the signal on the hand held monitor guided me to the house with the camera. The further I walked away, the more static. The closer I was, the sound and video cleared up. I could even hear myself ring the doorbell.
If your camera is mounted in your child's room, anyone with a wireless monitor can see inside. If you have other rooms with cameras, those are vulnerable too. And, the law on this is pretty gray.
Legal analyst Todd Stone explains, "Wiretapping applies to audio transmissions. You can potentially interpret that in the case of baby monitors, but it's not clear. It's definitely something Congress should address."
And it's something parents should address too.
One mom came to terms with what she learned through our experiment. "I can keep my child inside, but people will still know I have kids because they can see and hear through that thing."
And there's more they can hear, like your private conversations - making you susceptible to identity theft. Or, they can hear silence letting thieves know, you're not at home.
So, how do you protect yourself? The answer is simple: Turn the camera off. If you're shopping for a video baby monitor, buy a digital monitor that only links to your monitor and does not have interference.
If you live in a house with aluminum siding or concrete walls, your signal might be protected. But if you've ever picked up video of a neighbor's child or overheard them talking - that's a flag, that they can hear you too.
I contacted area police departments, to find out if they've dealt with any video baby monitor crimes. They tell me no, but warn parents to point the monitors at the crib only, and turn it off, once baby's awake.
Parents we spoke with say it's just another thing on their plate of parental duties.
"It gives me piece of mind to look at my child in the middle of the night."
But the reaction changed when I approached the door.
"It's not even on and you're picking it up," said Sara Lewis, a mother, that didn't know her baby monitor was giving us access to her children. "It means just anybody can come by and see my child sleeping."
Armed with a video baby monitor, I took a short drive through a couple of Henrico County neighborhoods. I drove for one mile and was able to pick up crystal-clear pictures of eight babies lying in their cribs - a couple of them were sleeping.
It was easy and simple to tune in the signal with a hand held cordless monitor and see what was going on inside various homes.
The strength of the signal on the hand held monitor guided me to the house with the camera. The further I walked away, the more static. The closer I was, the sound and video cleared up. I could even hear myself ring the doorbell.
If your camera is mounted in your child's room, anyone with a wireless monitor can see inside. If you have other rooms with cameras, those are vulnerable too. And, the law on this is pretty gray.
Legal analyst Todd Stone explains, "Wiretapping applies to audio transmissions. You can potentially interpret that in the case of baby monitors, but it's not clear. It's definitely something Congress should address."
And it's something parents should address too.
One mom came to terms with what she learned through our experiment. "I can keep my child inside, but people will still know I have kids because they can see and hear through that thing."
And there's more they can hear, like your private conversations - making you susceptible to identity theft. Or, they can hear silence letting thieves know, you're not at home.
So, how do you protect yourself? The answer is simple: Turn the camera off. If you're shopping for a video baby monitor, buy a digital monitor that only links to your monitor and does not have interference.
If you live in a house with aluminum siding or concrete walls, your signal might be protected. But if you've ever picked up video of a neighbor's child or overheard them talking - that's a flag, that they can hear you too.
I contacted area police departments, to find out if they've dealt with any video baby monitor crimes. They tell me no, but warn parents to point the monitors at the crib only, and turn it off, once baby's awake.
Parents we spoke with say it's just another thing on their plate of parental duties.
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