5 Questions to Ask Before Choosing a CCTV Monitoring Company in Cape Town

South African police recorded 29,722 burglaries at residential premises between April and June 2026, which works out to about 327 homes a day, according to SAPS crime statistics. Business premises added another 10,721. Numbers like these are why many people who already have cameras start asking a harder question: is anyone actually watching them?

If you're comparing CCTV monitoring companies in Cape Town, five questions will tell you most of what you need to know. Ask who is watching, what they do when they spot someone, whether they'll work with your system, what you'll really pay, and who runs the company. Here's what to listen for in the answers.

1. Who is watching my cameras, and when?

A camera that records to a hard drive tells you what happened. A monitored camera can change what happens. So, the first thing to establish is whether trained people are watching, or whether you'll simply get an alert on your phone in the middle of the night and be left to decide what to do.

Private security is already part of everyday life here. By 2022, active private security officers in South Africa outnumbered police officers by roughly four to one, according to PSIRA and SAPS figures. CCTV monitoring is a newer part of that picture: instead of one person at the gate, operators keep watch over your cameras from an operations centre.

Listen for a provider that combines technology with people, because each covers the other's weak spots. Software doesn't get tired, and people can judge what they're seeing. Monitored uses Smart-AI to scan your feeds for people in the zones that matter, while operators in its Cape Town operations centre decide what each alert means. You can choose 24/7 cover or nights only.

2. What do you actually do when you see someone?

This is where providers differ most, so ask them to walk you through what happens, step by step. "We'll phone you" isn't a response plan.

The answer you want has three parts: confirm it's a real threat, try to stop it on the spot, and get help moving. Being noticed changes behaviour. In a University of North Carolina at Charlotte study of 422 convicted burglars, half said they would abandon a break-in if they discovered an alarm partway through. Where loudspeakers are fitted, Monitored's operators can warn an intruder off while it's happening. If that doesn't work, they dispatch the armed response company you already use. Monitored doesn't run its own armed response, so ask any provider who arrives at your gate, and how they're called.

3. Will you work with what I already have?

Removing a working camera system just to sign up with a monitoring company is an expensive way to start. Ask whether they'll connect to your current cameras and alarm first and only recommend upgrades where something genuinely isn't up to the job. Keeping what works also means you can be protected in days, not months.

Monitored works with existing cameras and alarm systems. 

4. What will I pay each month, and what does that include?

Price is usually the first thing people ask about, and it's a fair question. The more useful question is what the monthly fee covers, because two quotes for the same amount can include very different services.

Monitored's home package starts from R499 a month excluding VAT, with two cameras included. That covers offsite surveillance, audio announcements, contacting your response company and key holders, incident reports, and regular checks that your cameras are working. Post-incident investigations may be charged separately. Ask every provider for the same breakdown, as well as the contract length. Monitored's is 24 months.

If you're weighing monitoring against an on-site guard, remember that one person can only be in one place at a time, and needs breaks. Cameras watched from an operations centre cover more ground, around the clock.

5. Who's running the company, and are they local?

Monitoring means giving someone a live view of your home or business, so you should know who they are. Ask about the people behind the business, where the operators are based, and whether they're involved in safety efforts in your area.

Monitored was founded by people with more than two decades in law enforcement and security. Its directors still work in the business day to day and give their time to neighbourhood watches and community policing boards.

Put us to the test

Ask Monitored all five questions, and we'll answer each one for your property, whether that's a family home in Rondebosch or a business depot in Paarden Eiland. Call 087 820 3333 or email letstalk@monitored.co.za.