We are living in a unique cultural moment where our collective desire to feel safe is colliding with heightened worry over privacy and surveillance. On the one hand, according to a recent Safewise.com study , nearly half of American households now use security cameras. Yet those same households embracing these technologies are growing uneasy about where it's all heading, as 54% of those surveyed are worried about artificial intelligence and the impact on their sense of security and safety.

It’s not hard to see why. In the past year, there have been a number of national headlines that have rightfully raised consumer eyebrows regarding AI-powered security products, prompting questions about how the data powering these devices is being handled and stored - with a particular concern about who has access to such intimate video footage.

Recent stories about AI-powered neighborhood camera networks , law enforcement access to doorbell footage , and even the recovery of footage from Nancy Guthrie’s video doorbell has raised an important question: When does protection start to feel like surveillance?

The answer isn’t simple. These technologies can - and do - deliver real benefits. Video footage from smart home security cameras has helped law enforcement solve crimes and bring closure to families. AI is making it easier to detect unusual activity earlier than ever before. But at the same time, these advancements are reshaping consumer expectations around privacy, ownership, and control.

According to a recent survey from my company, Prosper Insights & Analytics , nearly 60% of consumers report being either extremely or very concerned about their privacy being violated by AI using their data. Additionally, the need for human oversight ranks as the leading concern when it comes to recent AI developments, underscoring a growing reality: consumers are thinking more critically about how their personal data is handled in the process.

The Line Between Security and Surveillance

Over the past decade, home security has evolved from simple alarm systems into highly connected ecosystems of cameras, sensors, and AI-driven insights. But as capabilities have expanded, so has the potential for overreach. What were once devices designed to alert homeowners, security and doorbell cameras have, in some cases, become part of broader data-sharing networks - raising concerns about who can access footage and for what purpose. It’s worth noting that there’s been a proliferation of “big tech” entrants now offering home security cameras and monitoring services.

This shift is also reflected in how consumers are approaching security decisions more broadly. As Rebecca Edwards, Managing Editor, and lead safety expert at SafeWise.com, explains, “We’re seeing consumers take a much more proactive approach, not just to physical security, but to their data. People aren’t just asking how a system protects their home anymore. They’re asking who owns their data, how long it’s stored, and who can access it.”

She adds that this evolving mindset is being driven by heightened awareness of digital risk. “When people understand that these devices are always connected and collecting data inside their homes, it changes how they think about them. They’re comparing privacy policies, looking for more control over their data, and choosing brands that are transparent.”

Hilary Schneider, CEO at SimpliSafe, is keenly aware of the heightened importance of privacy in the home security category. “Our customers want home security, not surveillance,” says Schneider. “Our business is centered on keeping people safe in their homes and businesses, not monetizing data or building advertising ecosystems. Trust is core to what we do, and we treat our customers’ security and privacy as foundational, not optional.”

Home security monitoring services are also available from ADT , Brinks, Cove, Ring, Vivint , and others.

Privacy and Control Must Be Built In, Not Bolted On

As home security technology becomes more ubiquitous, companies have a responsibility to design products with privacy in mind, including intuitive controls, transparent data practices and safeguards that limit unnecessary data capture.

For example, an indoor home security camera with a built-in mechanical privacy shutter offers much more peace of mind than an unblinking camera lens. But it’s not just the physical design of a product. Backend infrastructure must be designed with privacy in mind from the outset. If a customer does not subscribe to a service that includes cloud storage for video recordings, the expectation is that no recordings should be generated, and therefore no data should exist to retrieve later. This kind of intentional design reduces risk while aligning with customer expectations.

As Edwards explains, “Safety today isn’t just about preventing someone from breaking into your home, it’s about protecting everything connected to it. Your home isn’t just a physical space anymore; it’s also a digital environment.”

She adds, “Helping people create a safer life means looking beyond the front door. It includes protecting their data, their identity, and how their information is used. If a system doesn’t account for that, it’s not fully delivering on what safety means today.”

Edwards’ observations are backed by the numbers. According to recent survey from Prosper Insights & Analytics , 40.6% of consumers believe AI requires human oversight, 31.9% say it needs greater transparency around how data is used, and more than one in four report taking active steps, such as disabling tracking or adjusting privacy settings, to better protect their information. At the same time, nearly 29% say they do not trust that AI has their best interests in mind, reinforcing the growing expectation that privacy must be built into products from the start.

Schneider adds that SimpliSafe sees this play out in real-time, noting that whenever a major privacy controversy hits the news cycle, the company sees a corresponding spike in consumers researching their privacy policies.

Human Decision-Making is Critical in the AI Era

AI is another technology advancement that consumers are paying greater attention to. It’s hard not to. It feels like we’re living in an AI-everything world, from AI refrigerators and birdhouses to AI chatbots that are quickly overtaking our internet searches.

This begs the question - what place does AI have in the world of home security? Most modern video doorbells can detect when a person is at the door, or a package has been dropped off. But would you trust AI to protect you during an emergency? Relying on AI to tell you when a package has arrived is one thing, but your life won’t be in danger if AI incorrectly identifies “Fido” as the delivery person.

An overreliance on AI in home security can lead to serious consequences. The constant influx of notifications on our devices has caused many people to tune them out. And this is further exacerbated by AI-powered home security cameras that are misinterpreting what they’re “seeing,” such as when a car’s headlights in a neighbor’s driveway trigger a “fire” alert. These kinds of false alarms over time can desensitize users to security alerts.

Schneider argues that an integrated approach is the most prudent when it comes to using AI to protect customers’ homes and loved ones. She points to SimpliSafe’s outdoor monitoring service “SimpliSafe Active Guard Outdoor Protection” as an example. The service combines AI and human intelligence to detect when someone is approaching a home and proactively intervene before a crime is committed.

“As a home security provider, we need to stay one step ahead,” said Schneider. “With Active Guard, we’re using AI-powered cameras to quickly identify and assess potential threats approaching a home so that our trained monitoring agents can jump into action when it matters most. While AI detects individuals approaching, our trained agents make the determination on how to respond.”

Schneider notes that this human-in-the-loop model is designed to harness the speed and efficiency of AI while leaving the final judgment in critical - and often life saving situations - to the trained agents.

As policymakers and regulators begin to take a closer look at AI and consumer data practices, new standards will inevitably emerge. But trust cannot be something companies wait to address until it is mandated. It must be earned and maintained every day.

Looking ahead, it’s clear that privacy will play a defining role in shaping the home security market. The next generation of systems will be smarter, faster, and more proactive. But they will also need to be more transparent, more controllable, and more aligned with the expectations of the people they serve.

Companies that prioritize customer control and transparency are better positioned to stand out in a competitive market, where trust is paramount. This may seem like a tall order. However, Schneider believes it’s non-negotiable, adding “we believe it’s our responsibility to meaningfully reduce crime while upholding our customers’ and our community’s trust.”

Disclosure: The consumer sentiment study referenced above was conducted by my company, Prosper Insights & Analytics . This is the same dataset used by the National Retail Federation, and available from Amazon Web Services, Bloomberg, and the London Stock Exchange Group for economic benchmarking.