CheapSecurity
A free, self-hosted security camera system that runs on cheap boards like a Raspberry Pi, with no monthly cloud fees and no footage leaving your house.
🔗 Visit CheapSecurity
Description
Most home security camera systems charge a monthly fee to store your footage in someone else's cloud, and by definition that means a third party has access to video of your home. CheapSecurity flips that: it's software you run yourself on inexpensive hardware you already own or can buy cheaply, so recordings stay on your own storage and there's no subscription to cancel later.
It's a free, open-source (AGPLv3) Python application designed for Linux single-board computers like Raspberry Pi or Orange Pi. It includes a web interface with live MJPEG streaming, frame-difference motion detection, automatic storage management by age and disk space, and alerting via Telegram and email with attachments.
💬 Our review
The short version: if you want basic home or small-office camera coverage without paying a cloud subscription forever, CheapSecurity on a $50-$100 Raspberry Pi is free software doing a genuinely useful job.
Against Frigate, ZoneMinder, and MotionEye — the other established self-hosted options — CheapSecurity's pitch is simplicity and low hardware requirements rather than sophistication: its motion detection is frame-difference based, not the AI object detection Frigate offers (which can distinguish a person from a passing car), so expect more false alerts in exchange for running on much cheaper hardware. For a hobbyist or small office wanting basic recording and alerting without a subscription, that tradeoff is reasonable; for anyone wanting to filter out cats and shadows automatically, Frigate's extra hardware requirements are probably worth paying for.
📊 Global score
🤖 AI-enriched data
Logiciel libre sous licence AGPLv3, aucun coût récurrent.
Pros
Auto-hébergé avec souveraineté des données
Interface web streaming MJPEG
Intégration Telegram et email
Gestion automatique du stockage
Compatible matériel bas coût
Cons
Linux uniquement
Détection de mouvement moins sophistiquée qu'une détection IA
Configuration manuelle nécessaire