We get asked this on almost every first call. The short version: you don’t normally need a building permit to install security cameras on your own property in Ontario, but there are privacy rules that decide where you can point them and what you can record. Here’s the practical rundown. This is general information from an installer, not legal advice; if you’re in a grey area, talk to a lawyer.

Building Permits

Security cameras are low-voltage devices. Mounting a camera and running Cat6 cable doesn’t trigger a building permit in Ottawa the way structural work or new electrical circuits do. If the job requires a new 120 V outlet for a recorder or a PoE switch, that electrical work should be done by a licensed electrician, but the cameras themselves are not permit work. Condo owners are a different story: check your condo’s rules before mounting anything on exterior walls or common elements.

Where You Can Point Them

On residential property, the general principle is that you can record your own property and what’s visible from it, such as your driveway, front walk and yard. What you should avoid is aiming cameras into places where other people have a reasonable expectation of privacy, most obviously a neighbour’s windows, backyard or side door. A camera that happens to catch a sliver of the sidewalk or the street is normal; a camera whose main view is the neighbour’s patio is asking for a dispute. Good placement solves this: we’ll angle and, if needed, mask parts of the image so you cover what matters and nothing else. See our placement guide for the details.

Businesses: PIPEDA and Signage

Businesses in Ontario that record customers or the public are collecting personal information, which brings federal privacy law (PIPEDA) into play. In practice that means having a legitimate reason for the cameras, limiting them to what’s needed for that reason, posting clear signage that video surveillance is in use, keeping footage secure, and not keeping it longer than necessary. Employee monitoring has its own considerations; recording staff areas like break rooms or change rooms is a hard no.

Audio Recording

Video and audio are treated differently. Many cameras now have built-in microphones, and recording conversations you’re not part of is where people get into trouble. For most homes and businesses, our advice is simple: leave audio recording off unless you have a specific, defensible reason for it and have thought through the privacy side. It’s a setting we’ll walk through with you during setup.

Footage Retention

There’s no single law that says “keep footage for X days”, but the privacy principle for businesses is to keep it only as long as you need it. For most properties that’s somewhere between 14 and 30 days, which conveniently lines up with what a properly sized recorder holds. We cover storage sizing in how long security cameras keep footage.

If you want a system that covers your property properly and stays on the right side of these rules, call 613-691-1091 or request a quote. And if your project extends into broader AV work, our recommended partner avgeeks.ca is a solid resource.