Connect orange County
CONNECT ORANGE COUNTY is a public safety program enabling the residents of Orange County to help keep their community safe. By registering privately-owned cameras from voluntary participants, we can transform the way our deputies can respond to, solve, and deter crime.
By registering your cameras, the Orange County Sheriff’s Office will know where your cameras are located in the event of a crime or a critical incident. There is no direct access to any privately-owned cameras, and the registry is only used to request footage if an incident occurs in their vicinity.
The Orange County Sheriff’s Office is utilizing FUSUS to create stronger public-private collaborations and enable businesses and community members to work more closely with law enforcement. The FUSUS system helps increase community safety while maintaining personal privacy.
How it Works
The Orange County Sheriff’s Office camera registry is a way to easily locate the nearest cameras in a designated area during the course of an investigation, emergency event, or emergency response. In the past, investigators had to rely on eyewitnesses and piece together pertinent information over days and sometimes months. The camera registry gives private residents and business owners the ability to register their cameras to an online portal, accessible only by law enforcement.
LEVEL 1: Register Your Camera
Registering your cameras DOES NOT allow the Orange County Sheriff’s Office access to your live video stream. Instead, it:
Enables investigators to know there is a camera at your location and easily request video evidence should an incident occur
Registers your cameras on a map accessible only to the Orange County Sheriff’s Office
Increases the efficiency of direct video evidence collection
Provides contact information for camera owners to investigators
Enables us to work together to create a safer Orange County
To register your camera click here.
LEVEL 2: Integrate Your Cameras
Camera sharing allows the Orange County Sheriff’s Office access to your camera feed in case of an emergency near your location
You set your preferences
All you need is a small device that plugs into your camera system, which you can voluntarily purchase from FUSUS. Once it’s set up, it enables camera sharing based on your settings without impacting your network
For integration options click here.
FAQs
How much does it cost to register my cameras?
Registering a camera does not require any cost or additional hardware. The Orange County Sheriff’s Office will simply log your cameras on a map and will not have access to any live streaming capabilities. The registry makes it easier for investigators to contact camera owners for a digital footage request that the owner can fulfill if they wish.
Can my cameras be accessed without my knowledge?
No. Both the Orange County Sheriff’s Office and FUSUS policies require the camera owner to give explicit written permission to access cameras for any reason. If your cameras are registered, you are the only one who can access and share your video with investigators. If your cameras are integrated, camera access and settings are still controlled entirely by the camera owner.
What is the difference between registration and integration?
Registering your cameras is free and DOES NOT allow the Orange County Sheriff’s Office access to your live video stream. Registering only provides the camera location information so the Orange County Sheriff’s Office may request the footage if a crime occurs in the area. It’s still your choice whether to share the footage on a case-by-case basis.
Integrating your camera requires the purchase of a FUSUS CORE device, which allows the Orange County Sheriff’s Office conditional access to your live stream – but you set those conditions. Integrated camera owners have the ability to choose how and when their cameras are accessible to law enforcement. As an example, private businesses and apartment complexes may choose to only have their cameras accessible to Orange County Sheriff’s Office when an emergency situation arises.
Who has access to the camera map? Is my camera information subject to a disclosure in a public data request?
Only authorized Orange County Sheriff’s Office users have access to the camera registry map in their jurisdiction.
Your camera registry data is classified as protected, non-public data and is only accessible by authorized users of our system.
Can the Orange County Sheriff's Office remotely access my cameras at any time?
No. Registering cameras means the Orange County Sheriff’s Office will know where your cameras are located in the event of a crime or a critical incident. There is no direct access to any privately-owned cameras and the registry is only used to request footage if an incident occurs in their vicinity.
Will facial recognition technology be used? Artificial intelligence?
No. FUSUS does not employ facial recognition technology or integrate with any facial recognition technology systems.
FUSUS utilizes artificial intelligence to rapidly search video voluntarily provided to the system by users in order to mitigate criminal activity. That use excludes facial recognition, but may include the ability to recognize weapons, vehicles of interest, etc.
