Physical security isn’t just a facilities issue anymore. It’s squarely in IT’s lap, especially when the cameras themselves run on your network. And when you're managing multiple locations, the old DVR/NVR approach doesn't cut it, which is why you need a guide for the best cloud based security cameras.

Cloud-based security cameras transform surveillance. They're easier to deploy, simpler to scale, and include smart features built for real business outcomes. This guide explores cloud security cameras available today, detailing pros, cons, and specs important to IT.

Why Cloud Cameras Are Reshaping Business Security

Legacy CCTV systems force IT to juggle tape swaps, DVR failures, and firewall rules. The best cloud based security cameras hand off those burdens, so teams spend less time on hardware upkeep and more on security strategy. You get centralized configuration, automated updates, and elastic storage, all managed through a simple web console.

• Footage is stored securely in the cloud or on hybrid onboard storage.

• Admins can access live or historical video from anywhere.

• Features like AI search, heatmaps, and anomaly detection turn passive footage into actionable data.

In retail, healthcare, education, and beyond, the shift to cloud surveillance is about more than security. It’s about visibility, automation, and operational intelligence, all managed from the same pane of glass.

Comparing The Best Cloud Based Security Cameras

Cloud camera solutions vary. Some favor pure cloud workflows with minimal on-premise gear, while others balance local redundancy with remote visibility. Some allow mixing and matching vendors to protect existing investments. Evaluate how each handles storage, analytics, and failover to match your operational priorities.

The top five cloud-based camera platforms compare as follows:

Key differences include Meraki's all-in-one simplicity, Verkada's analytics capabilities, and Eagle Eye's hardware-agnostic approach.

1. Meraki MV

Meraki MV puts the network team in control, bundling storage, analytics, and access in one managed service. You configure cameras from the same dashboard you use for switches and wireless, eliminating firewall complexity and third-party servers. Licenses auto-renew and cameras update overnight, so your security gear is always up to date.

4K Ultra HD (MV63X)

The MV63X’s 8 MP sensor captures up to 4K video at 15 fps, giving IT teams the resolution they need to read license plates or zoom in on distant doorways without extra cameras. It's a 101.3° field of view that balances coverage and detail, allowing you to monitor wide corridors and parking lots with a single device. 

The rugged, IP67-rated dome housing holds up in harsh outdoor environments, while the mini-dome form factor blends neatly into drop ceilings or wall mounts.

Up to 1 TB Onboard SSD

Each MV63X includes a high-endurance 1 TB SSD that records continuously or on motion, so you get days or weeks of local retention before offloading to the cloud. This “cloud-augmented edge storage” model reduces upstream bandwidth, as only metadata and alerts are transmitted by default across your network. 

If the network drops, local recordings remain safe and are automatically synced when connectivity returns.

Motion Search 2.0 Incident Review

Motion Search 2.0's refined detection algorithm finds every pixel-level change, allowing you to type 'car' or draw a box around a suspicious area and directly access relevant events. It reduces false positives by ignoring leaves, rain, or shadows, so your team spends minutes, not hours, investigating incidents.

Motion Recap generates composite images that summarize activity in a single frame, streamlining post-event reviews.

MV Sense People Counting & Heatmaps

With MV Sense, on-camera analytics tally headcounts and generate heatmaps that reveal foot-traffic patterns over time. Retailers use these insights to optimize store layouts and staffing, while facility managers monitor occupancy for safety and compliance. Because analytics run locally on the camera, there’s no extra licensing or servers — just actionable data in your Meraki dashboard.

2. Verkada CB Series

Verkada's CB Series provides an intelligence platform for surveillance, pairing cloud analytics with local caching for uninterrupted recording. The vendor handles cloud hosting and software updates, freeing IT from storage planning. Deep-learning models process video on-device, so you get real-time alerts without spinning up extra servers.

4K Sensor With 3× Optical Zoom

The CB62-TE telephoto bullet camera’s varifocal lens (8–20 mm) delivers crisp 4K resolution at distances up to 50 m, so you can identify faces or read signs from afar without multiple cameras. Its Ambarella CV22S chipset handles zoomed-in footage smoothly, preserving detail even in low-light conditions thanks to powerful IR LEDs.

License Plate Recognition At Highway Speeds

Verkada’s built-in LPR uses the same edge processor to capture plates at up to 80 mph across three lanes simultaneously, critical for logistics hubs or gated communities. Once indexed, you can search for specific vehicles by plate number in seconds, streamlining investigations and access audits.

Face Match Search Across Sites

Face Match taps Verkada’s People Analytics to fingerprint faces and then track individuals across all cameras in your estate. It automatically flags matches and enables security teams to build a timeline of a person’s movements, making it ideal for high-security facilities or franchised retail chains that require centralized oversight.

Occupancy Trends Heat-Mapping

Occupancy Trends aggregates foot-traffic data over days or weeks, then visualizes it as color-coded maps. Retailers spot high-demand areas and adjust product placement; corporate campuses verify compliance with density rules. All processing happens on-device, so there’s no extra cloud compute fee.

3. Avigilon Alta Ava Cameras

Avigilon Alta Ava focuses on privacy-first cloud storage and AI insights. All footage lands in the Avigilon cloud portal, where built-in tools surface anomalies and sound events. You skip appliance installs and storage sizing, and each camera benefits from continuous software updates.

360-Degree 12 MP Panoramic View

The Avigilon Ava 360 fisheye camera provides a full 360° field of view with a single 12MP sensor, replacing multiple fixed-lens cameras in open spaces such as lobbies or warehouses. 

Its IR illumination keeps images sharp at night, and the integrated distortion correction in the Ava Aware portal lets you switch between globe, dual-view, or dewarped corridors for easy monitoring.

Real-Time Anomaly Detection AI

On-camera AI watches each scene for unusual behavior, like a bag left behind or a person moving against the flow, and sends instant alerts. This proactive monitoring accelerates response times and cuts down on false alarms, since the system learns normal patterns and flags only genuine anomalies.

Sound Classification Analytics

Integrated mics feed audio to Avigilon’s classifiers, which detect events such as breaking glass or aggressive voices. When a match occurs, the platform tags both video and audio, so you can review exactly what happened and when, without listening to hours of silence.

Dynamic Privacy Masking

Automatically mask sensitive areas,like ATM PIN pads or private office windows,while keeping the rest of the scene in focus. Masks adapt to camera pan/tilt changes, ensuring compliance in spaces with strict privacy requirements.

4. Rhombus R Series

Rhombus R Series combines video and environment sensors in a unified cloud platform. The system streams video and telemetry together, providing context around temperature, air quality, and motion. IT teams get a unified console for both camera health and site conditions, reducing tool sprawl.

4K HDR Telephoto Bullet (R500)

The R500 bullet delivers 4K resolution with a built-in telephoto lens, plus high-dynamic-range imaging to balance bright sunlight and shadowed zones. It’s purpose-built for perimeter or long-range views, capturing crisp license plates or faces at distances beyond 30 m.

BLE Asset-Tag Tracking Through Cameras

Rhombus cameras double as Bluetooth receivers, linking video footage to tagged assets or personnel wearing BLE badges. This unified view helps you trace an asset’s path and automatically pull up the corresponding clips, ideal for inventory control or secure-area monitoring.

Vape And Smoke Detection Sensors

Paired with Rhombus’s E2 environmental sensor, the R Series can detect vape plumes or smoke triggers via dedicated chemical and particulate sensors. When a sensor fires, the system pulls synchronized camera clips, giving investigators precise context without invasive audio recording.

Ten-Year Hardware Warranty

Rhombus stands behind its hardware with a decade-long warranty, minimizing total cost of ownership and simplifying budget forecasting. Software updates and new feature rollouts flow automatically through the cloud, so deployed cameras get better over time.

5. Eagle Eye EC Series

Eagle Eye EC Series adapts to your existing camera estate, ingesting streams from any ONVIF-compliant device. You avoid forklift upgrades and gain cloud storage, AI insights, and centralized management. It offers a straightforward path to cloud surveillance without discarding functional hardware.

Camera Bridge For Any ONVIF Camera

Eagle Eye’s Camera Bridge appliance ingests streams from analog and IP cameras that follow the ONVIF standard, converting them into encrypted cloud streams. It supports PTZ control, metadata, and audio, so legacy installations become first-class citizens in your cloud setup. Deployment is plug-and-play; just connect the Bridge to your network and point cameras to it.

Smart Video Search AI For Objects And People

With Smart Video Search, you type natural-language queries like “blue van,” “forklift,” or “person running,” and the cloud backend scans all recorded footage in minutes. Indexing happens automatically as video arrives, so new events are searchable within seconds. This slashes investigation time and helps security teams respond faster to incidents.

REST Video API For Custom Integrations

Eagle Eye’s REST Video API provides programmatic access to live feeds, clips, time-lapses, and metadata, so you can embed surveillance data into building management systems, access control platforms, or custom dashboards. 

It uses standard HTTP methods and JSON, making integration straightforward for developers. Alerts, event logs, and analytics hooks let you automate workflows based on video triggers.

How To Decide Between These Five Brands 

Consider these factors before choosing::

• Business size: Larger orgs may need federated access and analytics across sites.

• Industry: Retail and healthcare often require specific compliance features.

• Compliance goals: Privacy masking and secure storage can tip the scale.

• Existing infrastructure: Have ONVIF cameras already? Eagle Eye might be your best bet.

For low-hassle deployment and deep Meraki integration, MV is a strong choice. However, for full analytics or existing infrastructure blending, other vendors may be more suitable.

Cisco Meraki MV's Differentiators

Meraki MV combines thoughtful design with IT-first simplicity. It's all managed through the Meraki dashboard, alongside your switches, firewalls, and wireless, a significant advantage for busy teams juggling multiple platforms.

Key MV advantages:

• Zero NVRs: Local storage + cloud hybrid means fewer failure points.

• Licensing clarity: One license per camera, all features included.

• Data intelligence: Built-in analytics like motion search, people counting, and heat maps.

It's built for network teams who don't want to constantly manage their surveillance system.

Secure Your Business With the Best Cloud Based Security Cameras

Modern surveillance does more than record; it anticipates. Cloud cameras surface key events in real time, freeing IT from manual video hunts. They cut hardware sprawl by consolidating storage, analytics, and access in one secure platform, and they scale easily across sites, with no need for new servers or complex port rules.

For implementation, Meraki MV offers an integrated dashboard that unites cameras, networking gear, and security appliances under a single pane of glass. Hummingbird Networks pairs that simplicity with white-glove service, guiding you through design, deployment, and licensing so you avoid hidden fees or infrastructure surprises. Your team stays focused on protecting users and data, not constantly managing DVRs or fragmented systems.

Modernize your surveillance strategy. Learn more about Hummingbird Networks' Meraki security cameras.