topic Re: Accessing local video recordings through Arlo Ultra Base Station in Arlo Ultra

Accessing local video recordings through Arlo Ultra Base Station for multiple users

Maz_Enk — Tue, 05 Oct 2021 16:53:55 GMT

Anybody have a home-hack to enable multiple users (e.g. partners) to access locally stored recordings on an Arlo Base Station? At present, the software seems to allow only the “main user to view locally stored recordings.

In other words, I’m currently restricted from viewing recordings on hardware I own, which is quite annoying.

Arlo tech support have highlighted they’re looking into this as a “feature” in upcoming releases, but in the meantime, has someone put there developed a workaround?

Re: Accessing local video recordings through Arlo Ultra Base Station

StephenB — Tue, 05 Oct 2021 11:55:25 GMT

@Maz_Enk wrote:
Anybody have a home-hack to enable multiple users (e.g. partners) to access locally stored recordings on an Arlo Base Station? At present, the software seems to allow only the “main user to view locally stored recordings.

If that were possible, it would be a serious security issue.

Anyway, as far as I am aware there is no workaround.

Re: Accessing local video recordings through Arlo Ultra Base Station

Edinburgh_lad1 — Tue, 05 Oct 2021 19:02:30 GMT

I'm sorry but how would this be a security issue? In a number of security systems, home users are able to access videos, not just one user. And to be clear: when you buy a security system, it's usually for the whole household, not just one person (i.e. it's not a personal security system). I'm afraid Arlo is behind times big time with their approach to who can access local videos and whether it's actually possible in terms of local storage.

Re: Accessing local video recordings through Arlo Ultra Base Station

Maz_Enk — Tue, 05 Oct 2021 22:23:17 GMT

Edinburgh_lad1, I’d like to say I think your comments are 100% on point.

It’s frustrating to pay top dollar for kit, only to find the human thinking around the tech is not of the same calibre.

I feel that Arlo should offer free subscription services until a point at which they “fix” this problem. I’ve asked as much a number of times, only to be told “we can’t”.

Re: Accessing local video recordings through Arlo Ultra Base Station

StephenB — Wed, 06 Oct 2021 12:34:35 GMT

@Edinburgh_lad1 wrote:
I'm sorry but how would this be a security issue?

FIrst of all, I agree that more than one user should be able to access the videos (and that it ought to be possible to use a home NAS or home PC as the local repository).

Of course it would be different if Arlo had designed their system to support that multiuser access securely. But they haven't. They've designed the base (and home wifi-connected cameras) so they can only be accessed from the Arlo app and the Arlo Cloud and some locked-down partner applications. Any workaround you could find now would be bypassing the network security that Arlo has built into their devices.

In other words, if you could manage to access the videos directly from the base, then whatever hack you used would also be a potential attack that others could use.