Open-source private home security camera system (end-to-end encryption)
I needed a security camera inside my house, one that would send motion notifications to my smartphone and would allow me to livestream remotely. However, I could not find one that I could trust due to privacy concerns. Many of them upload the plaintext of videos to their servers and none is fully open-source as far as I know. Therefore, I decided to use my spare time to build one from scratch. Called Privastead (as in Private Homestead), it uses OpenMLS for end-to-end encryption (between the camera local hub and the smartphone) and is mostly implemented in Rust (except for part of the…
Open-source private home security camera system (end-to-end encryption) launched on November 30, 2024 with 551 votes, #42 of 4,990 launches that month and more than 99% of that year's launches. The site was still online in September 2026, 1 year on.
In plain words
Privastead is an open-source home security camera system designed for users concerned about privacy. It enables motion notifications and remote livestreaming to smartphones using end-to-end encryption via OpenMLS, ensuring video data remains encrypted between the camera hub and mobile device. Built primarily in Rust, the system is fully open-source and avoids uploading unencrypted footage to external servers. It is intended for homeowners seeking trustworthy security monitoring without compromising data privacy.
written from the facts on this page · September 2026
From the sources
A privacy-preserving Raspberry Pi home security camera that uses advanced end-to-end encryption. - secluso/core
Private DIY home security for Raspberry Pi, with encrypted remote access and a 5-minute software setup. Secluso is a private home security camera system for Raspberry Pi. Watch live video, get alerts, and open recordings from your phone without handing your footage to a cloud provider. If you need help choosing hardware or a VPS, Build Your Own Guide gives you hardware suggestions and a simple starting path. After setup, use the mobile app to check in remotely, review recent events, and open encrypted clips. See WHITE_PAPER.md for the full security model, including the untrusted-relay design, forward secrecy, and post-compromise security. See SECURITY.md for how to report a vulnerability.…from github.com
In the maker’s words, at launch
I needed a security camera inside my house, one that would send motion notifications to my smartphone and would allow me to livestream remotely. However, I could not find one that I could trust due to privacy concerns. Many of them upload the plaintext of videos to their servers and none is fully open-source as far…
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Open-source private home security camera system (end-to-end encryption)May 2026 · github.com · ▲137Hey everyone, I previously introduced an open source private home security camera in 2024, which uses OpenMLS for end-to-end encryption: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=42284412. It was called Privastead then and it's now renamed to Secluso. John Kaczman found my project from here and has been working on it with me over the last year and half. We've made a lot of improvements to the software, which we would like to share with you: - You can now set this up on your Raspberry Pi in less than 5 minutes with no technical expertise using our easy-to-use GUI deploy tool. We've…
Update: Open-source private home security camera(end-to-end encryption)2025 · github.com · ▲17Several months ago, I posted in Show HN (https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=42284412) about this project (previously named Privastead, now changed to Secluso). It's a privacy-preserving home security camera that uses OpenMLS for end-to-end encryption between the camera and the mobile app. The post received a good amount of attention and there were many good comments. Since then, my project cofounder and I have made major improvements to the project. The project previously would act as a hub for an IP camera, which was otherwise closed source. But now, our camera software can…
- IMI made a tiny camera with super long battery life2024 · toaster.llc · ▲843
Hey HN! A few years ago someone kept trying to steal my motorcycle, so I decided to make a small camera with really long battery life to catch them. The hardware/software is totally open source, but the companion app only supports macOS currently. (I'm a big fan of native apps, and didn't want to block releasing on Linux/Windows support.) I wrote some blog posts about the process: PCB design: https://toaster.llc/blog/pcb Enclosure design: https://toaster.llc/blog/enclosure Image pipeline:…
Privacy-first home security on mobile with smart alerts2021 · ai-cam.app · ▲51AiCam turns an unused iPhone into an advanced home security camera with full privacy protection. AiCam can be used for home security, child monitoring, nanny monitoring, elderly care and pet monitoring. With AiCam, you have a mobile and smart home security camera that you could bring to remote sites
ROOT (Software)Jan 2026 · rootprivacy.com · ▲6Hey Hacker News! The past few months I’ve been working on this open-source software stack that makes it easy to build your own privacy-first security camera. When searching for a security camera (e.g. Google Nest, Amazon Ring..) that guarantees privacy I was surprised to find out there’s no such option, apart from going the old-school route. Many of the big players also had major privacy scandals. It has gotten even worse over the last couple of months with Amazon Ring now working together with Flock Safety, a company helping law enforcement with mass surveillance. Using the ROOT software…
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