Raleigh police urge residents to register security cameras for ConnectRaleigh

Raleigh police are asking residents and businesses to add their security cameras to ConnectRaleigh, a voluntary registry built to help officers find nearby video faster when a burglary, shooting or other emergency unfolds in a Wake County neighborhood. The City of Raleigh updated its registration page May 21, 2026, and says the system is designed to give police real-time information for data-guided emergency responses.

The city says the program creates an interactive map of security cameras that is accessible only to the Raleigh Police Department. In practice, that means police can see where cameras are located, then contact owners more quickly to request footage when a crime happens nearby. The Raleigh Police Department Foundation describes ConnectRaleigh as a signature public safety initiative and says registration does not give police live access to cameras.

That distinction has been central since Raleigh police first rolled out the program in early 2024. At public listening sessions in February and March 2024, including meetings at Abbotts Creek Park, Brier Creek Park, Jaycee Park and John Chavis Memorial Park, residents pressed officers on privacy concerns raised at the first public meeting on Feb. 12, 2024. Police said the program offered two participation options: simple registration, which shares a camera’s location and contact information, and integration, which can allow real-time access to certain camera systems.

Those two options carry different tradeoffs. Public reporting said registration is free, while integration can involve a fee through the technology provider Fusus. It also said some popular consumer systems, including Ring and Nest, do not support the integration feature. Raleigh officials said in January 2026 that the city would continue using Fusus as the ConnectRaleigh platform as part of broader police technology upgrades.

Police have pointed to a real-world payoff. By September 2025, Raleigh officers were describing the program as a tool that improves crime-solving efficiency, and WRAL reported that it helped investigators identify a suspect in a bank-robbery case and make an arrest in about 10 minutes. CBS 17 reported that police said the camera-sharing system had launched in early 2024, while similar Fusus-based systems had already been used in Rocky Mount and Fayetteville.

The question for Raleigh neighborhoods is straightforward: register a camera, and police may reach the right footage faster when seconds matter. Leave it out, and the camera stays private, but it will not be part of the police map that now sits at the center of ConnectRaleigh.