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HACKED HIKVISION GREY MARKET CAMERA’S vs OFFICIAL ENGLISH VERSIONS

Official HIKVISION DISCLAIMER 

What is the difference between officially distributed English Hikvision Cameras and NVR’s vs Chinese sourced and hacked versions. Here we’ll aim to keep you informed of the risks associated with grey market variants and why genuine UK versions should be your first choice when security matters.

Hikvision is without a doubt the largest, most innovative and best choice when it comes to home security. Their Research and development alone outstrip every other competitor in the market place by a factor of 20. This ensures that Hikvision remain at the forefront of the home security market worldwide.

With that being said, Hikvision’s market leading equipment can be found from numerous sellers online via Ebay and many other online market places. Usually you’ll find these merchants selling Hikvision Grey Market IP Camera’s & NVR’s that have had their default language changed from Chinese to English and also running firmware versions that are a few revisions behind their official English release. These versions are nearly always models designed for the Chinese domestic market, where the camera or NVR has had its firmware (software) changed to enable us international folk to set them up without learning Chinese.

To do so, the seller must first purchase a Chinese domestic market model (or Hikvision Grey Market version), unbox and ‘flash’ a modified firmware that has been hex edited to allow English language menus. Common issues with this process are-

  • Outdated & modified firmware versions
  • Zero official support
  • Non upgradeable firmware
  • Buggy menus and performance
  • No warranty whatsoever
  • Malware or backdoors in equipment
  • No Support 

In addition to the above issues, a faulty Hikvision Grey Market Camera or NVR will then be subject to-

  • Returning the camera to China (at your expense)
  • Awaiting a non official replacement from China
  • Storefront may have disappeared by the time a return is needed

Hacked versions are now beginning to see more and more issues as grey market cameras proliferate the market. Stories of ‘bricked’ (inoperable) cameras litter google results, usually involving even more ‘hacks’ to get them up and running again. The nominal price difference is nothing compared to the risk of a hacked and modified product living on your network 24/7 with full internet access.

If security matters, choose GENUINE HIKVISION equipment from official distributors ( NETVIEW CCTV Ltd ) and rest easy knowing you can upgrade your firmware at anytime, and have piece of mind with Hikvision’s rock solid 3 year warranty backing you up. Look for the official Authorised Partner ID


Authorised Hikvision Wholesaler


Netview CCTV Tel: 01163800838 or 02036370383

Advantages of purchasing Official Genuine equipment offers many advantages such as

  • Equipment can be updaterd with the Latest Firmware
  • UK Based Technical Support (Free of course)
  • Top quality award winning performance 
  • 3 Year UK Warranty on Recorders & 2 Year Warranty on Cameras
  • Apps for mobile & Tablets available free of charge
  • Professional Surveillance software Free of charge
  • Cloud P2P facility for easy remote viewing
  • Free Hikvision Domain Name System (DDNS) account
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