Its the worst nightmare that parents can ever have: that sweet and efficient nanny whos been watching their kids while they were at work has actually been physically and verbally abusing them behind their backs. Sadly, the news reminds us that nobody is beyond suspicion. There are cases of children being abused by neighbours, relatives, even parents of friends.

However, very few parents can afford to stay at home all the time. More and more women are deciding to go back to work, and even a full-time mom needs to have me time away from the kidseven if its a day off with friends, or an afternoon to do the groceries without a toddler throwing a tantrum in the middle of the candy aisle.

The best way that parents can protect their children 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and still have a life is to install security cameras as part of their security systems. While they wont be able to tell you when a potential babysitter is actually a psychopath in disguise, it can alert you as soon as anything out of the ordinary occurs.

Remember, children cant defend themselves. They may not have the verbal skills to tell you if theyve been hurt, and even older kids can be frightened into silence. Abusers will tell them that its a secret, and that bad things happen to kids who break secrets or the deep sense of shame will stop them from opening up. The security cameras, in this case, acts as their guardian and their voice.

The security cameras also provide parents with important evidence to take the abuser to court. Unfortunately, the legal system will favour an abuser in the sense that it is the victims burden to prove that something happened. Children are not, by court standards, reliable witnesses. But actual video tapes are irrefutable and will put an abuser behind bars.

Home security cameras wont just catch the worst possible acts of child violence and abuse, but also irresponsible babysitters who may not be cruel but are far too careless to be given the responsibility of watching your child. You can also catch them if they break ruleslike inviting friends over, or using your computer and other personal itemsor if they steal money or jewellery the moment you leave the house.

Todays home security technology allows parents to set up very small cameras in very unobtrusive areas. Its possible to have a camera imbedded in a smoke detector, a bathroom light fixture, or even an air conditioning vent. Children wont be able to point them out, and even adults wont notice that theyre there.

There are many types of security cameras: black and white versus colored, hard-wired versus wireless, not to mention the full spectrum of brands and added features that can radically affect a products price range. This means that youll always be able to find something that suits your lifestyle, preference or budget and remember, any security camera (even the most basic) is better than no security camera at all.