How to Choose the Right Mobile Surveillance Unit for Your Business

There’s no question that mobile surveillance units fill several gaps left by traditional security solutions. 

Each mobile surveillance trailer is equipped with towering camera mounts, independent energy sources like solar panels, and remote monitoring capabilities. These units offer flexibility, deter crime, and are a cost-effective alternative to round-the-clock security guards.

But while the basic concepts of mobile surveillance units are fairly similar across the board, not all units are created equally. 

The differences in features, reliability, and vendors can have a crucial impact on the effectiveness of the system. By carefully researching and considering your unit and vendor options, you set your business up for a safer, more secure future.

To help you through the process, we’ve put together a guide of features and factors to consider when deciding which mobile security system is the right fit for your business.

Evaluating the Mobile Security Unit Itself

An effective mobile security system boils down to three key aspects: detection, deterrence, and management. If the system is lacking in any of those areas, it isn’t doing the job it could be—creating more work for your team and allowing security threats to slip through the cracks.

Detection Capabilities

Key Features to Consider:

• Range of detections
• Real-time intelligence and alerts
• Third-party partnerships 
• AI-enhanced search features

Even with remote monitoring capabilities, humans don’t have the capacity to stare at screens forever—we can’t even last five minutes. This makes automated detection an essential feature. 

While motion detection features can be useful, too many alerts can quickly lead to alert fatigue. Finding a provider with third-party alert monitoring service partnerships can avoid some of these pitfalls, but the detection software itself is what really does the heavy lifting.

Advanced detection—with the ability to distinguish people from animals and swaying branches—takes motion detection a step further, but agentic AI is where the game truly changes. AI-enhanced detection can analyze situations and issues like never before, filtering out false alerts and improving with every passing day. 

Real-time detection isn’t the only place AI excels: AI-enhanced search features allow you to effortlessly find relevant footage with simple searches such as “man in a red hat.”

Camera types offered should also be considered, as different types of cameras excel in various areas. Thermal cameras, for example, are able to “see” in the dark, detecting midnight threats, seeing through camouflage, and flagging extreme changes in temperature (like fires).

Deterrent Capabilities

Key Features to Consider:

• Unit visibility
• Floodlights and targeted spotlights
• Talk-down capabilities (prerecorded, live operator, or AI-generated)
• AI-triggered responses or manual responses
• Employee-activated options

Deterrence starts with an easily visible mobile security system. If it’s easy to spot the cameras and easy to understand their purpose, many would-be criminals choose to avoid the chance of being caught on camera.

But just noticing the mobile security unit won’t deter every wrongdoer. That’s why it’s essential to have capabilities that allow for an immediate reaction once an issue has been spotted. Mobile units equipped with loudspeakers and lights are able to provide this reaction, but the effectiveness and speed depend on several factors. 

Talk down messages can be pre-recorded, come from live operators, or be generated by agentic AI. Pre-recorded messages are simple and automatically triggered, though some perpetrators will recognize that this blanket response was triggered by motion instead of someone actively watching them. Live operators can deliver custom warnings, but unless you’re paying someone to constantly respond to alerts, there could be a significant delay between the detection and the response. AI-generated messages offer the best of all worlds, responding to situations instantly with custom messages, while offering the perception that someone is watching.

Motion-triggered floodlights provide another instant response, but targeted floodlights—much like custom talk down warnings—take it a step further by proving you know exactly where the perpetrator is.

Scalability

Key Features to Consider:

• Frictionless to deploy and manage
• Proven track record for delivering and managing units
• VMS capabilities to handle large number of units
• Ability to stream from multiple units simultaneously 

Scalability is a crucial factor for any business. It should be easy to add or subtract any number of mobile security units because a seamless experience makes your security that much tighter. 

If the unit provider also offers VMS, that software should be able to handle additional units without any additional hassle.

Evaluating the Mobile Unit Health and Protection Plans

Reliability is essential when it comes to security services. 

Crime doesn’t sleep; neither can your protection. This means choosing a mobile security system with strong physical and cyber protection as well as accessible service and maintenance assistance.

Service and Maintenance

Key Features to Consider:

• 24/7 in-house, U.S.-based support
• Unit health reporting
• Self-healing capabilities
• Maintenance offerings 

New security measures often take the spotlight at companies, but testing and maintenance are just important. When figuring out which mobile security unit will be the best fit for your company, it’s important to consider the support and maintenance features available. 

No matter how good it is, no equipment lasts forever. Mobile security units should have a way to convey their health status so issues can be addressed before they cause problems. Self-healing capabilities can automatically correct certain issues and go a long way when it comes to reducing service needs.

Vendors may provide maintenance if your units are part of a subscription agreement, but many companies leave the maintenance up to you if you purchase the unit outright. Either way however, 24/7 service support lines are an essential consideration.

Physical Protection

Key Features to Consider:

• Exposed vs hidden wiring
• Unit locks
• Tamper-proof measures

The physical protection of units should be taken very seriously as damage inflicted could foreshadow a more serious crime. 

Problematic design factors like exposed wiring can make it all too easy for wire cutters to do serious damage. Sensitive components should be safely locked away where possible to prevent tampering. 

Cyber Protection

Key Features to Consider:

• Dedicated, reliable cellular transmission 
• Encrypted video
• Secure, private cloud

Remote monitoring makes the physical security of the unit only half the battle; anything connected to the internet needs to have robust cybersecurity measures in place.

Ideally, the unit would use a dedicated cellular connection to transmit encrypted video to a secure, private cloud. As it’s easier to intercept and compromise data on a public network, the “private” aspect of this connection is essential. 

Evaluating the Vendor

The mobile security units themselves are front-and-center when it comes to picking which system will be best for your business, but you can tell a lot about the quality of a product by looking at the vendor it comes from. 

Track Record

Key Features to Consider:

• Number of units in the field
• Partnerships with established businesses and organizations
• Public research efforts

Companies don’t often publicly disclose the exact number of units they have in the field, but they should be able to give you a rough idea. (Bonus points if the vendor is partnered with established, reputable brands.)

It speaks volumes if the vendor has virtually no product currently in use. Your security is too important to trust to a company with little to no real-world testing and experience. 

A vendor’s involvement with public research efforts takes this concept to the next level. It shows that this company is not only invested in improving the security industry as a whole, but also is so confident in the product that it is unafraid of actual, measured results being published.

Certifications and Patents

Key Features to Consider:

• SOC2 Type 2: An auditor’s report that attests to the operational effectiveness of a service
• ISO 9001 certification: A formal, third-party verification of an organization’s quality management system
• Number of patents related to mobile security units

The vendor should be able to provide credible third-party verifications and certifications of its mobile security unit.

In addition, having multiple patents relating to mobile security units shows that the company is committed both to its product and to innovation in the field.

Future-Oriented

Key Features to Consider:

• Adoption of AI
• Regular advancements and improvements

Both security and security threats are evolving faster than ever. A security company has to keep pace with these changes to ensure the best, most comprehensive measures possible. 

AI—agentic AI in particular—is the driving force behind most of these modern-day advancements. From increasing efficiency to providing instantaneous reactions to crime, the applications of AI in security are virtually limitless. Vendors investing in AI developments will quickly bring stronger offerings to the market.

The LVT Difference

LiveView Technologies provides top-of-the-line mobile surveillance units to protect businesses across the country. LVT has worked hard to check all the boxes with an innovative, secure product. If you want to learn more about mobile security units, download our MSU Buyer’s Guide.

If you’re interested in seeing the LVT difference for yourself, contact us today for a demonstration.