Comcast : New Security Camera Features Help Consumers Spot Package Theft 'Grinches' This Holiday Season

Comcast today announced a new set of security camera features designed to help consumers better spot package theft 'Grinches' this holiday season, including the ability to filter motion-triggered activity by people or vehicles. The company also released results from a new nationwide survey around Americans' growing concerns about package theft.

Last year, UPS delivered more than 750 million packages between Thanksgiving and New Year's Eve, and 2018 online sales are expected to exceed last year's numbers. According to the new survey findings, commissioned by Comcast and conducted by Wakefield Research, nearly one in four people report being a victim of package theft and nearly half know someone who has had a package stolen. The data is even higher among Millennials, with one in three having had a package stolen and nearly 60 percent knowing someone who has been a victim.

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'Home security cameras, when integrated with our other Xfinity services, offer great peace of mind so our customers can check-in on their home from anywhere, anytime,' said Eric Schaefer, General Manager and Senior Vice President of Xfinity Services. 'We make it easy, for instance, for a parent to check their home camera in real time to make sure their child got off the bus or check to see if a package has arrived.'

The Comcast survey also found:

• 72% of Americans who live in a house or townhome take security measures to avoid having a package stolen, including having it delivered to a friend, family member or neighbor's home (33%), having it held at the shipping center (23%), canceling plans to wait for the package (21%), shipping it to work (21%), and staying home from work (22%).
• While nearly three in four (74%) of Americans believe having a visible home security camera is effective at preventing home package theft, only 31% actually have one.
• Of those who have a home security camera, 74% say they monitor their footage more often during the holidays.

Evy Poumpouras, security expert and former secret service special agent, said, 'More packages will arrive on people's doorsteps over the next few weeks than any other time of year and theft has become an increasing concern among homeowners. There are simple and easy steps consumers can take to protect themselves, from signing up for real time package tracking alerts to installing a home security camera to keep an eye on deliveries when they're not home.'

Comcast's Xfinity customers who purchase the Xfinity indoor + outdoor camera and add 24/7 video recording will have access to up to 10 days of video history. The 24/7 video recording service uses artificial intelligence (AI) technology to help zoom in on the actual activity taking place and bookmarks those events for faster viewing. Xfinity's AI technology also offers the ability to filter on people or vehicles making the events even more meaningful, so users can spend less time searching and more time watching.

To delight Xfinity Home customers and make a connection to a beloved holiday thief, The Grinch, Comcast's engineers added a few Easter Egg voice commands where Xfinity Home customers can say 'Xfinity Home, find the Grinch' into the X1 voice remote to access still images from their home security camera on the television or 'Xfinity Home, the Grinch is here' to turn their lights green.

Illumination and Universal Pictures, a part of the Comcast family, just released The Grinch, based on Dr. Seuss' beloved holiday classic. The Grinch is featured in three Xfinity ads, including one attempting to steal packages inside an Xfinity Home and caught on the camera while setting off the window sensors.