Straight answers on how Guardian works, setup, privacy, and billing. If you can't find it here, the chat in the corner can look further, or reach out directly.
Most owners get through this in 30 to 40 minutes. Here's every step, in order, including the parts that trip people up.
Guardian doesn't sell or ship any hardware. You'll need your own camera (see the camera compatibility guide) and a small computer to run the Guardian Hub, something like a Raspberry Pi or any small Debian/Ubuntu box works. Buy both before you begin, this step is on you, not Guardian.
Pick a plan and complete checkout. This takes about two minutes and sets up your account.
Do this now, before anything else. If you skip it, your test alert later might not actually ring your phone, and you'll think something's broken when it isn't. Full tap-by-tap steps for iPhone and Android are in the Emergency Bypass guide. Budget two minutes.
Run the installer on your mini-PC. It installs the software that talks to your camera and to Guardian's cloud. This is the longest step, 15 to 20 minutes, and the part most likely to need patience: camera setup isn't fully automatic yet. You'll need to enter your camera's connection details rather than have Guardian find it for you. The setup guide walks through exactly where to find these. If you get stuck here, that's normal, contact support.
Your dashboard shows a QR code. Scan it during setup and your hub pairs securely, automatically. Nothing gets typed by hand, and this part is fully built and tested, it's the smoothest step in the whole flow.
Do this now, not later. Guardian's alerts work by calling the people on your contact list, if that list is empty, an alert has nobody to reach. Add yourself at minimum, it takes under a minute in Settings, Contacts. Don't skip this and move straight to the test alert below, a test with zero contacts won't tell you what you think it's telling you.
Turn your phone to silent (yes, actually silent, this is the point). Then walk in front of your newly paired camera. If everything's set up right, your phone rings anyway, through silent mode, because of the Emergency Bypass step you did earlier. If it doesn't ring, go back and check Step 2 before assuming anything else is wrong.
Guardian's onboarding wizard doesn't yet have its own screen for setting your arming schedule or expected access windows. During setup, this currently needs to be set up with support directly rather than entirely by yourself. That's a real gap in the product today, not something you're missing.
A phone call rings through silent mode and Do Not Disturb, but only if the number calling you is explicitly flagged to bypass those settings. This is a two-minute setup, and it has to happen before your first real alert.
When you fire your test alert, put your phone on silent first, on purpose. If it rings anyway, you're done. If it doesn't, come back to this guide before assuming anything else is broken, this is almost always the actual cause.
Your dashboard shows a shopping list of recommended, tested camera options, all WiFi models. If you buy from that list, you're on the path we know works end to end.
If you already own a wired or Power over Ethernet camera system, the honest answer is: it's not part of the officially supported v1 setup today. Guardian's guided install and QR pairing have only been built and tested against the WiFi path. If you've got an existing wired system, contact support with your camera's make and model before assuming it'll work.
The whole point of Guardian's setup is that a non-technical person can do it alone in well under an hour. Going off the supported list trades that promise for uncertainty.
Guardian's installer can scan your network and find most IP cameras automatically. Run the installer's scan option and pick your camera from the list, then enter its own password when asked.
Enter your camera's network address and login directly, usually found under your camera's network or device info settings.
This is genuinely the trickiest part of setup, and needing help here is normal. Contact support with your camera's make and model and whether the scan found anything at all.
When Guardian detects a person while armed, it starts with a push notification, then a text message about 30 seconds later if nobody responds, then an actual phone call around 90 seconds after that, then your next emergency contact if it's still not acknowledged. A real phone call rings through silent mode and Do Not Disturb, a push alone cannot.
The arming schedule, expected access windows, and disarm codes above are part of Guardian's Business plans. Guardian Home is simpler: you arm and disarm yourself, any time, with one tap, there's no schedule to set.
A fast disarm doesn't cancel an alert that already fired. If Guardian detects a person the instant before you disarm, that first notification may have already gone out.
Guardian doesn't recognize specific faces yet. It can't tell a known person outside their usual window from a stranger, both get the same alert.
A live view from the camera that triggered it, the time and location, and two options: False alarm, or Call [your emergency number].
Tap False alarm. Nothing further happens. If it happens often for the same reason, mention it to support so it can be tuned.
Look at the live view first, take the few seconds to actually look. If concerning, tap the call button, it opens your phone's dialler with your address and incident details ready to read out. Guardian doesn't make this call for you, ever.
Don't wait for a chatbot or a support reply, use the call button or dial your emergency number directly.
Every alert is logged, and a real incident can be exported as a timestamped evidence pack, footage, timeline, notes, ready for police or your insurer.
If all three check out and you still got nothing, contact support with what you expected and roughly when.
If you got a push but not the follow-up text or call, that's usually the ladder working correctly, someone acknowledged it in time, not a bug.
Tap False alarm. No charge, no fine, no consequence beyond your own incident log.
Guardian Home doesn't have expected access windows or disarm codes, it arms and disarms manually. If a repeat false alarm isn't one of the above, report it to support either way.
Guardian Home is built around manual arm and disarm: tap once to arm, tap once to disarm, any time. There's no Schedule tab because there's nothing to schedule.
Guardian's Business plans (Starter, Standard, Premium) add an auto-arm schedule (arms outside your set open hours), expected access windows (a cleaner's regular slot logged quietly instead of waking anyone), and personal disarm codes (so staff can disarm on entry, logged with who and when). These are Business features because they make the most sense with a set schedule and multiple people coming and going, a single home usually doesn't need them.
If you're on Home and want a Business plan's features, that's a plan upgrade, not a bug, contact support.
Tap Live next to any camera on the Cameras screen, or during a real alert, to open a live feed from that camera.
Guardian mints a short-lived viewing link and opens it in a new tab. Video streams peer-to-peer directly from your Guardian Hub to your device, it never passes through or gets stored on Guardian's servers.
Your Guardian Hub isn't currently reachable, the same condition that shows "Hub offline" at the top of every screen. Check the hub's mini-PC is powered on with an internet connection. If it looks fine, contact support with roughly when you tried and which camera.
A muted camera still streams live video if you tap Live, muting only stops it from triggering alerts, not from being viewable.
Push is the first rung of Guardian's alert ladder, reaching your phone even with the app in the background. It's a convenience layer, not the safety net, the SMS and voice-call ladder that follows runs regardless of whether push is on.
Settings, then Notifications, then Enable push notifications. Confirm the browser or device prompt, and this device registers.
Push can't be re-requested from inside Guardian once blocked, that's a platform rule. Re-enable it from your browser or device's own permission settings, then come back and tap Enable push notifications again.
Push is per-device. Enable it separately on each phone or tablet you want alerts on.
A push notification alone won't ring through silent mode or Do Not Disturb, only a phone call does that. Set up Emergency Bypass or a Do Not Disturb exception too.
Two-factor authentication (2FA) is the single highest-value thing you can do to protect your Guardian account.
Settings, then Security, then Set up 2FA. Scan the QR code with an authenticator app (Google Authenticator, Authy, 1Password), or tap "Can't scan? Enter this key manually" if you can't. Enter the 6-digit code the app shows and tap Confirm & turn on.
Enter your email and password as usual, then the 6-digit code your authenticator app shows right now, it changes every 30 seconds.
Settings, then Security, then Turn off 2FA. You'll be asked for your password again to confirm, deliberately, so a stolen open session alone can't disable your account's protection.
Contact support, there's no self-service backup-code flow yet, an honest current gap.
If your account covers more than one property, Settings shows a site switcher, a dropdown listing every site on your account.
Settings, then the site dropdown. Choosing a different site reloads Home, Cameras, Incidents, and Schedule (Business plans) around that site's own data, nothing carries over between sites.
Arming, cameras, incidents, contacts, and schedule all belong to one site. Your login, password, and two-factor authentication belong to your account and cover every site on it.
Not self-service yet, contact support with the new property's address and camera setup.
Video only, never audio. No continuous 24/7 recording, only short clips and snapshots from moments a person is detected while armed.
30 days by default, then automatically deleted. Saved incidents can be exported and kept permanently. You can request early deletion at any time.
You. Every access to a clip requires your own account session, and it's logged. No back door screen.
You do. Guardian holds your footage as a custodian, releasing only to you or under legal compulsion.
NSW's Workplace Surveillance Act generally requires written notice to staff and visible signage. Guardian's compliance pack has ready templates for both. Doesn't apply to a private home.
Point cameras at your own property. Recording a neighbour's private space can cause real disputes. Keep the view on your own land and the street approach.
Contact support and ask for an export, covering account and site settings, incident history, and saved evidence packs.
Ask any time, you don't need to be cancelling and you don't need a reason.
Only you. Guardian staff can't casually browse client footage.
Guardian Home is $49 a month. Business starts at $299 (Starter), then $599 (Standard), then $1,199 (Premium) for multi-site and priority support.
No contract term, no cancellation fee. Cancel any time from Settings, Billing.
No setup fee, no equipment markup, no installation charge. The only cost outside your subscription is the camera and small computer you buy yourself, typically around $300.
Move between plans or update your card any time from Settings, Billing, the change takes effect from your next billing date. If a charge looks wrong, contact support with the date and amount so someone can check your actual account.
Settings, then Billing, then cancel. Takes effect at the end of your current billing period, no fee. Your footage keeps its normal 30 day retention, your camera and hub hardware are yours to keep, Guardian never had them.
If something specific isn't working, it's worth a quick message to support first, most of what drives people to cancel turns out to be fixable.