Quick Answer
When was CCTV invented and how has it developed?
CCTV dates to 1942, when German engineers set up a closed-circuit system to observe rocket launches from a safe distance. Commercial systems followed in the 1950s, but early cameras had no recording, so someone had to watch live. Videotape recording in the 1970s made review possible, and multiplexing in the 1990s let several cameras record to one device. Digital recorders and then IP networking added remote viewing, motion search, and the high-resolution systems used today.