CaseGuard alternatives for video redaction: pros, cons, and what to look for

#What to look for in a CaseGuard alternative

From our experience working with organizations across retail, healthcare, transportation, and education, teams that need to complete video redaction projects are often already stretched thin and need a solution that can automate as much of the redaction work as possible.

Based on that, here are the main factors to consider:

#Easy to use without extensive training

It should be easy to redact footage from start to finish without a steep learning curve.

Key questions to ask:

• Does the interface require minimal clicks to get from raw footage to a redacted export?

• Can staff use it confidently without formal training?

• How easy is it to make changes to the whole video without going through frame-by-frame updates?

#Support for all relevant footage formats

In an ideal-case scenario, teams only need to work on a single recording. But in many cases, SARs require combining multiple types of footage, from CCTV cameras, bodycams, dashcams or mobile phone recordings.

Key questions to ask:

• What are the most common file types and formats we need to redact — does the software support them? What about occasional requests?

• If not, is there a way to import those files into the software without having to go through file conversions?

#Ability to handle typical video redaction projects

You may need to redact different types of scenarios captured in the footage, such as parking lots, crowded rooms, sensitive areas, or outside venues in suboptimal conditions, and some tools don’t perform as well on low-quality footage or when redacting quickly moving people or vehicles.

Key questions to ask:

• Does the software support different blur types for different video environments?

• How easy is it to switch between different blur modes and adjust settings?

• How well does this tool perform with typical types of footage we need to process?

#Easy to integrate into your existing infrastructure

Ideally, redaction fits into your existing workflows, rather than forcing you to rebuild your workflow around a new tool.

Key questions to ask:

• Is it possible to integrate the tool with our VMS?

• Is it worth setting up an integrated redaction workflow, or is the volume of video requests not high enough for this to be necessary?

#Pricing structure allows for predictable budgeting

Different video redaction tools have different pricing approaches – and some of them make it very hard to predict video redaction costs.

Key questions to ask:

• Based on the expected number of videos to redact and their duration, what are the projected redaction costs across different tools? 

• What happens if we need additional minutes – how does that change the projected costs?

Now that you have some initial suggestions on how to evaluate video redaction solutions, we’ll present 3 alternatives to CaseGuard, starting with our product, Identity Cloak, including pros and cons of each one:

• Identity Cloak

• Secure Redact

• Ocucon

#CaseGuard alternatives: Identity Cloak

Identity Cloak is a flexible video redaction tool that automates video redaction for various types of formats and recording environments, without sending video data outside your network. It is trusted by 130+ organisations in 23 countries, including King's College Hospital, Nottingham City Transport, Tate, and more. Read more about it below.

#Simple redaction workflow that takes 12 minutes on average

We designed Identity Cloak so that it's easy to get from raw footage to a redacted export without having to go through a training.

The workflow consists of four steps: import and trim footage, set up redaction settings, run autotracking, review and export. Most of the changes during the review can be made with a single click. 

Automated tracking and blurring handle the heavy lifting — operators select the subject of interest, and the AI tracks them through the clip.

"It's so intuitive that all of our staff can use it more or less straight away. The change over from the old system to the new system was very, very quick."
— Geoff Shepherd, CCTV Supervisor, Nottingham City Transport

"I think one of the Identity Cloak advantages is that it is not complicated. The video redaction software is a very stable system that provides you with a number of useful tools and works in different environments."
— Russell Martin, Head of Customer Care & Sales Projects, TeamSport

#Support for multiple formats, including legacy files

Identity Cloak imports MP4 and API files, plus legacy file formats through screen recording. This way teams can handle any file that can be played on the computer screen.

Reach out to our team if you want to confirm Identity Cloak can handle your files before you start your trial.

#Flexible redaction settings for different types of footage

Identity Cloak’s blur features make it easy to handle different types of scenarios and different types of footage: videos of people with partially obscured faces, footage of moving cars and recordings from bodycams where people verbally share personal information.

This allows you to handle the requests that don't fit a simple template without switching tools or spending time on frame-by-frame cleanup.

Here’s an overview of different types of redaction available in Identity Cloak:

• Face blur — AI-powered detection and autotracking of faces across the full clip

• Full body blur — blurs the entire person, not just the face

• Licence plate blur — autotracking for vehicles, including vehicles in motion

• Object blur — one-click blurring for static items like signage, screens, or posters

• Custom shape blur — square and elliptical tools for manual redaction of specific areas

• Audio redaction — remove or mute audio tracks

"I was able to redact an 8-minute clip from start to finish in about 10 minutes, which usually could take up to 30 or longer depending on the footage itself."
— Data and Access Support Officer, MerseyRail

#Several deployment options: desktop, Milestone plug-in, and API

Exporting clips from the VMS, importing them into the redaction tool, processing, and re-exporting them again can become a time-consuming and error-prone process.

To reduce the number of video redaction steps, Identity Cloak offers different deployment options depending on data privacy requirements and existing infrastructure.

There are three ways you can deploy Identity Cloak:

1. Standalone desktop application — install on any Windows machine and import any footage, including proprietary CCTV formats via the built-in screen recorder. 

2. Milestone XProtect plug-in — for teams already working in Milestone.
   The Milestone Live plug-in blurs faces and bodies on live camera streams in real time, with permission-based controls for authorised users.  The Milestone Playback plug-in redacts recorded videos inside the client.
   Both can be rolled out in under 10 minutes and are compatible with all XProtect Corporate versions from 2023 onwards, across all stream types (body-worn, PTZ, 360°, fixed dome).

3. API — hosted on AWS or Azure, for teams that want to integrate redaction directly into their own applications or case management systems. The same data minimisation principles apply: no video data is stored or retained by Facit.

"Facit saves us time. A 1-minute video takes 8 minutes to process. That's start-to-finish — uploading the video, processing and exporting."
— Geoff Shepherd, CCTV Supervisor, Nottingham City Transport

#Per-video pricing with no video duration or file size limits

Identity Cloak's pricing is based on the number of videos redacted per year, with no limits on the number of video sources, imported video duration, or length of exported footage. Additional videos can be added to any plan, and unused paid-for minutes roll over month to month.

We also offer discounts for organisations in the healthcare and education sectors.

"The investment in Identity Cloak is value for money. There are many ways in which the software has paid for itself, from risk and reputation management to cost-effective compliance with GDPR, as failure to comply with GDPR carries hefty fines."
— Barry Palmer, Head of Safety and Security, Tate Foundation

#Other CaseGuard alternatives worth considering

#Secure Redact

Secure Redact is a cloud-first video redaction platform with strong API capabilities. It's a reasonable option for organisations that are comfortable with cloud processing. 

We often get customers asking how Identity Cloak compares to Secure Redact, and we've published a more detailed comparison post here.

Read an in-depth breakdown of the pros and cons of on-premise and cloud-based solutions in this article

#Ocucon

Ocucon is a cloud-based video redaction service worth considering if you need to support a broader range of input file types.

That said, there are two practical limitations to consider:

1. Ocucon operates as a cloud service, which means video data leaves your network as a part of the standard workflow. 

2. Ocucon's pricing is licensed on a per-minute basis, starting from as little as 5 minutes per month with the option to add on additional minutes. 

That model works well for very low-volume use, but becomes harder to budget for as request volumes grow.

#Try Identity Cloak free for 7 days

If your team processes multiple SARs, needs footage to stay on-premise, and wants predictable pricing with no video duration limits, see if Identity Cloak is the right fit for your team. Start your free trial and test Identity Cloak for 7 days. No credit card required, and you can be redacting your first video in under 15 minutes.

Or book a demo and we'll walk through your specific footage types and show you the full workflow.

#Related articles

Best video redaction software: what to look for (and a full Identity Cloak walkthrough)

Guide to CCTV Video Redaction and GDPR Compliance