How We Curate Cameras
Port of Cams isn't a scrape-and-publish directory. Every camera on the site goes through a review process before it's listed, and stays under continuous monitoring after it's live. This page documents how we choose what to publish, how we keep listings accurate, and what disqualifies a camera from inclusion.
1. What Qualifies as a Cam-of-Record
We list cameras that are live, public, and authorized for redistribution by the operator or by an applicable open-data program. That includes government agency feeds (Caltrans, Alaska DOT 511, NWS, USGS), public partner cameras served via documented APIs (Windy), tourism and resort cameras with explicit permission, and our own hosted feeds. We do not relist cameras that operators have asked us to remove, and we do not rehost private security or trespass-style feeds even when technically accessible.
2. Source Verification
Before a camera is added we verify three things: that the operator publishes the stream for public viewing, that the stream metadata (location, view direction, time zone) is accurate, and that there is a stable URL or API endpoint we can poll without overloading the source. Government cameras are checked against the relevant agency's open-data documentation. Partner cameras require a written authorization. Our own hosted feeds are installed under written agreement with the property owner — terms documented on the Host a Cam page.
3. Editorial Page Build
Each listed camera gets a dedicated page with hand-checked location data, a written description of what the camera shows and what's worth watching for at different times of day, structured data for search engines, and contextual links to weather, surf, aviation, or volcanic data sourced from NOAA, NWS, Open-Meteo, USGS, and FAA APIs. We do not auto-publish bare embeds. Pages also include relevant local context — nearby roads, parking, viewing tips, season-by-season notes — written by a person who has either visited the location or worked closely with the operator.
4. Continuous Health Monitoring
Streams are checked by an automated health monitor that pings every camera on a fixed schedule. When a camera goes offline or starts returning unusable frames, we display a clear "currently offline" message on the camera page instead of leaving viewers with a broken player. The internal alert routes to our operations queue so someone investigates within hours. Repeated failures or extended downtime trigger removal from active listings and from the sitemap.
5. Takedown and Removal
We honor takedown requests from operators within 24 hours of a verified request. If a camera operator changes their terms of use, restricts redistribution, or asks us to remove their feed, we remove it — no questions asked, no requirement to provide a reason. Copyright concerns and DMCA notices go to legal@portofcams.com. Cameras that have been removed are kept out of search results via robots.txt and noindex headers on any residual URLs.
6. What We Don't Do
We don't scrape and republish feeds without authorization. We don't list private home security cameras even if a URL is publicly accessible. We don't list cameras with intrusive or identifying views of individuals. We don't use AI-generated location descriptions or fake locations to inflate page counts. We don't accept paid placement to rank a camera higher; ad placements are clearly labeled as ads and are independent of our editorial selection. We don't relist content that has been removed at an operator's request.
7. How to Reach Us
Operators who want their camera removed, added, or updated should email cams@portofcams.com. Viewers who spot something wrong on a page — outdated location, broken feed, missing context — should email fix@portofcams.com. We respond to both addresses within one to two business days. Full contact options are listed on the Contact page.