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First Witness Video Surveillance Systems
Backgrounds Unlimited, Inc., trading as
First Witness Video Surveillance Systems, abbreviated First Witness,
was a manufacturer and reseller of covert audio and video surveillance systems,
based in Mount Sidney (Virginia, USA).
The company was founded on 1 May 1991 1 by Thomas Scott Cline –
a former Waynesboro police narcotics officer – after he saw a need for
surveillance cameras for drug busts.
Today, the company is known as First Witness Security.
Cline developed his first wireless video surveillance system whilst he was
still working as a police officer, as part of a state police drug task force.
In 1991, he started the business together with his wife Teresa from their
home in Staunton, under the name Backgrounds Unlimited, Inc.
In early 1995 he left the police force to persue a full-time business career.
About 18 months later, in April 1996, the business was
transferred to a larger premises in Mount Sidney in April 1996.
Most, if not all, of First Witness' products were imported from countries like Taiwan and China.
Between 1999 and 2004, only four products were submitted to the FCC for
approval, and even those were developed and manufactured by the Taiwanese company
RF-Link Systems, Inc. These products were subsequently concealed in inconspicuous
household items, such as a clock/radio.
Around 2017, when the covert video market became saturated with cheap devices
from Chinese websites like AliExpress, First Witness' turnover began to decline.
The company subsequently converted itself to a supplier and installer of home and
business surveillance and alarm systems, and renamed itself First Witness Security.
It is currently located in Harrisonburg (VA, USA).
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In the 2009 company brochure [I] it is claimed that First Witness
was established in 1990, but on his Linkedin page the founder/owner confirms
that it was 1 May 1991. We believe the latter to be correct as it aligns
with the company's registration details.
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First Witness equipment on this website
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- Backgrounds Unlimited, Inc. (1991)
Thomas Scott Cline
175 Idlewood Blvd
Staunton, VA24401
USA
- First Witness Video Surveillance Systems (1995)
Same address as above.
- Backgrounds Unlimited, Inc. (1996)
Old Town Hall
Route 11 South
P.O.Box 327
Mount Sidney, VA 24467
USA
Phone: +1 (0)909-394 1718
Website: >http://backgroundsunlimited.com
- First Witness Video Surveillance Systems (1996)
Old Town Hall
Route 11 South
P.O.Box 327
Mt. Sidney, VA 24467
USA
Phone: +1 (0)800-880 1521
Website: >http://www.firstwitness.com
- First Witness Security (2017)
440 Acorn Drive
Harrisonburg, VA 22802
USA
Phone: +1 (0)540-422 0086
Website: https://firstwitnesssecurity.com
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- Ranoke Times, Spy Shop Fools Antique Hunters
Associated Press (AP), Mount Sidney (VA, USA), 5 July 1996.
- Linkedin, Scott Cline
Accessed 16 September 2026.
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© Crypto Museum. Created: Wednesday 16 September 2026. Last changed: Friday, 18 September 2026 - 10:55 CET.
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