i get constant false motion alerts from my tapo camera, it records every time a shadow moves or it gets cloudy.

— asked by Casey

Quick answer: The camera's motion detection is being triggered by changes in light (like moving clouds or shadows) rather than actual objects. The default sensitivity and detection zone settings are often too broad.

Diagnosis

The camera's motion detection is being triggered by changes in light (like moving clouds or shadows) rather than actual objects. The default sensitivity and detection zone settings are often too broad.

How to Fix It

Open the camera's live view in the Tapo app, tap the settings gear, and go to Detection Settings > Motion Detection. First, lower the Sensitivity slider—try dropping it to 'Medium' or 'Low'. Second, use the Detection Zone feature. Draw a zone that covers only the areas you care about (like a driveway, not the sky or a busy street). This reduces alerts from irrelevant areas.

If That Didn't Work

If it's still going off for shadows in your defined zone, look for the Activity Zone Filtering or similar advanced option. Enabling this tells the camera to ignore light changes and focus on detecting distinct shapes (people, vehicles).

Heads Up

These settings are separate for each detection type (Person, Vehicle, etc.). If you have those AI features enabled, you might need to adjust the sensitivity for each one individually to fine-tune it.

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