Surveillance cameras heighten privacy concerns
Feb 07, 2007
In some cities in Europe and the United States, a person can be videotaped by surveillance cameras hundreds of times a day, and it is safe to say that most of the time no one is actually watching.
In some cities in Europe and the United States, a person can be videotaped by surveillance cameras hundreds of times a day, and it is safe to say that most of the time no one is actually watching.
But the advent of “intelligent video†— software that raises the alarm if something on camera appears amiss — means Big Brother will soon be able to keep a more constant watch, a prospect that is sure to heighten privacy concerns.
Combining motion detection technology with the learning capabilities of video game software, these new systems can detect people loitering, walking in circles or leaving a package.
New microphone technology can isolate the sound of a gunshot and direct the attached camera to swivel and zoom in on the source.
Sensitivity may reach the point where microphones could pick out the word “explosives†spoken in a crowd.
Since the attacks on the US on September 11, 2001, sections of New York, Washington, Los Angeles, Chicago and even a few smaller towns have been blanketed with closed-circuit cameras. Privately owned cameras are also proliferating.
False positives
The encroachment on privacy in what civil libertarians call a “surveillance society†may be a price willingly paid by citizens who fear terrorism and crime.
But ever-alert software capable of maintaining a continuous “watch†on security cameras multiplies the risks of harassing innocent people, privacy experts say.
“I don’t buy it. The number of false positives are going to be astronomical,†said David Holtzman, author of Privacy Lost. “It is extremely dangerous to abrogate legitimate law enforcement authority ... to a camera.â€
In Chicago’s darkened, windowless surveillance centre, Velasquez looks forward to using new technology, which has had some success elsewhere.
The port of Jacksonville, Florida, has dispensed with human monitoring of cameras by sending alerts and live video to the personal digital assistant of the nearest officer on patrol, according to a spokesman for ObjectVideo Inc, one of two dozen companies seeking to perfect so-called intelligent video
Reuters
But the advent of “intelligent video†— software that raises the alarm if something on camera appears amiss — means Big Brother will soon be able to keep a more constant watch, a prospect that is sure to heighten privacy concerns.
Combining motion detection technology with the learning capabilities of video game software, these new systems can detect people loitering, walking in circles or leaving a package.
New microphone technology can isolate the sound of a gunshot and direct the attached camera to swivel and zoom in on the source.
Sensitivity may reach the point where microphones could pick out the word “explosives†spoken in a crowd.
Since the attacks on the US on September 11, 2001, sections of New York, Washington, Los Angeles, Chicago and even a few smaller towns have been blanketed with closed-circuit cameras. Privately owned cameras are also proliferating.
False positives
The encroachment on privacy in what civil libertarians call a “surveillance society†may be a price willingly paid by citizens who fear terrorism and crime.
But ever-alert software capable of maintaining a continuous “watch†on security cameras multiplies the risks of harassing innocent people, privacy experts say.
“I don’t buy it. The number of false positives are going to be astronomical,†said David Holtzman, author of Privacy Lost. “It is extremely dangerous to abrogate legitimate law enforcement authority ... to a camera.â€
In Chicago’s darkened, windowless surveillance centre, Velasquez looks forward to using new technology, which has had some success elsewhere.
The port of Jacksonville, Florida, has dispensed with human monitoring of cameras by sending alerts and live video to the personal digital assistant of the nearest officer on patrol, according to a spokesman for ObjectVideo Inc, one of two dozen companies seeking to perfect so-called intelligent video
Reuters