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Ubiquitous Surveillance

Posted by michael on from the panopticon dept.

lightray writes: "The New York Times is running an article titled A Cautionary Tale for a New Age of Surveillance which gives an alarming view of America's possible future -- and Britain's present." Excellent article, just excellent. (The author has also written a good book on privacy recently.) "And rather than thwarting serious crime, the cameras are being used to enforce social conformity in ways that Americans may prefer to avoid."

2 of 443 comments (clear)

  1. uk resident... by jamesidm · · Score: 5, Insightful

    well I live in the UK, and when my girlfriend was hit by a car those cameras came in very useful. They are only in PUBLIC places (and only high streets for that matter). If you want to do private stuff, do it in a private place, it's that simple. The paranoia against cameras seems unjustified to me but hey I live with them and have not been arrested or stopped yet :P

  2. David Brin's suggestion by gbnewby · · Score: 4, Insightful
    In "The Transparent Society" (highly recommended) sci-fi author and physicist David Brin talks about a future society where cameras are everywhere. I'm starting to think this part of his vision is inevitable. In the US, where the 4th amendment protects against some forms of surveillance, it's mostly been interpreted to only protect things we do in our homes. The streets, and the workplace, are open game for nearly any type of surveillance.

    The important part: Brin wanted ANYONE to be able to tap into the cameras, ANY TIME. He also wanted cameras watching the watchers: we should be able to turn into our local police station, and make sure they're doing their job properly. This is the part that's missing from current proposals in the US and current practice in the UK, yet it would clearly be beneficial:

    • More watchers, including the public
    • We would know when the cameras are being abused (e.g., zooming in on the pretty girls in the mall...)
    • Accountability for law enforcement. If the cameras are there, we want to make sure they're i the right locations, and functional, and being used properly.
    • Tangential benefits, such as having better network infrastructure for live video multicasting.

    In a world where surveillance seems impossible to avoid, I can only wish that Brin's vision had a better chance of becoming reality.