Big Brother Calls 'Shotgun' In Illinois

Reader kackle joins the army of free and accepted Slashdot submitters with this eyebrow-raising story: "I received a form letter from the Illinois State Toll Highway Authority saying that my first-generation 'IPASS' transponder needs to be replaced because the battery is old. I called them for clarification since the first-generation transponders obviously have user-replaceable batteries, and I wanted to keep this version because it beeps when a toll is paid. (This notifies drivers that their battery is still good, unlike the silent second-generation version, which informs them of a dead battery by sending a ticket in the mail.) The woman on the phone explained that they were replacing them just because the electronics are old. This uninformed answer made me research the device. I found that the manufacturer has recently filed a patent application for a new transponder that has a camera in it — a camera pointed inward at the occupants. How long before they make it illegal to cover that camera with tape?"

Comments

Re:Damn

[Skreems]

Yeah! On the bus, the only cameras recording me are the 3 or 4 little black domes mounted on the ceiling!

Wait...

Non-story

[OverlordQ]

The next abstract part:

and an evaluation unit connected down-line of the camera that detects and counts the passengers of the vehicle in the image recording.

Sounds like a company that makes toll devices, are patenting a toll device that can enforce HOV Tolls by detecting if you actually have more then one person in the vehicle . . . . imagine that.

which informs them of a dead battery by sending a ticket in the mail.

Nothing in that first page had *anything* to do with a battery, it had to do with their billing system and having invalid license plate data.

This uninformed answer made me research the device.

And come up with the completely wrong conclusion.

Jesus christ I know /. isn't what it used to be, but seriously is this the Daily Mail now?